Politics

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60 posts

One thing that always bothers me is the argument for/against the raising of the minimum wage to $15 dollars an hour. Mostly because both sides have good arguments, but neither side is creative enough to come up with an alternative that actually solves the problem while still helping people stay out of poverty.

One of the reasons I supported Andrew Yang in the Democratic primary wasn't because I think UBI is necessarily a good idea (at $1,000 or any other level) on its own, but because Andrew exhibited someone with new ideas who seemed reasonable and be able to change his mind if they wouldn't work.

If we took one of his ideas and changed a few existing ones, I think a better more flexible system could be created.

Step 1: Actually go ahead and do UBI at the prevailing poverty line, but also do it in place of many existing social safety nets as Andrew intended to offset the cost and eliminate government red tape.

Allow people already in the programs to decide one or the other, but get rid of the food stamps, welfare, and other programs designed to help able-bodied poor people going forward. Keep disability and separate elderly programs into another bucket. But change how we help people in this country so that you don't have to already be completely poor, and get rid of the motivation to NOT change your status out of fear of losing your benefits. Everyone gets the benefit, everyone can work,... (More)

Evening Everyone,

Like @Aaron Wise before me, it’s with deep sadness that I’m announcing my departure from the Exchange and retirement from writing today. Having started this process in August last year writing for Real Visions the Exchange, it’s been a whirlwind of activity, interactions, and experiences I will hold onto for the rest of my life. However, with the poor condition of the job market, the arrival of my first child in the coming weeks, and politics within some writing circles that I have become involved in becoming toxic, I’ve decided that it’s time for me to make a change.

In the coming months, I will be studying for the GRE and GMAT while building the portfolio I’ll need to get into a Master's Program, which will allow me to get a job down the line. During this time, I will also be getting in shape for a Navy or Air Force National Guard application, which will allow me to support my family while going back to school.

This decision doesn't come lightly as having suffered considerable burnout after getting my undergraduate degree dispute a strong academic finish; I know how it feels to throw yourself into something 100% and feel the consequences after. One could say these are the adult decisions young fathers are forced to make and that you don’t truly understand what that feels like until you go through, and I got to say it’s not a fun feeling.

However, I’m blessed with a family that... (More)

What should investors be expecting from the new administration's COVID-19 and Stimulus-response?

On January 6th, President-elect Joe Biden secured the Presidency after Congress almost unanimously voted to certify the electoral college votes. This comes after several regrettable months of post-election chaos led by the Trump legal team, which sought every legal path to change the election outcome. Some may say even those paths that weren’t legal after chaos consumed the Capitol building on Wednesday, but I digress.

President-elect Biden was elected on a mandate to “heal the soul of the nation,” a much-needed breath of relief after the four tumultuous years of the Trump administration, and confront the most calamitous health and economic event in modern American history. In this write-up, I hope to answer four fundamental questions that most people have going into the new administration:

1. What tools are and aren’t available to stop the spread?
2. What does a “Biden Doctrine” look like?
3. What can Biden do to solve the issues facing the vaccine distribution and rollout?
4. What does a Biden Stimulus look like, and what paths are available to achieve it?

What tools are and aren’t available to stop the spread?

There aren’t many tools beyond those already being deployed for the President and the executive branch, such as the Defense Production Act, the Strategic National Stockpile's utilization, and forming a Governor’s committee to fast track communications between the executive branch and those on the ground. However, there have been many discussions of an incoming nationally enforced mask... (More)