He does like to gamble, you know. And he wants to gamble with your health insurance. Krugman quotes McCain: Opening up the health insurance market to more vigorous nationwide competition, as we have done over the last decade in banking, would provide more choices of innovative products less burdened by the worst excesses of state-based regulation. Emphasis added by me. He wants to put your Social Security into the stock market too. Does that make you feel safer? Not me. McCain’s trying to pose as a big believer in government regulation and oversight, now that the market is finally trawling … Continue reading →

The Tax Policy Center has published an exhaustive comparison of the candidate’s tax policies. They see a stark difference. The two candidates’ plans would have sharply different distributional effects. Senator McCain’s tax cuts would primarily benefit those with very high incomes, almost all of whom would receive large tax cuts that would, on average, raise their after-tax incomes by more than twice the average for all households. Many fewer households at the bottom of the income distribution would get tax cuts and those whose taxes fall would, on average, see their after-tax income rise much less. In marked contrast, Senator … Continue reading →

The BBC reports on people in Los Angeles who have been made homeless by the mortgage crisis. As long as the rich get their welfare, I guess it’s all okay. UDPATE: More on the homeless there from the L.A. Times.

Pretty soon you’re talking real money. Billionaires no longer rich enough to make Forbes list. For the first time, $1 billion isn

Then you must be very well off. UPDATE: A friend points out to me that half of U.S. families fall into that $50k and under segment. UPDATE: In 2002: