Economic Growth

Cornered

Erin Drankoski — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 09:34:00 -0500

Regular Harpers and Financial Times contributor Barry C. Lynn paints a genuinely alarming picture: most of our public debates about globalization, competitiveness, creative destruction, and risky finance are nothing more than a cover for the widespread consolidation of power in nearly every imaginable sector of the American economy.

Shadow Elite

Kirsten Gilbert — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 13:45:00 -0500

A New America Event
12/01/2009 - 12:15pm

Please join New America in a conversation between Janine Wedel and Michael Lind about her new book Shadow Elite. Governments and administrations come and go, but not so a new breed of power brokers, who always seem to pop up just where the action is. Wearing different hats, they press their agendas in venue after venue. According to award-winning public policy scholar and anthropologist Janine Wedel, these are the "shadow elite," the prime movers in a vexing new system of power and influence.

Short-time Work May Be Too Short-Term for U.S.

Economic Growth — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 12:22:00 -0500

Since President Obama announced the December job summit this month, the policy world has scrambled to put forth their ideas on how to best stimulate job creation in our jobless recovery. Some have noticed the surprisingly low German unemployment rate in the face of the Great Recession; Germany has been one of the worst-hit European economies, but their unemployment rate ticked down from 8.6 percent in March to 7.7 percent in October of this year. Commentators have credited Germany's ability to retain jobs to a 5 billion Euro government policy directly aimed at

The Next Stage

Kirsten Gilbert — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 13:00:00 -0500

A New America Event
11/13/2009 - 8:30am

The current state of the "shadow banking system," rising unemployment rates, the sinking value of the dollar, and the lasting mortgage crisis demonstrate the need for long-view reform. The Next Stage will consider the larger implications of the new administration's economic policy on the economy and the international financial and monetary system. Featured speakers include James K. Galbraith, Stephany Griffith-Jones, Jan Kregel, Robert Johnson, and others.

A Better Way to Regulate Financial Markets

Economic Growth — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 09:14:00 -0500

There is widespread recognition that the financial crisis which triggered the Great Recession was significantly due to financial excess, particularly related to real estate. Now, policymakers are looking to reform financial systems in hope of avoiding future crises. But like the drunk who looks for his lost keys under the lamppost because that is where the light is, policymakers remain fixated on capital standards because that is what is already in place.

A Better Way to Regulate Financial Markets: Asset Based Reserve Requirements

Kate Schuler — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 13:38:00 -0500

There is widespread recognition that the financial crisis, which triggered the Great Recession, was significantly due to financial excess, particularly in real estate lending. Now, policymakers are looking to reform the financial system in hope of avoiding future crises. But like the drunk who looks for his lost keys under the lamppost because that is where the light is, policymakers remain fixated on capital standards because that is what is already in place.

Thomas Palley

Kate Schuler — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 12:39:00 -0500

Bernard L. Schwartz Economic Growth Fellow

Dr. Thomas Palley is the Bernard L. Schwartz Economic Growth Fellow. Prior to joining New America, Dr. Palley was the Chief Economist with the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission. He was Director of the Open Society Institute's Globalization Reform Project, and before that he was Assistant Director of Public… more

Policymakers Beware: Falling $US and Undervalued Yuan a Recipe for Disaster

Erin Drankoski — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 10:31:00 -0500

Over the past several weeks, the US dollar's depreciation against the euro and yen has grabbed global attention.

In a normal world, a weaker US dollar would be welcome, as it would help the US come to grips with its unsustainable trade deficit.

But because China links its yuan to the US dollar at an undervalued parity, the US dollar's depreciation risks major global economic damage, complicating the recovery from the worldwide recession.

Landing a Job Like Getting into Harvard

Erin Drankoski — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 11:50:00 -0500

The 650,000 jobs created or saved by the stimulus package so far make up only a small step toward correcting the gap between the tens of millions of unemployed people and the few openings that those people are fighting over.

Even the administration's goal of creating 3.5 million jobs is far below what the economy really needs. With an official unemployment rate of 10.2 percent, the gap between the number of full-time job openings and the number of people who are unemployed has widened.

Why Dilbert Is Doomed

Erin Drankoski — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:51:00 -0500

Where are tomorrow's jobs going to come from? The question is more urgent than ever, with official unemployment hovering around 10 percent and with nearly one in five Americans unemployed, if you count part-time workers who want full-time jobs and people so desperate that they have given up looking for work entirely.