Economy and Business
Cameron Is Cornered
It's said that there's nothing more vicious than a wild animal that's cornered. I'd add that there's nothing more devious than a top corporate or political official caught in a hypocritical scandal. Witness the huge menagerie of political critters who've recently been...
These Billboards Have Eyes
OK people, we need to discuss billboards. Yes, we really must. At best, these giant corporate placards are problematic — they loom garishly over us, clutter our landscapes, and intrude into our communities with no respect for local aesthetics or preferences. Now,...
Wall Street Should Pay a Sales Tax, Too
In case there was any doubt, the presidential election fight has confirmed that blasting Wall Street, even eight years after the financial crisis, is still a vote-getter. Hillary Clinton has said she’d like to jail more bankers. Donald Trump has skewered the hedge...
Give “Tax and Spend” a Chance
This time of year, a whole lot of Americans are feeling taxed enough already. But the astonishing momentum of Bernie Sanders’s presidential candidacy reveals something else: Millions of taxpayers are willing to entertain the idea that some of us aren’t taxed enough,...
Missing in Action: Political Reality and Leadership
Every federal budget is a dream sheet. They're all unrealistic. It goes something like this: The president lays out a slate of new programs, revenue raisers, and strategic cuts. Then Republican leaders pull out their X-Acto knives, highlighting cuts to programs they...
NBA: The National Billboard Association?
Billboards must be living creatures, for they appear to propagate like breeding rabbits. They spread everywhere, growing to enormous sizes while shouting corporate messages at us. Some even watch and track us with their digital eyes. Now, though, rather than...
The Great American Plane Robbery
If you take the word "free" and rip the "r" out of it, what do you get? Two things, actually: You get a "fee" — and then you get mad. This is happening to millions of airline passengers who are discovering that the advertised price of a ticket isn't the half of it....
My Oily Heirloom
I'll feel empowered when ExxonMobil convenes its upcoming annual shareholders meeting. Oddly, that’s because I’ve sold all my stock in the company. Shareholders like me and some major institutions, including New York State’s $178 billion pension fund, have urged the...
Caught in the Corporate Feeding Frenzy
The “human resources” departments of huge corporations are known for issuing helpful bulletins to employees, such as this old joke: “The beatings will continue until morale improves.” Beatings of workers these days take the form of slashing wages and benefits,...
Requiem for a Wrecking Ball
Aubrey McClendon’s 2013 Chevy Tahoe ignited after he slammed into an Oklahoma City overpass at high speed. Flames charred the brazen oil and gas executive’s body so badly that medical experts relied on dental records to verify that he'd died. One day before McClendon...
