A beautiful photographic essay about austerity in Greece, where unemployment has reached 21.8%, and over 50% for those under 25. Portraits of Greece in Crisis – In Focus – The Atlantic.
Category: Austerity
The Chicago School on austerity versus stimulus
A professor from the Chicago School has a column on the New York Times’ Economix blog describing his thoughts on austerity versus stimulus. I use the word “thoughts” deliberately, because this isn’t an article about evidence. It contrasts growth and redistribution, which is a common framework of those who believe austerity is the only way…
Andrew Sullivan, deficit hawk, acknowledges austerity’s dangers
I don’t like this conclusion. I start from the belief that government should run surpluses in good times so that they can have some fiscal lee-way for stimulus in bad times. Readers know I deeply oppose government debt outside of structural investment, i.e. unsustainable entitlements and unsustainable empire. But if premature or excessive austerity actually…
A Budget By and For the People – Politics – The Atlantic Cities
It might be the hottest idea in democracy since the voting machine. In an effort to cut wasteful spending and generate political support, cash-strapped municipal officials are turning to a process called participatory budgeting, which allows residents to devise and vote on small-scale infrastructure projects. Pioneered in Brazil, its since been taken up by some…
States balanced budgets by cutting spending, says CBPP report
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, which focuses on state and federal budget policies, issued a new report Thursday (4/18/12) analyzing how states resolved their budget shortfalls: “Cuts in Services Have Been States’ Primary Response to Budget Gaps, Harming the Nation’s Economy.” The report documents $290 billion in budget cuts, $100 billion in tax and fee…