Category: Economics
loneliness, refugees, and the spaces we live in
This essay by D.L. Mayfield in Comment is very relevant to my interests: The suburban neighbourhood where I currently live was not built for community. This was done by design—the suburbs were meant to be bastions of happy isolation, with...
my review of Jamil Jivani’s “Why Young Men?”
I reviewed Jamil Jivani’s new book, Why Young Men?, for Comment magazine. It’s a fascinating (and sometimes frustrating) book that explores the very important question of why young men are radicalized and embrace violence. It is a bit tricky to nail down...
the power map of baltimore
Dr. Lawrence Brown and his public health students have produced a fascinating map of Baltimore that illustrates historic and contemporary inequities. They’ve also produced a set of ideas that can help remediate these inequities: In a hypersegregated city, segrenomics results in the redlining...
when the plant closes
Alec MacGillis has been doing stellar work about some of America’s neglected places, and this piece about a town in Ohio grappling with the imminent closure of a coal-fired power plant is no different: Lee Anderson, director of governmental affairs...
sex robots: not just about sex anymore… or ever!
Everyone loves a good read about the history of sex robots, right? “Sex robots,” therefore, have always been about more than sex. They’ve been a cultural repository for wider uncertainties in times of social change: a literalization of the fear...
the history of capitalism and the glory of man
Note: I am sorry for the inconsistent posting schedule. Our family moved two weeks ago to our new field of service and the internet here is so inconsistent that I have been unable to connect every time that I sat...
spend time with poor people, be friends and neighbors
I love it when Eve Tushnet gets on her soapbox about poverty and virtue, and this great piece about the much-touted “success sequence” is no exception: The people I speak with believe they have a responsibility—there’s that word again—to achieve...
what it costs our kids
Since yesterday’s post was about the struggles of raising children overseas, here’s Tara Ann Thieke on the problems at home: But when I go home to my newspapers and social media feeds I read about how we need more early...
there are reasons why poor people eat what they eat
Those of us interested in public health and nutrition have heard a lot in the past few years about “food deserts” — places where it’s hard to get fresh and healthy food. It turns out that while poor people may...
follow the money, asthma prevention edition
The Washington Post explains why prevention gets shafted when it comes to treating chronic diseases like asthma: Both [major teaching hospitals in Baltimore] receive massive tax breaks in return for providing “community benefit,” a poorly defined federal requirement that they...