Wrap Up for August 2016

The EITC as a family support program, according to Brookings, boosted student grade levels more than other programs which were specifically targeted for that purpose. One only has to wonder: how much of a boost for learning might be gained, if students were monetarily reimbursed for actively assisting one another in the process? From the article:

It turns out that putting money directly into the pockets of low-income parents, as many other countries do, produces substantially larger gains in children's school achievement per dollar of expenditure than does a year of preschool or participation in Head Start. The results throw water on the conventional wisdom.

"Freedom now, it seems, has no clients. The last thing crony capitalists want is a truly free market." While Chris Dillow's arguments re capitalists may be overstated, he makes good points about the loss of freedom. http://stumblingandmumbling.typepad.com/stumbling_and_mumbling/2016/08/the-death-of-freedom.html

Marcus Nunes takes a closer look at "full employment" https://thefaintofheart.wordpress.com/2016/08/04/full-employment-is-supposedly-all-around-us/

What Fed-induced financial bubble? It's just not there. Good post from JP Koning.
https://jpkoning.blogspot.com/2016/07/monetary-policy-as-system-of-connected.html

In some respects, the rural divide is similar to that of more populous areas: http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Society/2016/0730/Rural-America-confronts-a-new-class-divide

Laurence Kotlikoff notes that politicians are "trained not to look at...uncomfortable facts," in his bid for the presidency.

The fact that support for democracy is eroding, is not something to be taken lightly.
https://conversableeconomist.blogspot.com/2016/08/is-support-for-democracy-eroding.html

A long standing relationship between productivity growth and wage growth has become less certain. http://www.newyorker.com/news/john-cassidy/the-great-productivity-puzzle

Is there a mainstream? This post from J.W. Mason of the Slack Wire blog, was picked up by both Evonomics and The Browser: http://evonomics.com/economist-mason-turn-concrete-economic-questions-isnt-really-mainstream/

So many of her themes are still prescient: http://commonedge.org/10-lessons-learned-by-rereading-jane-jacobs/

James Pethokoukis of AEI highlighted this report earlier in the month, "America Without Entrepreneurs: The Consequences of Dwindling Start-Up Activity"

Of late, the cost of economic access has risen more than healthcare.

Not every "proposal" for NGDP targeting is on the level.

States wanted more responsibility in these areas. How well have they done? https://www.aei.org/publication/welfare-reform-progress-states-step-up/

Scott Sumner refers to a battle for rents as the "trade wars of the 21st century". How much will the growing uncertainty over international tax systems affect international business investment?

Of occupational licensing, Ed Dolan asks:

Can a policy that is unanimously opposed by the conservative Heritage Foundation, the liberal Progressive Policy Institute, and the libertarian Reason Foundation last forever?