Comments for The Educate a Cab Driver, Educate Thomas Friedman Campaign at http://www.cepr.net , comment 1 to 14 out of 14 comments http://www.cepr.net Sun, 19 May 2013 07:24:30 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.3 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/its-sunday-and-thomas-friedman-is-abusing-economics-again#comment-22048 Dear Dean, Why is there a lack of demand? Are people saving? no Is investment high? reasonably so. So if we aren't saving and we are investing then weak demand is a function of weak income. Why is income weak? Not enough people are working. so the entire focus should be on getting people back to work. And how does raising employer heath care costs, raising the minimum wage, not building pipelines help create jobs? Please write a column on that. Write a column listing fifty ways to encourage employers to hire more people. - Les Spero Mon, 18 Feb 2013 18:12:24 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/its-sunday-and-thomas-friedman-is-abusing-economics-again#comment-22037 I nominate The Friedman Standard, def. as being 180 degrees wrong on economic, scientific, and political issues, as Best New Phrase of 2013. The Friedman Standard will join The Friedman Unit (2006 winner) as the measure of pundit FAIL. Thanks to the always on point, Dean Baker. - Big Chief Mon, 18 Feb 2013 12:12:59 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/its-sunday-and-thomas-friedman-is-abusing-economics-again#comment-22032 More horse puckey from those charts, roughly equivalent to those of Friedman but probably worse. Just one example - DPI includes transfer payments. Adjust for those and the CEPR points evaporate. Great example of "economic" facts. - bart Mon, 18 Feb 2013 08:49:14 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/its-sunday-and-thomas-friedman-is-abusing-economics-again#comment-22031 I can scarcely believe that I am going to defend Thomas Freidman, but I understand his totally unobjectionable remark about protecting both the young and old generations as a remark about the long-run budget trajectory and has nothing necessarily to do with the size and little to do with the composition of the 2013 budget. - ThomasH Mon, 18 Feb 2013 07:46:46 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/its-sunday-and-thomas-friedman-is-abusing-economics-again#comment-22019 We desperately need you to make more appearances on MSNBC. Think of all the bad punditry that cites pieces like Friedman's. Think of all the aggravation that can be alleviated among the viewers out there! - Ryan Mon, 18 Feb 2013 02:24:25 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/its-sunday-and-thomas-friedman-is-abusing-economics-again#comment-22017 Does anyone else bridle when reading "Apple has not spent its cash hoard, but I’ll bet anything that one of them is the uncertain economic and tax environment in this country." The word "bet" chokes me. Shouldn't any journalist worth his salt be finding out if his key "fact" is real or not before blathering? - berick Sun, 17 Feb 2013 18:18:58 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/its-sunday-and-thomas-friedman-is-abusing-economics-again#comment-22014 If there was a "like button" on this page, I would press it. - watermelonpunch Sun, 17 Feb 2013 13:11:21 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/its-sunday-and-thomas-friedman-is-abusing-economics-again#comment-22013 Wasn't David Gregory arrested for possessing an illegal ammunition clip? Why didn't Thomas Friedman report that? All the cab drivers knew about it the same day. - Last Mover Sun, 17 Feb 2013 12:10:40 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/its-sunday-and-thomas-friedman-is-abusing-economics-again#comment-22007 Tom Friedman's advice was referenced by David Gregory on Meet the Press again this week along with warnings about projections that 2010 Medicare beneficiaries will on average receive $349000 in Medicare benefits for the $122000 they will have paid in (no mention of health care costs). In case some cab driver is looking for a higher paying job perhaps this classic advice column will be of help: http://observer.com/2004/05/write-your-own-thomas-friedman-column/ While the advice primarily focuses on the Middle East it is clearly readily adaptable to economic affairs. - Bob Ross Sun, 17 Feb 2013 07:17:02 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/its-sunday-and-thomas-friedman-is-abusing-economics-again#comment-22005 without paying *some* US taxes unless they get another foreign earnings tax holiday. From the HuffPost: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/05/apple-income-taxes-paid-outside-us_n_2073238.html Apple Inc. paid an income tax rate of only 1.9 percent on its earnings outside the U.S. in its latest fiscal year, a regulatory filing by the company shows. The world's most valuable company paid $713 million in tax on foreign earnings of $36.8 billion in the fiscal year ended Sept. 29, according to the financial statement filed on Oct. 31. The foreign earnings were up 53 percent from fiscal 2011, when Apple earned $24 billion outside the U.S. and paid income tax of 2.5 percent on it. Like other big companies, Apple leaves cash overseas. If it brought it home to the U.S., it would have to pay U.S. corporate taxes on the money. The cash that Apple has left overseas as of Sept. 29 has mounted to a stunning $82.6 billion, up from $74 billion as of June 30. When Apple reports quarterly results, it records that portion of the taxes as a liability, which is subtracted from its profits even though it hasn't actually paid the taxes. Tax experts say the company could easily eliminate these "phantom" tax obligations. That would boost Apple's profits for the past three years by as much $10.5 billion, according to calculations by The Associated Press reported in July. While investors might rejoice if Apple suddenly added $10.5 billion to its profits, unilaterally erasing a massive U.S. tax obligation could tarnish its reputation as a relatively responsible payer of U.S. taxes. Instead, the company is lobbying to change U.S. law so that it can erase its liabilities in a less conspicuous fashion. Overall Cupertino, California-based Apple had net income of $41.7 billion, or $44.15 per share, in fiscal 2012. That was up 61 percent from $25.9 billion, or $27.68 per share, in fiscal 2011. - Mike Sun, 17 Feb 2013 05:44:50 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/its-sunday-and-thomas-friedman-is-abusing-economics-again#comment-22004 Have a tendentious claim you're too lazy to substantiate? Just preface it with "I'll bet anything that ...". And Presto! You too can be a New York Times columnist. - somethingblue Sun, 17 Feb 2013 05:40:51 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/its-sunday-and-thomas-friedman-is-abusing-economics-again#comment-22001 Hello from a Progressive voice – “USA: Politics, Economics and International Issues” is a blog for Progressive change. American citizens need to hear about the real problems and solutions that are important to the USA. Most of our problems are not complex, but powerful interests have disguised these problems, employed gridlock in Congress and muddied the waters with special interest media sources. Please check out this blog and follow our posts. Your comments and suggestions are always welcome. Thank you, USA: Politics, Economics and International Issues - http://usapeis.wordpress.com/ - Brad Bannister Sun, 17 Feb 2013 03:50:42 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/its-sunday-and-thomas-friedman-is-abusing-economics-again#comment-22000 This is priceless: [quote]"We can’t protect both generations in full anymore, but we must not sacrifice one for the other — favoring nursing homes over nursery schools — and that’s what we’re on track to do." -T. Friedman[/quote] First, this is a logical reasoning fallacy known as the false dilemma. Of course we can afford both generations. We need the working class political power to raise the cap on taxable Social Security income and institute a transactions tax on stock market trades. Second, there's no logic or evidence leading to the above conclusion. It's just asserted. Thus, no one should believe or take Mr. Friedman seriously because of his logical reasoning fallacy and unsupported conclusions. - Jeffrey Stewart Sun, 17 Feb 2013 03:42:05 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/its-sunday-and-thomas-friedman-is-abusing-economics-again#comment-21998 Tom Friedman hasn't been correct about anything since he looked at the clock one morning and decided it was time to get out of bed. Mr. Friedman is one of what your colleague Paul Krugman calls VSPs who, despite their education and wealth, not only persist in perpetuating bubble gum economics that are simply wrong but, to make matters worse, are treated with earnest seriousness by other people who should also know better. Sadly, Mr. Friedman keeps demonstrating that he knows less about how the economy works than does Herman Cain. Equally sad is that the New York Times continues to give him access to the most valuable real estate in the print media world. - Charley James Sun, 17 Feb 2013 03:08:14 +0100