As America withdraws from Iraq and Afghanistan what do we leave behind? Has American military and foreign policy succeeded or have we bequeathed new geopolitical instability and new challenges to the Western world?[ ... ]

The just concluded third quarter was a tumultuous one economically, politically and financially. The world economy is fraught with problems which are having drastic impacts on the behaviors of individuals and businesses. We perceive the economic and social deprivations being suffered by peoples around the world are causing new political unrest that will have long term implications on the future of economic, social and political institutions around the world. What are we facing?[ ... ]

In an effort to reduce the long term Federal deficit problem, Democrats and Republicans are looking at changing the method of computing inflation in the economy to one that would result in a lower measurement of inflation. The impact of such a change would have a significant positive impact on the Federal budget over the next decade. However, such an improvement in Federal finances would come at the expense of an increased number of dependents on Federal programs. The long term socio-economic impact would be quite negative. What are the merits of such a change?[ ... ]

Anirban Basu examined the relationships between Maryland’s potential, its economic performance and over-reliance on decreasing federal government funding.[ ... ]

Despite a seeming agreement to avert a U.S. government debt default, we believe the deteriorating economic situation in the U.S. is actually more serious and is more worthy of our attention. We believe the dramatic slowdown in U.S. economic growth raises the distinct possibility of a slide back into recession possibly as early as this year. The fortunes of the U.S. economy rest in the hands of the private sector. We are not optimistic the private sector will turn the tide.[ ... ]

The June ISM manufacturing survey was a major catalyst in last week's strong stock market gains. While the overall reading in the survey was "bullish", the details underneath the summary number were actually "bearish". We remain optimistic but the June data still leaves us searching for a meaningful rebound in manufacturing. Without improvement in employment and manufacturing, the outlook for the economy and the stock market will diminish.[ ... ]

The May Employment report was surprisingly weak and supports the thesis of an economic recovery that has stalled. If so, it portends a weak economy going forward with negative implications for corporate earnings and the capital markets. We believe the data for May in manufacturing and employment have been negatively impacted by exogenous events and do not denote an end to the economic recovery. Nonetheless, we have had to reduce our estimates of economic growth for this year and next.[ ... ]

Fast moving events in the Middle East are calling for new policies on the part of the U.S.  However, the U.S. appears to be slow in addressing the historical change that is occurring. Continued weakness and errors in U.S. foreign policy will cost us an historic opportunity to shape positive change and better serve our long term economic and security interests. What should we do?[ ... ]

In revisiting the European economy since our last article in December, 2010 we remain concerned about trends and developments in the Eurozone. Financial distress continues and credit quality is deteriorating. Electoral change is underway as feared. New problems from inflation and the repercussions of the nuclear disaster in Japan now appear. We remain pessimistic in our outlook for Europe.[ ... ]

Inflation has risen but the Fed does not believe it is serious. We disagree and caution that further inaction to address this issue could threaten this year’s economic outlook.[ ... ]

Europe continues to face severe financial woes despite EU efforts to “band aid”. Lingering effects of recession and asset write-downs leave high unemployment and weak banking systems in member states. Cost of economic bailouts and stimulus result in dangerous levels of sovereign debt within the EU. EU pressure has created austerity programs to de-leverage sovereign balance sheets. Austerity programs are not the answer and we believe will actually worsen the economic situation in Europe. As a result we are pessimistic about the future of the European Union and the euro.[ ... ]

In this review of President Obama's foreign policy initiatives and results we analyze the impact and costs of the Administration's foreign policy on future economic trends and foreign relations.[ ... ]

In this article we examine the social and political toll of the current recession and their longer term impacts on the U.S and overseas economies.[ ... ]

The recent increase in unemployment and the rapid deterioration in the U.S. and overseas economies raises questions as to the outlook for worldwide economies over the next year and the success of rescue plans to revive them.[ ... ]

Barack Obama wins a huge landslide election endorsing a mandate for profound change. His election is an opportunity for success or a trap for disappointment. What can we expect from his presidency and a Democratic Party controlled Congress? What does this election portend for changing American voter views?[ ... ]