the audit

Suggested Readings

September 16, 2009

Felix and Barry do it. So can I!

The NYT says China’s slap back at the U.S. tire tariff may not work. Seems the Chinese like to eat giant chicken feet, and the good ol’ US of A is the key supplier of such. But we’re left hanging on the critical question of how the Chinese cook them—and why they’re so desired.

The Journal looks at Massachusetts for a real-world example of how mandating health insurance—a key part of current proposals nationally—might play out. While two-thirds of the previously uninsured now have insurance, some make too much to get subsidies, but not enough to buy insurance.

The FT‘s Martin Wolf looks at the lessons from Lehman Brothers, writing that “the incomes of taxpayers were put at the disposal of the financial sector’s creditors” a decision that was “quite unbearable” but “also correct.” He concludes, “we cannot let stand the doctrine that systemically significant institutions are too big or interconnected to be allowed to fail in a crisis.”

The NYT‘s David Leonhardt writes that “sticky wages” remain sticky—for now and that with deflation, the average earner’s inflation-adjusted income has risen solidly in the last twelve months. Felix Salmon cautions that it’s still too early to determine.

Ryan Chittum is a former Wall Street Journal reporter, and deputy editor of The Audit, CJR’s business section. If you see notable business journalism, give him a heads-up at rc2538@columbia.edu. Follow him on Twitter at @ryanchittum.