Entries by Neland Nobel

Weekend Read: Your Car Your Freedom

Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes

The automobile is one of the devices that truly changed America and the world. Invented originally in Germany, it found its greatest expression and success in America. In the early years, car technology competed with each other based on gasoline or kerosene power, diesel, electric, and even steam. The internal combustion engine using gasoline prevailed. […]

Bond Agency Downgrades US Sovereign Debt

Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes

US government bonds are considered by the investment community to be “risk-free.”  They are low risk to be sure, given the ability of the US government to both tax and print money, but risk-free with our current fiscal trajectory seems a stretch. So, Fitch, the bond rating agency called it as they saw it: the […]

ASU Is Nothing to Crow About

Estimated Reading Time: 5 minutes

We published an interesting interview with Tom Lewis, the generous benefactor who had to withdraw his significant contributions to ASU because of militant left-wing bias among its faculty. In that interview, he has high praise for Michael Crow, although he admits he does not think Michael Crow knows what is going on regarding academic freedom […]

Making Ice Cream Out Of History

Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes

Over the 4th of July weekend, you likely became aware of the political statements from Ben and Jerry’s, the ice cream maker owned by the international conglomerate, Unilever. Exactly why we should believe the utterings of a company that clogs people’s veins with fat and inflames their system with sugar, is not the point.  The […]

It Is No Longer A Case of TINA (There Is No Alternative)

Estimated Reading Time: 5 minutes

Since our last report the Federal Reserve has met, left interest rates unchanged, but consequently has made a lot of noise that at least two more interest rate hikes will be forthcoming. Given tight labor conditions and the persistence of inflation,  one wonders why they hesitated, then thought differently, and have subsequently tried to make […]

Weekend Read: The Other July 4th

Estimated Reading Time: 7 minutes

We are all familiar with July 4, 1776, but did you know American Independence might have been quite different were it not for events on July 4, 1754? It was on that date that a 21-year-old Colonel in the Virginia Militia led his men on a retreat out of Fort Necessity after tangling with a […]