US government

Confessions of an Economic Populist

I am an economic populist. What does that mean? According to Wiki that means

a member of a United States political party formed in 1891 primarily to represent agrarian interests and to advocate the free coinage of silver and government control of monopolies.

a believer in the rights, wisdom, or virtues of the common people

The year 1891 was a long time ago are there really any Populist party members still around? Most likely no, and any politician who espouses populist rhetoric is instantly shouted down in the media by the opposition and even their own political party.

So who is the economic populist today?

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know about National Health Plans ….and maybe more.

Submitted by on

As I mentioned in the pub, I was going to start posting some information about National Health plans of other countries.

As we hear more and more about the credit a National Plan will bring to the US economy, I eventually plan to find the debit side of the ledger.  One example of a debit to the States is the Premium Tax.  I believe every State in the Nation has a 1 to 2 percent tax on Gross Premiums collected.  National Health will bring the loss of the premium tax that should be used in the balance sheet.  There is more but that is not what will be part of this diary.

My information is in MS WORD format, footnoted and I've edited it down to about 34 pages. I'll be copying and pasting my info (footnotes included).  I'll post anywhere from one to several countries each day; countries are presented in alphabetical order..  Finally when I reach the last day, I will post a bit of information on the US Medicare plan.

Treasury Trouble: Is the government giving bad TIPS?

A little story passed by the radar of most folks this past week. A piece of news that really shows the US reaching a watershed moment. What is this oh so awesome thing? Well it isn't awesome, in fact, it isn't good at all. Investors are starting to reject government securities.

Treasury Inflation Protected Securities (TIPS) has been a staple investment for a long time, finding a home in portfolios big and small. So what are TIPS, and why should I care?

So what's the deal on TIPS?