Jonathan Church, CFA
@jondavidchurch.bsky.social
Economist & author. Cancer survivor (so far). Senior editor at merionwest.com. Enjoy philosophy, literature, & history. Critic of capitalism. Pro-union. People over profits. It should have been Bernie.
They teach us in econ 101 that wages are equal to marginal productivity (ok, sure, ceteris paribus). Not exactly untrue, but sure seems wise to recall the words of Frederick Douglass: "power concedes nothing without demands." After all, hard to believe CEOs are 10x more productive than 40 yrs ago.
January 25, 2025 at 2:56 PM
They teach us in econ 101 that wages are equal to marginal productivity (ok, sure, ceteris paribus). Not exactly untrue, but sure seems wise to recall the words of Frederick Douglass: "power concedes nothing without demands." After all, hard to believe CEOs are 10x more productive than 40 yrs ago.
The billionaires club, by Ann Telnaes.
January 6, 2025 at 12:21 AM
The billionaires club, by Ann Telnaes.
This book, more than anything else, helped me clearly understand the extent to which contemporary mainstream economics is not only a science (which it is), but also an ideology centered on historically-conditioned conceptions of capital, commerce, & self-interest that undergird a ruling class.
December 30, 2024 at 1:42 PM
This book, more than anything else, helped me clearly understand the extent to which contemporary mainstream economics is not only a science (which it is), but also an ideology centered on historically-conditioned conceptions of capital, commerce, & self-interest that undergird a ruling class.
This book really shakes up our view of "meritocracy" as an ideal in society. There are so many reasons that the worship of meritocracy does more harm than good.
December 3, 2024 at 2:23 AM
This book really shakes up our view of "meritocracy" as an ideal in society. There are so many reasons that the worship of meritocracy does more harm than good.
1/"First, the SAT, it turns out, does not measure scholarly aptitude or native intelligence independent of social & economic background...
If you come from a family with an annual income greater than $200,000, your chance of scoring above 1400 (out of 1600) is 1 in 5. If you come from a poor family
If you come from a family with an annual income greater than $200,000, your chance of scoring above 1400 (out of 1600) is 1 in 5. If you come from a poor family
November 26, 2024 at 2:16 AM
1/"First, the SAT, it turns out, does not measure scholarly aptitude or native intelligence independent of social & economic background...
If you come from a family with an annual income greater than $200,000, your chance of scoring above 1400 (out of 1600) is 1 in 5. If you come from a poor family
If you come from a family with an annual income greater than $200,000, your chance of scoring above 1400 (out of 1600) is 1 in 5. If you come from a poor family
The question about meritocracy is not whether we live in one, but whether we want to live in one. This book provides a strong case for the case that we should not want to live in a meritocracy. Which of course depends on what we mean by meritocracy. A stimulating read:
November 14, 2024 at 2:32 AM
The question about meritocracy is not whether we live in one, but whether we want to live in one. This book provides a strong case for the case that we should not want to live in a meritocracy. Which of course depends on what we mean by meritocracy. A stimulating read: