Our house is 101 years old, and leaks in the original galvanized iron water piping have ruined ceiling plaster twice recently, so I am replacing all of the original water pipes with new copper. This extended effort gives me plenty…
Author: Ed Lotterman
Foreign trade sanctions, embargoes bring minimal change to U.S. economy
“How would the economy be affected if relations between the U.S. and China deteriorated badly?” One of my students posed that question when U.S. crewmembers were still detained in China. It had nothing to do with the course material at…
Law of supply and demand is harsh reality
Whenever a call comes in before 6:00 a.m., I know that it is either a death in the family or an ordinary business call from my brother-in-law, Rich. Rich is a dairy farmer and likes to get business out of…
Weigh costs of environmental, health measures against benefits
I’m no toxicologist, and I didn’t vote for him, but George W. Bush is getting a bum rap on his administration’s decision to put the kibosh on the new the10 parts-per-billion (ppb) limit on arsenic in drinking water. Take the…
Economist’s uncommon sense is key to solving energy problems
President Bush says that we are in an energy crisis. Apparently he bases his diagnosis on gasoline prices that are higher than ever (unadjusted for inflation) and on California’s electricity problems. I am not sure that these problems constitute a…
Reports of world events provide valuable instruction in economics
As someone who has taught introductory economics over the years, I always appreciate some educational help from the news media. Stories about macroeconomics filled the media this past week. Let me show you how I would use recent stories to…
Fed’s moderate rate cut is no real surprise
The deluded investors and analysts who were counting on the Fed to lower its target for short-term interest rates by three-quarters of a percentage point—or even a full point—certainly were disappointed by the half-percentage-point drop announced Tuesday afternoon. But for…
Bush’s agriculture rhetoric obscures harsh trade outlook for U.S. farmers
Dear President Bush: I heard part of your Sioux Falls speech on the radio the other day. I was so surprised to hear some of your comments on agriculture and trade that I checked the printed text of your remarks…
The Fed can’t save the market
Some days it isn’t easy being an economist. Wednesday morning, when the Dow was down about 270 points, I left my computer screen get a caffeine treat. As I bought an espresso at the local coffee bar, a neighborhood resident…
Spread of disease, storm disasters kept under control by government
When I was still a farmer, I enjoyed raising hogs and sheep, so recent photos from Britain showing muddy animal carcasses being swung onto layer-cake piles of diesel-soaked straw bales, old railroad ties and coal are disturbing. I feel for…