Debt

A man in a suit holds a soccer ball decorated with dollar signs

Elaborate government investment fraud creates incentive for election fraud.

By Justin Katz | February 21, 2024 |

The latest shiny news object in Rhode Island media is the revelation that the Tidewater soccer stadium will cost Rhode Island taxpayers $132 million in order to finance $27 million of the construction costs, or $4.4 million per year for 30 years.  Grumbling is being heard from people with familiar names — “obviously these are…

Biker on a dirty ATV.

Politics This Week: Hidden Emails, DUI Skeletons, Bikers Gone Wild

By Justin Katz | April 11, 2023 |

John DePetro and Justin Katz discuss the mysterious ways in which Rhode Island government runs poorly.

Providence, Rhode Island, USA park and skyline.

Politics This Week: Blame, Budgets, and Bailouts

By Justin Katz | April 3, 2023 |

John DePetro and Justin Katz walk through the latest comedies in Rhode Island politics and discuss the characters who have been stealing the spotlight.

Man hiding money behind his back with his fingers crossed.

Politics This Week: Rhode Island, the Begging State

By Justin Katz | March 29, 2023 |

John DePetro and Justin Katz discuss the factors behind Rhode Island’s inability to raise sufficient funds for major projects.

A water drop and ripples

Here’s a great response to demands for student debt cancelation.

By Justin Katz | January 12, 2022 |

Robert Wiblin gets to the economics of student debt cancelation in a dead-on way with this comment: Cancelling student debt is good but we could do more. The government should also tax non-college grads in order to fund a $5,000 annual gift for all college grads as a way to show appreciation for how smart…

A water drop and ripples

Inflation would be an interesting challenge, if it were just a model experiment.

By Justin Katz | January 3, 2022 |

Ryan Rappa thinks the Fed is going to have to make debt relief part of any plan to control inflation.  Actually, I should specify that whoever wrote his commentary’s headline thinks that, because Rappa’s essay mainly just ruminates about the problem.  The closest he comes is this: This risk is multiplied by other forms of…

A hoodie on a beaten school bus

When they come for school bonds, ask where all the money’s been going.

By Justin Katz | December 15, 2021 |

Our system is set up to ensure that infrastructure, like school buildings, is left to rot.  That dynamic is inevitable when (1) budgeting and negotiations are tilted so heavily in favor of labor and (2) taxpayers can be bullied or forced into spending the additional money to repair or replace buildings when they become bad…