EconomicPolicyJournal.com

Did Caroline Kennedy Just Practice a Bit of Jury Nullification?

2013-05-20T18:29:00.000-04:00

JFK's daughter Caroline Kennedy and her fellow jurors took just over an hour today to acquit a Harlem man of charges that he sold four "nickel bag" crack rocks at $5 each to an undercover officer near Harlem River Park, reports NyPo. NyPo went on: Violent predicate felon Nelson Chatman, 31, smiled big as the jury foreman rendered the not guilty verdict in the circumstantial case after just

The Government Tracks a Leaker and a Reporter; The One Asterisk, Two Asterisk Code System

2013-05-20T17:49:00.000-04:00

An affidavit recently obtained by WaPo reveals fascinating details of how the Department of Justice tracked Stephen Jin-Woo Kim, a State Department adviser, and James Rosen, the chief Washington correspondent for Fox News. From WaPo's reporting: The Kim case began in June 2009, when Rosen reported that U.S. intelligence officials were warning that North Korea was likely to respond to United

Mitch McConnell Defends Government Spying on Reporters

2013-05-20T17:07:00.000-04:00

Rand Paul's new buddy, Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, during an appearance this Sunday on NBC's "Meet The Press," declined to attack the administration for the DOJ's snooping into the personal and work telephone records of AP reporters and editors. . "Actually, I do think these national security leaks are very important and it looks to me like this is an investigation that needs to

Spain's Bitcoin Reaction to the Cyprus Crisis Government Grab of Deposits

2013-05-20T15:57:00.000-04:00

Number of Bitcoin dealers, before and after the Cyprus crisis, in Spain. HT to Tuur Demeester, who used the above the charts in a presentation at Bitcoin 2013.

Rand Paul as a Tea Party Blocker

2013-05-20T14:53:00.000-04:00

Well if nothing else, Rand is serving the Republican establishment well. HuffPo explains: McConnell faces reelection in 2014, and has been working so closely with Paul that some aides have begun to refer to the libertarian newcomer and tea party favorite as the "shadow minority leader" -- a term that presumably expires if McConnell wins his race. McConnell brought Jesse Benton, a longtime aide

Flash Mobbing in Rahmaland

2013-05-20T14:27:00.000-04:00

HuffPo is all over Rahamaland: One adult and 11 juveniles were arrested Saturday after dozens of youths gathered in the city's Gold Coast, blocking traffic and causing other disturbances. Police responded to reports early Saturday evening that a group of between 40 and 60 teens had gathered and were running around the Magnificent Mile shopping area on Michigan Avenue near the Chicago CTA Red

This Weekend in Rahmaland Shootings: 5 Killed, 18 More Injured

2013-05-20T14:10:00.000-04:00

HuffPo has the report: In yet another violent weekend in Chicago, a 12-year-old boy was among at least 23 people shot in gun-related incidents that left five dead citywide. The most recent homicide occurred at 2:10 a.m. Sunday in the 300 block of South Cicero on the West Side where DNAinfo Chicago reports 53-year-old Edward Jordan was shot in the neck. Jordan was taken to a local hospital where

Is Yahoo! CEO Marisa Mayer Any Good at Being a Deal Maker?

2013-05-20T13:08:00.000-04:00

Much is being said about the announcement that Yahoo! has acquired Tumblr for $1.1 billion. It's a dangerous move. But more significantly, I think it points out how poor a strategic thinker Yahoo! CEO Marisa Mayer is. These type acquisitions of fairly young companies that aim at major mass markets are always great unkowns. The Austrian economics insight, that the world is a very complex place,

“In fifty years, would you rather own 100 euros, 100 Amazon Coins, or 100 bitcoins?”

2013-05-20T11:59:00.000-04:00

Forbes columnist Jon Matonis asked this question to an audience at a SWIFT conference: Hosted at the palatial and temple-like SWIFT headquarters, this year’s TransConstellation Alumni conference featured a mix of panel representatives from both “new” payment approaches and “established” payment players. I was invited to represent the new approach in an Oxford-style debate which I gladly

Federal Reserve: "There is growing concern that college graduates are increasingly underemployed"

2013-05-20T11:00:00.000-04:00

Jaison R. Abel and Richard Deitz at the New York Federal Reserve write: Although the unemployment rate of workers with a college degree has remained well below average since the Great Recession, there is growing concern that college graduates are increasingly underemployed—that is, working in a job that does not require a college degree or the skills acquired through their chosen field of study

Rand Paul Donates $10,000 to New Hampshire GOP

2013-05-20T10:27:00.000-04:00

Rand Paul has donated $10,000 to the New Hampshire Republican Party, stoking further speculation he is eyeing a run for president, reports CNN. The donation will be announced publicly on Monday, says CNN, hours before Rand headlines a state GOP fundraising dinner in Concord. Rand is the first potential candidate to make a contribution to the New Hampshire Republican Party

Is Democracy Up Against The Ropes?

2013-05-20T09:54:00.000-04:00

By, Chris Rossini The Washington Post's E.J. Dionne laments a report from a group of "distinguished academics" at the German Marshall Fund of the United States. The report is called “The Democratic Disconnect”. It contends that democracy is in some hot water around the world: “Democracy is in trouble,” the report begins. “The collective engagement of a concerned citizenry for the public good —

INTERVIEW: Ron Paul's Revolution Continues

2013-05-20T07:49:00.000-04:00

By Kevin Kelly Since leaving the House of Representatives, former 12-term representative and presidential candidate Ron Paul has not slowed down. He has released a new educational curriculum for homeschoolers, opened a new Institute that focuses exclusively on foreign policy, and continues to speak across the country at college campuses to students eager to hear his philosophy of liberty.

Ralph Raico On Rothbard, Hayek and Ayn Rand

2013-05-19T19:26:00.000-04:00

From Mises.org: Through the Oral History Project, the Mises Institute is preserving the personal recollections and wisdom of the great men and women of our movement for the students and scholars of the future. Mises Institute faculty sat down this year to discuss the past and the future with champions of the Austrian tradition including economist Leland B. Yeager and Mises’s long-time assistant

More on Bitcoin 2013 (Part 4)

2013-05-19T18:24:00.001-04:00

More than one attendee has pointed out to me that after the US Treasury made the announcement that Bitcoin exchanges must comply with money exchange money laundering rules that China seems to have started promoting Bitcoin use, even to the point of running on national television, several times, a documentary on Bitcoin. --- In addition to the up and coming crypto currencies I mentioned earlier

Just Remember....

2013-05-19T14:08:00.000-04:00

At the first Silicon Valley Bitcoin conference, Bitcoin 2013, RT and EPJ are here. Not any of the mainstream media. In years to come, they will all be here, but this year it is just us. RT and EPJ: At the cutting edge of the future of money, economics and finance.

More from Bitcoin 2013 Conference (Part 3)

2013-05-19T13:07:00.000-04:00

Just finished a long chat with Trace Mayer, who is one of the most knowledgeable people around when it comes to Bitcoin. A major financial globetrotter, Trace tells me that he just got back from a trip that took him to Switzerland and then Indonesia. In Switzerland, he visited a vault where among many other security measures, they weigh you before going in, to make sure you weigh the same when

Reporting from Bitcoin Conference 2013 (Part 2)

2013-05-19T11:02:00.000-04:00

All attending the first Bitcoin 2013 conference in Silicon Valley are considering it a success. There are more than 1,000 attendees and the entrance fee to the event is $350.00. Alan Safahi, CEO of Zip Zap, told me that it was important to have a conference in Silicon Valley because SV is becoming the epicenter of virtual currencies. He told me he packed up his things and moved them along with

It's Not Pretty: The EuroZone Economies

2013-05-19T10:02:00.000-04:00

The EuroZone is in the down phase of the business cycle and government regulations make it difficult for startups in most EZ countries to launch, regulations in most EZ countries also make it risky for established firms to hire. Further, unemployment packages make it attractive for most to stay unemployed once they are laid off. Thus you have economies that look like this. Unlike the European

Krugman's Faulty Understanding of Austerity

2013-05-19T09:09:00.000-04:00

By, Chris Rossini Paul Krugman is talking Austerity: ...if the real problem is that we overspent and lived beyond our means, we should be working harder, not throwing millions of people into unemployment. The words that he uses are very general and don't really define the real problem. "We overspent" and lived "beyond our means" is very fuzzy. It virtually says nothing. I'll define it more

Adam Koekesh Arrested in Philadelphia

2013-05-19T07:52:00.000-04:00

Adam Kokesh was arrested in Philadelphia on Saturday after taking part in the Smoke Down Prohibition V event.

Bill Kristol's Empire of Death

2013-05-18T16:49:00.000-04:00

By Daniel McAdams Non-interventionists can learn a great deal by observing when the differing factions of the neo-conservative enterprise take to exposing each other. Take the Left-neocon New Republic, a magazine that hemorrhages money at such a rate that it literally had a hard time being given away until Facebook kid mega-millionaire Chris Hughes decided to snatch it up with pocket change as a

Snarky Comment on Gold from Former Ron Paul Staffer

2013-05-18T16:09:00.000-04:00

Oh yeah, they want Rand Paul to stab his father in his back, and Bruce Bartlett attempts to establish his Keynesian cred with this Judas-gold-hating tweet:: Advice to right-wingers: every drop in gold is a buying opportunity! ow.ly/la2IT Every penny of your wealth should be in gold! — Bruce Bartlett (@BruceBartlett) May 18, 2013

Buying Same-Day Sports, Theater or Concert Tickets Could Save You 50% Plus

2013-05-18T15:07:00.000-04:00

MarketWatch reports in on the price declines of wasting assets: Last week, we reported those purchasing a Groupon deal for up to 54% off Yankees ticket might still be overpaying by as much as 700%. According to SeatGeek.com data, terrace seats for recent Monday and Tuesday night Yankees games sold for as little as $3 on the secondary market on the day of the game. The $22 Groupon seats in that

This Week in TSA Drama

2013-05-18T14:05:00.000-04:00

Baghdad TSA Bob reports in: A camping stove fuel bottle with fuel inside was discovered in a passenger’s carry-on bag at San Francisco (SFO). The passenger was returning from a camping trip and forgot the fuel was in his bag. --- Six inert/replica/novelty grenades were discovered across the nation this week. Four were found in checked baggage at Gulfport (GPT), Honolulu (HNL), and Syracuse (SYR