Brad DeLong
@braddelong.bsky.social
Author of "Slouching Towards Utopia: An Economic History of the 20th Century". Too online since 1995. Sometime Deputy Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Treasury. UC Berkeley Professor.
Pinned
Brad DeLong
@braddelong.bsky.social
· Dec 2
Brad DeLong's Grasping Reality | Substack
Economic history, economics, political economy, finance, & forecasting. Here to try to make you (and me) smarter in a world with many increasingly deep & complicated troubles... Click to read Brad DeL...
braddelong.substack.com
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< econ.berkeley.edu/profile/brad... >
brad.delong@gmail.com :: +1-925-708-0467
J. Bradford DeLong
Holgate House
2828 Webster St.
Berkeley, CA 94705
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< econ.berkeley.edu/profile/brad... >
brad.delong@gmail.com :: +1-925-708-0467
J. Bradford DeLong
Holgate House
2828 Webster St.
Berkeley, CA 94705
...liberal despair, Brink Lindsey proposes an attempt to make liberal modernity finally fit for human flourishing:
Assessing Brink Lindsey's "the Permanent Problem"
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2026-02-09 Mo 4/END
Assessing Brink Lindsey's "the Permanent Problem"
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2026-02-09 Mo 4/END
Assessing Brink Lindsey's "the Permanent Problem"
The Enlightenment and modernity have, Brink Lindsey argues, led to mass society and mass affluence. But their overrun has also created a world where individuals are buffeted by strange alien and...
braddelong.substack.com
February 9, 2026 at 7:34 PM
...liberal despair, Brink Lindsey proposes an attempt to make liberal modernity finally fit for human flourishing:
Assessing Brink Lindsey's "the Permanent Problem"
< braddelong.substack.com/p/assessing-... >
2026-02-09 Mo 4/END
Assessing Brink Lindsey's "the Permanent Problem"
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2026-02-09 Mo 4/END
... Lindsey’s answer is an abundance agenda plus a connection agenda: more growth where it matters, and more human‑scale power over how we live together by nurturing a flourishing of intermediary institutions in which people can do things and live lives that matter. Far from succumbing to post... 3/
February 9, 2026 at 7:34 PM
... Lindsey’s answer is an abundance agenda plus a connection agenda: more growth where it matters, and more human‑scale power over how we live together by nurturing a flourishing of intermediary institutions in which people can do things and live lives that matter. Far from succumbing to post... 3/
...people. "The Permanent Problem" traces a polycrisis: inclusion collapses as the educated meritocracy hardens into caste, dynamism slows in the “world of atoms,” and politics degenerates into multi‑elite culture war, while the attention economy corrodes the “constitution of knowledge”... 2/
February 9, 2026 at 7:33 PM
...people. "The Permanent Problem" traces a polycrisis: inclusion collapses as the educated meritocracy hardens into caste, dynamism slows in the “world of atoms,” and politics degenerates into multi‑elite culture war, while the attention economy corrodes the “constitution of knowledge”... 2/
The Enlightenment and modernity have, Brink Lindsey argues, led to mass society and mass affluence. But their overrun has also created a world where individuals are buffeted by strange alien and alienating systems—market, bureaucratic, ideological, algorithmic—that barely register them as... 1/
February 9, 2026 at 7:33 PM
The Enlightenment and modernity have, Brink Lindsey argues, led to mass society and mass affluence. But their overrun has also created a world where individuals are buffeted by strange alien and alienating systems—market, bureaucratic, ideological, algorithmic—that barely register them as... 1/
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2026-02-08 Su 2/END
2026-02-08 Su 2/END
Trailer for the "Hail Mary" Movie, Starring Ryan Gosling, Made by My First Cousin Phil Lord & All His Contubernales
My first cousin's latest movie, after the book by Andy Weir: Ryan Gosling & Rocky vs. the world-ending astrophage apocalypse, as the sun itself is on the line...
braddelong.substack.com
February 9, 2026 at 1:15 AM
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2026-02-08 Su 2/END
2026-02-08 Su 2/END
My first cousin's latest movie, after the book by Andy Weir: Ryan Gosling & Rocky vs. the world-ending astrophage apocalypse, as the sun itself is on the line:
Trailer for the "Hail Mary" Movie, Starring Ryan Gosling, Made by My First Cousin Phil Lord & All His Contubernales... 1/
Trailer for the "Hail Mary" Movie, Starring Ryan Gosling, Made by My First Cousin Phil Lord & All His Contubernales... 1/
February 9, 2026 at 1:14 AM
My first cousin's latest movie, after the book by Andy Weir: Ryan Gosling & Rocky vs. the world-ending astrophage apocalypse, as the sun itself is on the line:
Trailer for the "Hail Mary" Movie, Starring Ryan Gosling, Made by My First Cousin Phil Lord & All His Contubernales... 1/
Trailer for the "Hail Mary" Movie, Starring Ryan Gosling, Made by My First Cousin Phil Lord & All His Contubernales... 1/
...balance sheets mispriced on the expectation of a permanent zero‑rate world. Now, however Netflix faces the true apex predator of the digital attention mediascape, in the hydra challenges of Sora and ninety other kinds of slop gathering in their lair in Mountain View, CA:
**The Streaming... /3
**The Streaming... /3
February 8, 2026 at 10:59 PM
...balance sheets mispriced on the expectation of a permanent zero‑rate world. Now, however Netflix faces the true apex predator of the digital attention mediascape, in the hydra challenges of Sora and ninety other kinds of slop gathering in their lair in Mountain View, CA:
**The Streaming... /3
**The Streaming... /3
...built were loss-making bundles with worse economics than cable. A predictable hunt for scale, financed by free money, ended with the old studios crawling back to the aggregator they had once sworn they would escape. Netflix didn’t out‑innovate Hollywood so much as outlast a series of... 2/
February 8, 2026 at 10:58 PM
...built were loss-making bundles with worse economics than cable. A predictable hunt for scale, financed by free money, ended with the old studios crawling back to the aggregator they had once sworn they would escape. Netflix didn’t out‑innovate Hollywood so much as outlast a series of... 2/
Netflix climbs to the top of the streaming-success mountain only to see a much bigger mountain in front of it still to climb: The streaming wars were always going to end like this as the cable bundles unraveled. The studios thought they were building software platforms; what they actually... 1/
February 8, 2026 at 10:57 PM
Netflix climbs to the top of the streaming-success mountain only to see a much bigger mountain in front of it still to climb: The streaming wars were always going to end like this as the cable bundles unraveled. The studios thought they were building software platforms; what they actually... 1/
...Late Friday, two of the nation's most right-wing circuit judges adopted an odious legal claim that district court judges from across the country (and ideological spectrum) have overwhelmingly rejected…
< www.stevevladeck.com/cp/187199535 >
2026-02-07 Sa 4/END
< www.stevevladeck.com/cp/187199535 >
2026-02-07 Sa 4/END
208. The Fifth Circuit Jumps the Immigration Detention Shark
Late Friday, two of the nation's most right-wing circuit judges adopted an odious legal claim that district court judges from across the country (and ideological spectrum) have overwhelmingly rejected
www.stevevladeck.com
February 7, 2026 at 2:54 PM
...Late Friday, two of the nation's most right-wing circuit judges adopted an odious legal claim that district court judges from across the country (and ideological spectrum) have overwhelmingly rejected…
< www.stevevladeck.com/cp/187199535 >
2026-02-07 Sa 4/END
< www.stevevladeck.com/cp/187199535 >
2026-02-07 Sa 4/END
...corrupt Supreme Court justices will eventually come along for the ride. We saw the template in Bush v. Gore. Steve Vladeck details just one of the many fresh hells that this template has now produced:
CROSSPOST: STEVE VLADECK: The Fifth Circuit Jumps the Immigration Detention Shark
Late... 3/
CROSSPOST: STEVE VLADECK: The Fifth Circuit Jumps the Immigration Detention Shark
Late... 3/
February 7, 2026 at 2:53 PM
...corrupt Supreme Court justices will eventually come along for the ride. We saw the template in Bush v. Gore. Steve Vladeck details just one of the many fresh hells that this template has now produced:
CROSSPOST: STEVE VLADECK: The Fifth Circuit Jumps the Immigration Detention Shark
Late... 3/
CROSSPOST: STEVE VLADECK: The Fifth Circuit Jumps the Immigration Detention Shark
Late... 3/
...project. Now a great many of its rank-and-file members are flummoxed to discover that the judges they elevated, and the academics who flattered them, are locked in a grim competition to be as lawless and as indifferent to justice as possible, on the theory that if they push far enough, five... 2/
February 7, 2026 at 2:52 PM
...project. Now a great many of its rank-and-file members are flummoxed to discover that the judges they elevated, and the academics who flattered them, are locked in a grim competition to be as lawless and as indifferent to justice as possible, on the theory that if they push far enough, five... 2/
The Federalist Society made a fateful strategic choice a generation ago: it wanted appellate judges who distrusted judging itself—who saw reasoned, good-faith application of law to facts not as the core of the judicial craft, but as an obstacle to be smashed in service of a larger ideological... 1/
February 7, 2026 at 2:52 PM
The Federalist Society made a fateful strategic choice a generation ago: it wanted appellate judges who distrusted judging itself—who saw reasoned, good-faith application of law to facts not as the core of the judicial craft, but as an obstacle to be smashed in service of a larger ideological... 1/
...CROSSPOST: IAN McKELLEN: William Shakespeare (& Other Playwrights) on Thomas More on Immigrants
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2026-02-05 Th 2/END
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February 6, 2026 at 3:09 AM
...CROSSPOST: IAN McKELLEN: William Shakespeare (& Other Playwrights) on Thomas More on Immigrants
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2026-02-05 Th 2/END
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2026-02-05 Th 2/END
On “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert”. ““Grant Them Removed”: Immigration, Sir Ian McKellen, Sir Thomas More, ICE, Minneapolis, Donald Trump, Stephen Miller, & Senator Collins’s little carve-out for Maine from the ICE terror-harassment campaign to try to boost her reelection chances:.. 1/
February 6, 2026 at 3:09 AM
On “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert”. ““Grant Them Removed”: Immigration, Sir Ian McKellen, Sir Thomas More, ICE, Minneapolis, Donald Trump, Stephen Miller, & Senator Collins’s little carve-out for Maine from the ICE terror-harassment campaign to try to boost her reelection chances:.. 1/
Reposted by Brad DeLong
and instead it's "I knew this specific guy was a huge pervert (all us men are perverts amirite?) so I definitely wanted to appeal to that and I think it was a great idea."
February 5, 2026 at 2:50 PM
and instead it's "I knew this specific guy was a huge pervert (all us men are perverts amirite?) so I definitely wanted to appeal to that and I think it was a great idea."
Reposted by Brad DeLong
Yale prof David Gelernter defends his letter urging Epstein to hire "v small goodlooking blonde" student by saying that he was "keep[ing] the potential boss's habits in mind."
This creep shouldn't be allowed anywhere near students.
yaledailynews.com/articles/gel...
This creep shouldn't be allowed anywhere near students.
yaledailynews.com/articles/gel...
February 5, 2026 at 2:27 PM
Yale prof David Gelernter defends his letter urging Epstein to hire "v small goodlooking blonde" student by saying that he was "keep[ing] the potential boss's habits in mind."
This creep shouldn't be allowed anywhere near students.
yaledailynews.com/articles/gel...
This creep shouldn't be allowed anywhere near students.
yaledailynews.com/articles/gel...
...
> Joe Weisenthal: 'Incredible. Research analysts (this from George Pollack at Signum Global) are now having to explain basic US election laws to their clients. Literally the type of note typically see about various quasi-democratic frontier markets. 2/END
> Joe Weisenthal: 'Incredible. Research analysts (this from George Pollack at Signum Global) are now having to explain basic US election laws to their clients. Literally the type of note typically see about various quasi-democratic frontier markets. 2/END
x.com
February 5, 2026 at 7:55 PM
...
> Joe Weisenthal: 'Incredible. Research analysts (this from George Pollack at Signum Global) are now having to explain basic US election laws to their clients. Literally the type of note typically see about various quasi-democratic frontier markets. 2/END
> Joe Weisenthal: 'Incredible. Research analysts (this from George Pollack at Signum Global) are now having to explain basic US election laws to their clients. Literally the type of note typically see about various quasi-democratic frontier markets. 2/END
> Dow: < x.com/mark_dow/sta... >: 'I was a professional emerging market PM and HFM for many years. This is exactly the kind of analysis we had to do in Turkey, Argentina, Venezuela, etc. Y'all thought the Fed was going to turn us into these countries. Turns out it was Trump that would... 1/
February 5, 2026 at 7:54 PM
> Dow: < x.com/mark_dow/sta... >: 'I was a professional emerging market PM and HFM for many years. This is exactly the kind of analysis we had to do in Turkey, Argentina, Venezuela, etc. Y'all thought the Fed was going to turn us into these countries. Turns out it was Trump that would... 1/
Reposted by Brad DeLong
While reporting this, I had something happen that's never happened. A comms rep for one of the co's disputed my reporting and said what I was telling them was untrue because it was not in Grok, xAI's chatbot.
I was looking directly at the files. And this person was using AI to challenge the truth.
I was looking directly at the files. And this person was using AI to challenge the truth.
Epstein had many known connections to Silicon Valley CEOs, but less known was how he made money from those relationships.
We did a deep dive into how he got dealflow in Silicon Valley, giving him shots to invest in Coinbase, Palantir, SpaceX and other companies.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/05/b...
We did a deep dive into how he got dealflow in Silicon Valley, giving him shots to invest in Coinbase, Palantir, SpaceX and other companies.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/05/b...
Jeffrey Epstein’s Money Mingled With Silicon Valley Start-Ups
www.nytimes.com
February 5, 2026 at 5:38 PM
While reporting this, I had something happen that's never happened. A comms rep for one of the co's disputed my reporting and said what I was telling them was untrue because it was not in Grok, xAI's chatbot.
I was looking directly at the files. And this person was using AI to challenge the truth.
I was looking directly at the files. And this person was using AI to challenge the truth.
Reposted by Brad DeLong
I wanna personally congratulate Hunter Biden for not only being nowhere near the Epstein files but for having rock-solid reviews from sex workers for respectfulness and tipping
February 4, 2026 at 2:40 PM
I wanna personally congratulate Hunter Biden for not only being nowhere near the Epstein files but for having rock-solid reviews from sex workers for respectfulness and tipping
Reposted by Brad DeLong
the Epstein files are really devastating because they remind me of how many girls and women miss out on professional opportunities, mentorship and careers because of how many powerful, rich and influential men only view girls and women — and interactions with them — through the lens of sex
February 5, 2026 at 5:05 PM
the Epstein files are really devastating because they remind me of how many girls and women miss out on professional opportunities, mentorship and careers because of how many powerful, rich and influential men only view girls and women — and interactions with them — through the lens of sex
Reposted by Brad DeLong
...bots helping us write our papers so that we have more time to do our laundry 🧺 😬... 2/END
𝗡𝘂𝗻𝗼 𝗣𝗮𝗹𝗺𝗮 on X: "A few years ago it seemed plausible that the future would be robots doing our laundry to give us academics more time to focus on research and writing our papers. Instead the future turned out to be bots helping us write our papers so that we have more time to do our laundry 🧺 😬" / X
A few years ago it seemed plausible that the future would be robots doing our laundry to give us academics more time to focus on research and writing our papers. Instead the future turned out to be bots helping us write our papers so that we have more time to do our laundry 🧺 😬
x.com
February 5, 2026 at 7:48 PM
...bots helping us write our papers so that we have more time to do our laundry 🧺 😬... 2/END