October 17, 2024

20% down payment on a median-priced home:

• now: 83% of a year’s income for the typical family ready to buy a home
• 2016: 65%
• Now takes 19 years of savings vs 14 years of savings in 2016
• Monthly payments 26% of median income earnings vs 14% in 2016

Child care:

• Now: a third of an average family's income
• 2016: a quarter of an average family's income

Buying a car:

• Two weeks more of work a year to afford

Wages may have grown, but not as fast as prices.

Biggest issue in swing states before the election: economy

A revised CPI in Europe:

Look for large drops in target interest rates from central banks.

Neoclassical economists around the world are calling for all water to be commodified, just like carbon dioxide. The goal is to "cut subsidies" going to water use.

The Global Commission on the Economics of Water have released a report outlining the costs to the economy from drying-up and overstretched sources of fresh water:

by 2050:

• high-income countries’ GDP down 8%
• low-income countries' GDP down 15%

The new economic framing should shift from fixing negative externalities after the fact to shaping economies so that water is allocated and used efficiently, equitably, and sustainably from the start. Indeed, markets across our economies – from agriculture and mining to pharmaceuticals, energy and semiconductors – must be reshaped to achieve this.

Their solution: price the externalities and include it in the price of water so markets can allocate it effectively. Also, innovation. Lots of innovation.

Where have we heard these calls before?

Water conservation is an essential activity for life. Subsidies to private capital wasting water (say, bottle water companies) should stop. But, the way to do this is with tight regulation and public programs to preserve our water cycle in the face of climate change. An issue barely on people's radars right now.