The British health system NHS Goes Global (The Economist, video) compared to others’, with examples going each way.
Category: London
North Korea, from the Freedom of Information Act
Engaging the enemy, with Planet Money. Stamps, Jeans, Beer: What Americans Want From North Korea (blog) Episode 474: The North Korea Files (podcast)
Poverty, India vs China
“Economists talk of targeting subsidies at those below the Tendulkar line. But for politicians, the aim of subsidies is to win votes.” Why no applause for 138 million exiting poverty? “And clearly you win more votes by extending subsidies to…
Witches, recessions, and pensions
From the archives, as I think about Macbeth Why it’s dangerous to be a witch in a recession (Slate, Harford) Note that the witches aren’t the ones committing the actual crimes here—they’re just older people with resources coveted by the…
Twitter as secret-revealer
Rowling unmasked: the lawyer, the wife, her tweet – and a furious author (The Telegraph) “In a public statement, she all but issued a Cruciatus curse against Russells: ‘A tiny number of people knew my pseudonym and it has not…
Austen replaces Darwin
on the £10 note. Sense and Sensibility: Jane Austen to Appear on £10 Note (Shelf Awareness) Interesting controversy: Apparently the Bank of England missed the irony of the quote.
Crime falling
Both sides of the Atlantic Public Policy: Are we safer now? (Financial Times) And is so, why?
Anti-austerity evidence
@justinwolfers: Remarkable: Compare the recessions and subsequent recovery in the US (red line) with that in the UK (blue). http://t.co/xpoMF4VBuk @justinwolfers: The crisis, and the recovery. Now adding Australia to the US v UK comparison. RT @MattCowgill: Another perspective: http://t.co/TVn6YXDYhA
The English Rentiers
World-bulding time, and social awareness, too. Britain is recreating a rentier society fit for a baby royal (Financial Times) “I asked the panel of industry leaders how comfortable they felt with young people’s opportunities governed by the lottery of their…
Rigging the auction?
“A gallerist and an economist walked into a bar an art gallery opening. …” High-end art is one of the most manipulated markets in the world “Would it work better with more regulation? Would that make art cheaper, more accessible…