As you read this, you probably know people who are out hunting bargains in these first days of sales promotions leading up to the holidays. If you work retail, you’ve probably already put in some long hours and can will…
Ranking states is difficult, arbitrary
When Forbes magazine’s annual ranking of “Best States for Business” placed our state in ninth position, some Minnesotans started patting themselves on the back. Others scratched their heads because warnings about a supposed hostile “business climate” have been a staple…
The plus side of defense spending
Dwight Eisenhower was no economist, but he understood basic economic concepts. In a 1953 speech, just three months after taking office as president, and three days after the death of Joseph Stalin, Eisenhower argued that “Every gun that is made,…
Deflation hurts as much as inflation
If inflation, a rising general price level, hurts people, don’t falling prices help them? If so, why is there all the news about central banks, including the U.S. Federal Reserve, being scared of deflation? And why is Narayana Kocherlakota, the…