Category: "pessimism"

I completely oppose US war in Syria

April 13th, 2018
It could not be any more clear that this. more »

your next go at finding an apartment in Seattle might be thwarted

December 12th, 2016
It's not clear how advocates expect to make housing more accessible in Seattle by taking steps that make it less available. more »

Here's where employment will decline the most in Washington

November 27th, 2016
The election has upset plans and expectations around the globe, but there's plenty of additional disapppointment to come with the fallout, I'm sure.  One likely place to look will be around the consequences of large increases to the minimum wage allowed… more »

getting it good and hard

March 15th, 2014
The Seattle City Council appears predisposed to attempt raising the minimum wage to as high as $15 per hour (currently at $9.19 in Washington). The agenda planned for a council meeting on Tuesday (3/18) has an hour dedicated to presentations by supporters, and 20 minutes reserved for comments; no time allowed for opponents of such a measure. ... I am not hopeful for the fate of unskilled labor in Seattle - the local pols are stacking the deck for making a large increase to the minimum wage, and naysayers don't have much of a voice. As one member states - “If I were against $15, I wouldn’t be on the mayor’s committee” more »

monumental vanity

March 8th, 2014
Politicos of various stripes squander the public purse on buildings, statues, and other fabrications that they hope will outlast their time in office more »

self-righteous/interest

February 23rd, 2014
The people who lose their jobs in the coming months will less clearly see the connection. Those who are never hired at all will just be lost. My pessimistic streak makes me think that the responsible people - Nick Hanauer, Patty Murray, Suzan DelBene, and their ilk - will deflect their responsibility for this disaster and be off on a new crusade to make it all better with a new pronouncement to restrict how the rest of us make our way in this world. more »

spy-gaming the public

August 12th, 2013
In all this, President O is known as a constitutional scholar, but it's clear he places little weight on the original construction of that document or the terms of the Bill of Rights. Particularly galling is how he invokes "the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America" to charter the Review Group, but like his predecessors he appears to believe the Constitution is infinitely flexible. more »

when would they tell us?

June 17th, 2013
I suppose one reason that Obama is now choosing to send arms to Syrian rebels is that it distracts attention from the domestic issue of widespread government spying on the citizenry.  more »

a liar in the white house?

May 21st, 2013
Was there no one in the press corp to ask a simple question, such as "why were you lying to us before now?" or "why should we believe any other statement you might make?" more »

econtalk

December 28th, 2012
I listen to a few podcasts, when I'm driving or walking around the city, doing laundry or working in the yard. Among them I find econtalk to be informative and engaging, due in part to the in-depth and calm discourse of the interview format between the diverse assortment of guests and host Russ Roberts. more »