Deficits, debt and looming disaster : reform of entitlement programs may be the only hope

With government deficits and debt at record highs, the long-term fiscal outlook for the U.S. requires serious attention, most agree. The fix is most likely going to have to start with fundamental reforms of entitlement programs.Budget deficits ; Debt

Future oil

Petroleum industry and trade

Aid, trade, and agriculture

Agricultural prices

Labor's share

Employment ; Income

Shoe-leather costs of inflation and policy credibility

Inflation can cause costly misallocations of resources as consumers seek to protect the purchasing power of their nominal assets. In this article, Michael R. Pakko discusses the nature of these distortions - known as "shoe-leather" costs - in a model where the demand for money is motivated by a "shopping-time" constraint. While the estimates of the shoe-leather costs of long-run inflation (implied by this model) are generally consistent with previous studies, the article goes on to show that the transition between inflation rates can involve dynamics that alter the nature of these welfare effects. Specifically, the benefits of a disinflation policy are mitigated by the gradual adjustment of the economy in response to a lower inflation rate. This transition can be particularly protracted when there is uncertainty about the credibility of the disinflation policy.Inflation (Finance)

Smoke-free law did affect revenue from gaming in Delaware

A paper recently published in the journal Tobacco Control purports to show that the implementation of a smoking prohibition in Delaware had no statistically significant effect on the revenues of three gaming facilities in that state. After correcting for evident errors in that analysis, I find that the smoke-free law did affect revenues from gaming in Delaware. Total gaming revenues are estimated to have declined by at least $6 million per month after the implementation of Delaware*s Clean Indoor Air Law. This represents a loss of over 12% relative to average monthly revenues in the year preceding the smoking ban.Gambling industry

Eighth District states weather the mortgage foreclosure storm

Foreclosure ; Mortgages ; Federal Reserve District, 8th

Currency boards: monetary magic?

Currency boards

No smoking at the slot machines: the effect of a smoke-free law on Delaware gaming revenues

As communities around the nation consider laws restricting smoking in public places, a key political and economic issue that often arises is the effect that such laws have on the sales and profits of particular sectors. The gaming industry has been active in opposition to such ordinances, citing large prospective losses. This article analyzes the revenues of three gaming facilities in Delaware following the implementation of a smoke-free law in December 2002. Revenues are found to have declined significantly at each of the three facilities, with relative magnitudes of losses corresponding to the availability of alternative gaming venues in the region.Tobacco industry ; Gambling industry

Discounting the discount rate

Federal funds rate ; Discount window