The tsunami that has devastated coastal areas of northeastern Japan has a recent precedent — the tsunami of Dec. 26, 2004, in the Indian Ocean that killed some 230,000 people. But there is no precedent for the wave of money…
Japan’s triple whammy a definitive exogenous shock
One of the many layers of the evolving tragedy in Japan is that it illustrates how an exogenous shock can hit a nation’s economy. The physical damage already is severe. Until the ongoing nuclear plant emergency is fully played out,…
Vaccinate one child and many benefit
As usual, Minnesota is above the national average in the proportions of children who are vaccinated against infectious diseases, according to a news item this week. Unfortunately, those proportions are declining, and we are not so far above the average…
America’s incredibly shrinking labor pool
The proportion of adults in the labor force is dropping in Minnesota and the nation as a whole. That raises a host of questions. Is this a bad sign for our economy? Is it an effect of the economic slowdown…