Category: Business and Economy
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The “Rat Pack” Makes the Point
By Peter Galuszka On July 26, 1948, President Harry S. Truman took the historically enormous step of integrating the U.S. Armed Forces. The Virginia Military Institute, which prides itself on its warrior panache, didn’t get around to that until 1968 and even today there are serious questions about racism at the state-supported school. The past…
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Casino Gambling a Risky Bet
by Kerry Dougherty “I thought you were a libertarian,” a friend of mine said accusingly last week. “So why would you vote against casino gambling if you lived in Norfolk?” I’m not against gambling, I explained. I just don’t want it in my backyard. There’s no benefit to society. Plus, it brings sleazy activity, crime…
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Assembly Protected Utilities, Not Other Businesses
First published this morning (with some slight differences) by the Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy. By Steve Haner Now that the Virginia General Assembly’s “Cops and COVID” special session is all but finished, will it be easier or harder for the state’s struggling economy to recover in 2021? It will be harder, probably, except…
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The November Election, Marijuana and Northern Virginia
By DJ Rippert Up for grabs. In about three weeks Americans who haven’t already voted will go to the polls and vote. The presidency, the U,S, House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate are all in play. Regarding the impact of the legalized adult use of marijuana in Virginia, the U.S. Senate is the key.…
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5G and Rural Virginia
by DJ Rippert A tale of two places. The next generation of consumer wireless technology is called Fifth Generation or 5G. It is being rolled out in select parts of the United States right now. 5G will be a boon to urban and suburban Virginia. Absent heavy government subsidies, it will likely have a minimal…
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Marxist Educational Strongholds at the University of Virginia – A Course Guide
by James C. Sherlock, University of Virginia, College of Arts and Sciences, 1966 This essay will present a survey of left-wing educational opportunities at the University of Virginia by means of a review of courses offered in its Marxist critical theory strongholds. It does not presume the reader favors or rejects Marxism, but provides a course…
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VA COVID Deaths Drop Again. Distrust the Data.
By Steve Haner The Google satellite photo shows Rhine River cruise boats parked recently at Basel, Switzerland, probably including the one that my wife and I would have been boarding tomorrow morning. Losing a scheduled cruise is of no concern against all the other human and economic costs of this pandemic, but it provides a…
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It Just Got Worse for the Unemployed
By Dick Hall-Sizemore For those on this blog (including me) who have speculated as to why unemployed Virginians, who were getting up to $300 per week in unemployment benefits, could be behind on their rent, mortgage, and utility bills, here is one answer: They have not been getting that money since August 1. The Virginian…
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House Offers $330 Million Utility, Unemployment Aid
By Steve Haner Virginia’s House of Delegates has proposed spending $120 million from federal COVID-19 relief funds to help at least some Virginia families catch up on their utility bills and wants to pump $210 million from the same source into the state’s unemployment insurance program. Both ideas surfaced when the House Appropriations Committee approved…
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COVID Shutdown Shocker: People Losing their Jobs More Likely to Experience Depression
by James A. Bacon People who are out of work and/or facing financial difficulties are significantly more likely to suffer depression than others, according to data from the Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey for August 19-31. That’s hardly a breath-taking conclusion. But thanks to the survey, we have extensive data on the extent to which…
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Herring Substitutes Emotion for Logic in Price-Gouging Case
by James A. Bacon Attorney General Mark R. Herring has joined 30 other state attorneys general in filing an amicus brief in a federal appeals court to support the right of states to enforce price-gouging regulations against Amazon retailers. National and local emergencies, such as the COVID-19 epidemic, create shortages of essential items, says a…
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Permanent COVID Reg Called “The Fifth Dragon”
By Steve Haner Most Virginia employers probably have not read, let alone fully complied with, the emergency temporary standard on protecting their employees from COVID-19 adopted back in July. Yet the public comment period on the permanent version of the rules, which can carry major sanctions, closes this Friday. Only twenty comments had been filed…
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A Capitalist Solution to Food Deserts
by James A. Bacon Yesterday, channeling the spirit of Nassim Nicholas Taleb, I asked what a young person should do if he or she wanted to make the world a better place. Broadly speaking, there are three approaches. One is activism in which people who, informed by a desire to improve the lives of those…
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End the Coalfield Boondoggle
By Peter Galuszka The General Assembly’s auditing watchdog has recommended the elimination of two coal tax credits that have been a bonanza to Virginia coal companies worth $315 million from 2010 to 2018 but have created only 10 jobs. The report by the Joint Legislative and Audit and Review Commission (JLARC) studied 16 different tax…
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A Sad Emblem of Our Times
By Dick Hall-Sizemore A venerable Richmond-based printing company closed last May. Somehow, that really saddened me. Perhaps because it was located not far from where I live. Perhaps because it had been around for so long. Perhaps because it had a niche business that seemed sort of neat to me. Perhaps because its closing seemed…