NEWARK, NJ — September 22, 2020 — In the wake of the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg, the selection of the next Supreme Court justice has enormous implications. This promises to be a battle royale because of the potential to change the future direction of the Court for years to come. Conservatives, of course, will view this as an …
By OREN M. LEVIN-WALDMAN
In Defense of Varieties of Capitalism (VoC) By OREN M. LEVIN-WALDMAN
In the current campaign for the presidency, we hear quite often that the choice before us is between capitalism and socialism. Or worse, a vote for socialism may actually be a vote for communism. For some, any type of governmental involvement, whether through regulation, public programs, or even taxes is viewed as socialism. Capitalism, after all, requires unfettered markets along …
The Roots of Polarization Lie in the Economy
By OREN M. LEVIN-WALDMAN
NEWARK, NJ — August 10, 2020 — The U.S. has long been divided along ideological lines. Republicans and conservatives are to be found disproportionately in what are referred to as “red” states while Democrats and liberals are in what are referred to as “blue” states. The nation has been even more polarized since the 2016 election, and the 2020 election …
By OREN M. LEVIN-WALDMAN
COVID-19 and the Need to Lower the Retirement Age
By OREN M. LEVIN-WALDMAN
NEWARK, NJ — July 13, 2020 — With coronavirus cases around the country rising and some states slowing the pace of reopening their economies, there are those calling for additional stimulus payments, as well as extending the CARES Act protections. Perhaps a different approach needs to be taken. With a vaccine long off in the future, it is becoming abundantly …
By OREN M. LEVIN-WALDMAN
Rethinking the Need for a National Industrial Policy
By OREN M. LEVIN-WALDMAN
NEWARK, NJ — June 16, 2020 — The country is beginning to reopen and the cold reality is that the economy will not be what it was before, nor should it be. Perhaps COVID-19 and the economic havoc due to government forced shutdowns ought to be a wake-up call that globalism which has been good for certain economic interests is …
By OREN M. LEVIN-WALDMAN
Labor Monopsony and the Need to Resurrect Labor Market Institutions
By OREN M. LEVIN-WALDMAN
NEWARK, NJ — June 1, 2020 — Over the last few decades we have seen a tendency in many cases not to enforce anti-trust laws, which were designed to break up monopolies in restraint of free trade. The argument has been that the development of big box stores and/or chains, even if it does reduce competition in the marketplace, has …
By OREN M. LEVIN-WALDMAN
The New Inequality Part II
By OREN M. LEVIN-WALDMAN
NEWARK, NJ — May 19, 2020 — As the country begins a process of reopening, and increasingly more people, especially those deemed non-essential workers, are protesting against the lock-downs, we are seeing more clearly the fault-lines in the economy. On one level, there is a class warfare going on between economic elites who are able to work remotely and ordinary …
By OREN M. LEVIN-WALDMAN
The New Inequality
By OREN M. LEVIN-WALDMAN
NEWARK, NJ — May 5, 2020 — Inequality and rising income has long been an issue in any number of political campaigns. The economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, however, puts an actual face on it which may have easily been obscured. Too often inequality can appear to be an abstraction as we are looking at Gini coefficients and top-to-bottom …
By OREN M. LEVIN-WALDMAN
Managing a Crisis, and Especially Now, Requires Real Leadership
By OREN M. LEVIN-WALDMAN
NEWARK, NJ — April 21, 2020 — With the advent of public administration during the early part of the Twentieth Century came what is regarded as the administrative state. Critics deride it as the “deep state.” Still, classical public administration rested on a couple of basic principles: separation of politics from administration, and staffing based on merit, which would …
By OREN M. LEVIN-WALDMAN
What Workers Really Need in this Economic Crisis is Liquidity
By OREN M. LEVIN-WALDMAN
NEWARK, NJ — April 6, 2020 — Any law passed by Congress, even with the noblest intentions is fraught with politics. Every member of Congress attempts to fold his or her pet project into a bill, even if it has nothing to do with it. The CARE Act, i.e. the $2.2 trillion stimulus bill is no different. We have funding …
By OREN M. LEVIN-WALDMAN