Powering Down the Developing World

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The Covid-19 pandemic has been particularly cruel to the developing world, with Africa, Latin America, and South Asia all epicenters of high fatalities. But something worse may be on the way – this time not from viruses but good intentions, bolstered by often-unrealistic climate projections, which threaten to keep these countries in poverty for the foreseeable future.  read more »

Greater Manila 2020: The Evolving Urban Form

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In 2021, the Manila built up urban area is estimated to have a population of 24.0 million, making it the fourth largest urban area in the world, according to Demographia World Urban Areas, covering 873 square kilometers and with a population density of 12,801 per square kilometer (33,135 per square mile). Only Tokyo, Jakarta and Delhi have larger populations. By comparison, the 2021 population of the New York urban area is 20.9 million.  read more »

Will Emigres from the Coasts Change Us -- Or Are They Like Us?

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Florida and Texas are experiencing dramatic results from the covid-induced diaspora of many thousands of Americans from the coasts to the American heartland. Gaggles of disenchanted New Yorkers are flocking to Florida these days, and legions of tech workers from Silicon Valley are disembarking for Austin.  read more »

Grandpa's Basement House

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My mother-in-law was born in a small town in rural Nebraska in 1941. Her father was oversees fighting World War II for the first few years of her life, so she and her mother lived on her grandparents’ farm in a society absent of young men.  read more »

America the Indispensable

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God has a special providence for fools, drunkards, and the United States of America.

~Otto von Bismarck  read more »

The World's Finest Railroads

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The United States has the most efficient and productive railroads in the world. Not coincidentally, the United States also has the most private railroads in the world. Other than Canada, almost every other country that has railroads has nationalized them.  read more »

Absentee Democratic Voters to Decide if Newsom's Growing Gap Between Rich and Poor is Worth Keeping

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Under the leadership of Governor Gavin Newsom, rich and poor Democrats have been watching the financial gap between them getting wider as his inflicts heavy energy costs onto the less fortunate in California. Starting mid-August, in the Democratic registration-controlled state of California, absentee voters get an opportunity to voice their decision in advance of the September 14th recall election date to cast their ballot for Newsom to support the continuation of his policies biased against the poor or reject him for newer blood to lead the state.  read more »

Subjects:

Opie with an Apple: Can Tech Save the Heartland?

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In a recent Brookings’ essay, Senior Fellow Mark Murro and colleagues brought down a strawman they themselves propped up. The piece was entitled “Remote work won’t save the heartland”.  read more »

A COVID Postcard from Australia

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Australia’s response to Covid-19 has quickly turned from laudable to laughable. For a nation which only a few months ago seemed to be the toast of world leaders for having so effectively limited the spread of the virus and still growing its economy, to a nation now lagging on vaccination and struggling with lockdowns, the turnaround has been dramatic.  read more »

It's All About the Money: Who's Not Working?

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— 3.9 million people quit their jobs in June.

— “We’re seeing the craziest counter-offers I’ve ever seen in my entire life,” says a recruiter.  read more »