Category Archives: I For One Welcome Our Austerity Overlords

The Radical Ideology Of Militant Centrism

Posted on June 12, 2018 by mikethemadbiologist

Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz seems to be toying with a presidential election bid, because right now, what America needs is a radical austerian (boldface mine): In recent interviews, Schultz has argued that progressive Democrats have grown so rigidly ideological, … Continue reading →

Posted in I For One Welcome Our Austerity Overlords | 3 Comments

Our Scientific Infrastructure Is Decaying

Posted on October 24, 2016 by mikethemadbiologist

Let’s ignore for a moment that we just shut down a fusion power research center that recently set a scientific record. Because that’s just too depressing to think about. Instead, let’s move on to how we’re getting our butts kicked … Continue reading →

Posted in Funding, I For One Welcome Our Austerity Overlords | Comments Off on Our Scientific Infrastructure Is Decaying

The Failure Of Governance Of D.C.’s Metro Rolls On

Posted on September 13, 2016 by mikethemadbiologist

Once again, D.C. Metro is facing a failure of governance–and it’s not just Metro’s management, but the unwillingness of regional politicians to spend the needed money on the system. As a consequence, Metro, rather than transforming itself into a mass … Continue reading →

Posted in DC, I For One Welcome Our Austerity Overlords, Transportation, We're Really Fucked | Comments Off on The Failure Of Governance Of D.C.’s Metro Rolls On

The Politics of Hopelessness

Posted on March 5, 2016 by mikethemadbiologist

I’m tired of feeling like we’re losing even when we (sort of) win (boldface mine): Amid all the accusations that Hillary Clinton is not an honest or authentic politician, that she’s an endless shape-shifter who says whatever works to get … Continue reading →

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Sunday Sermon: Bernie’s Free Lunch

Posted on October 25, 2015 by mikethemadbiologist

And one for Hillary as well, though she seems less inclined to take it (unfortunately). This is a point I’ve made many times before–deficit spending per se is not inherently good or bad (boldface mine): Not only do we not … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, I For One Welcome Our Austerity Overlords | 1 Comment

They’re Still Lying About the Post Office’s ‘Insolvency’

Posted on October 14, 2015 by mikethemadbiologist

I’ve written many, many times about the false fiscal crisis that the United States Postal Service (‘USPS’) supposedly faces. In 2006, Congress passed the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act (PAEA) which requires USPS to pre-fund 75 years of worker benefits … Continue reading →

Posted in Bidness, Democrats, I For One Welcome Our Austerity Overlords, USPS | 1 Comment

All Right We Are Two Nations

Posted on June 3, 2014 by mikethemadbiologist

Recently, the Russell Sage Foundation surveyed what they called “elites”, people who are at or near the top 1 percent of U.S. wealth-holders and have an average income of more than $1 million annually. As the kids used to say … Continue reading →

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I’m Going With “Economic Elite Domination”

Posted on April 14, 2014 by mikethemadbiologist

There’s a very interesting post by Larry Bartels about a recent political science paper that examines which groups in the U.S. succeed in the political system. You’ll never guess what happened next! A forthcoming article in Perspectives on Politics by … Continue reading →

Posted in Bidness, Economics, I For One Welcome Our Austerity Overlords | 5 Comments

NIH Cuts and Science Job Losses

Posted on March 7, 2014 by mikethemadbiologist

Jeremy Berg lays out what the failure to replace the sequestration cuts at NIH means: Also, based on previous years, we can reason that about 30 percent of those who would have been funded without the sequester would have been … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Funding, I For One Welcome Our Austerity Overlords, NIH | 2 Comments

Now We Will Lose Fungal Resources: The Infrastructure Hits Just Keep Coming

Posted on February 13, 2014 by mikethemadbiologist

The next time you hear someone talk about how important science is, you might want to remind them that you get what you pay for (boldface mine): This morning brought another piece of bad news. This concerns a valuable resource … Continue reading →

Posted in A Fungus Among Us, Funding, I For One Welcome Our Austerity Overlords, NSF | 1 Comment