There was talk about renaming the Krugman thread for this purpose, but that seems to be going nowhere. Besides which, I feel the Krugman thread should be left to discuss Krugman while this thread can be used for more general economic discussion.
Discuss:
- The merits of competing theories.
- The role of the government in managing the economy.
- The causes of and solutions to our current economic woes.
- Comparisons between the economic systems of different countries.
- Theoretical and existing alternatives to our current market system.
edited 17th Dec '12 10:58:52 AM by Topazan
A procrastination in of itself
How do the cars connected? Also what's to stop people running lines to the road and siphoning power. Or even getting an electric car that's low on power, driving it along the road to charge it then draining the battery before repeating the entire process.
“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ Cyran
United Earth
Because it would be cheaper to just do that from a normal stationary plug?
As for placing stealing cables across a highway... well, good luck. And, again, why not steal from normal power lines?
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.
The law in the night
Both are great ways to enter the Darwin Awards you see,electrical technicians and sometimes engineers have to scrape off the roasted remains of people trying to tap the energy from those transmission substations. 
Unless people are very desperate like the Nigerians who try to steal oil and gasoline from the pipelines usually with flaming results, I am certain most people wouldn't risk either being electrocuted or being ran over by a car, if not being ran over by a car while being electrocuted.
edited 5th Jul '16 5:22:09 PM by AngelusNox
Inter arma enim silent leges
A procrastination in of itself
![[up]](https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/smiles/arrow_up.png "[up]"){kind=icon}
People notice if a random plug is suddenly siphoning off a huge amount of power, likewise if random plugs were just placed within easy access range for people I suspect that they would rob them.
As for doing it with power lines, you don't do it with them because they're dangerous and not build to be randomly connected into, while these lines would be build to be connected into.
edited 5th Jul '16 5:34:43 PM by Silasw
“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ Cyran
United Earth
Again, on a highway?
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.
A procrastination in of itself
You get houses near highways, plus there still the car siphone idea.
My point is that if you start giving away free electricity people will find a way to exploit it.
“And the Bunny nails it!” ~ Gabrael “If the UN can get through a day without everyone strangling everyone else so can we.” ~ Cyran
My understanding is that you cant tap an electric line without affecting the entire line. So, should be detectable.
Must-Read: Jamie Chisholm: Treasury Yields Hit Record Lows
Jamie Chisholm: Treasury Yields Hit Record Lows: “The 10-year Treasury yield is down 7 basis points to 1.39 per cent…
…earlier touching 1.377 per cent, its most meagre offering on record. The 30-year Treasury yield also hit an all-time low of 2.14 per cent. Equivalent maturity German Bunds and UK gilts are down 3bp to minus 0.17 per cent and off 4bp to 0.80 per cent, respectively — also flirting with record lows. The Bank of England has already said it is likely to loosen policy further in coming months, and governor Mark Carney on Tuesday said banks could stop building up rainy-day funds in an attempt to support lending. Shares in real estate companies, life insurers and housebuilders are leading declines in London, following the Standard Life news. Miners are under pressure too, as the ‘risk off’ mood batters commodities, with base metals lower and Brent crude down 3.6 per cent to $48.31 a barrel.
I'd say the Bank has decided that it's officially raining (it might not be stair rods, but...), hence the "you can start into those rainy days funds, boys and girls" attitude. 
edited 6th Jul '16 12:41:42 AM by Euodiachloris
Lost in Space
Loose monetary policy is all well and good, but it doesn't do jack for the average family who's seen their real wages declining and their credit debt piling up for no visible return. The focus on "business confidence" is catastrophically myopic.
edited 6th Jul '16 9:25:07 AM by Fighteer
"It's Occam's Shuriken! If the answer is elusive, never rule out ninjas!"
Catastrophically myopic, but guarantees you a cushy job somewhere after you leave Washington.
Is my most cynical gut instincts.
It's not just Republicans who are look for their job after they 'graduate' from Washington and Politics to a private careers. I'm pretty sure we've had examples of Democrats moving to Wall Street after they finish in D.C.
Monetary policy also will not force employers to take the money- large corporations already have all the capital they need, they refuse to invest it in expanding production. That's why jobs are stagnant, and why private debt is climbing again (the credit card market is exploding right now).
One argument against risking inflation is that consumers aren't spending, and inflation will cause them to spend even less. But without employment it doesn't matter what the interest rates are. Credit cards these days are up in the 20% interest range- it isn't rates that are holding us back, it's wages.
edited 6th Jul '16 10:10:47 AM by DeMarquis
United Earth
Not really their fault, given how the incentives are set up:
They would have to limit the amount of money that outside third parties can spend during an election, which is what the Supreme Court has explicitly refused to do. And they didnt come to that decision because they were afraid it might make things worse, they think it's part of the constitutional right to free speech. In other words, it's ideological- granted, it's also awfully convenient for the interests of the top 1%.
Although the Congressional pension idea is interesting, I cant see it ever getting public support.
edited 6th Jul '16 10:20:01 AM by DeMarquis
Posted on the Politics thread, but this really belongs more here:
How much do you think the digital divide is responsible for a lot of our current mess? Urban and suburban people are much more likely have access to decent internet - or internet at all - which means more job opportunities, more access to information, access to a diverse range of people from all over the world, and access to a bigger potential audience/customers for any product you're selling. The divide will only get deeper before the people wise up and demand our government close it. If someone's hiring and they're looking for the best artist, musician, animator, writer, programmer, etc., they won't bother to look locally at some job fair. They'll go online where they can get anyone. If you don't have your work out there, they don't know you exist. When a company's looking for customers, they can find way more customers online than locally. Amazon ships things just about anywhere in the countries they operate in. It saves me the trouble of having to worry that something I want or need (I have some medical issues) is unavailable locally because it's too unpopular or obscure. Why drive to a local store and look for stuff when I can order it online? Why pay money for gas when I can get something for possibly a lower price plus free shipping (provided I pay for Amazon Prime) and have a massive selection? Why go to a mom-and-pop store when I can get any song online? Rural people are blaming foreigners for the disappearance of their jobs. And globalization - there is a lot of truth to that at least. But they should be blaming the digital divide, which took their opportunities away and gave them to people with good internet access. And they don't seem to be aware of that, to my knowledge. They don't seem to be aware of how important internet access is.
United Earth
I read that bit on the digital divide on this soundtrack:
Fuck you, Fascist sympathizers
Obscenely high pay for public servants is how they curb the Iron Triangle in Singapore, but that country's also been effectively single party for decades now...
Yeah. Singapore gets mad props from me for its consistently good economic management, but that only works because Singapore's politics are controlled by their Communist Party and they can treat their President as a CEO.
Causing freakouts over sourcing since 2018
I'd say the PAP is authoritarian, but communist seems to be a far cry from what Singaporean society is like. Extreme competition and conspicious (albeit within a government-approved mold) consumption despite ostensibly community-oriented values doesn't sound very communist to me. Nor is importing foreign labor to fill jobs locals won't take or are overqualified for.
I have disagreed with her a lot, but comparing her to republicans and propagandists of dictatorships is really low. - An idiot
V
Not quite sure where to put this, but this an article from a trade magazine about bus manufacturer ADL.
Lost in Space
When we ask you to add context to posts, we mean it for several reasons. First, nobody should have to click a link to understand what you want to talk about. Second, nothing about that link indicates that it has any general economic significance. Do you have a fascination for press releases by bus manufacturers?
V
Sometimes, I just don't know to put interesting articles I discover. Maybe I shouldn't post them at all, if that's more to your liking?
Yes 
.
United Earth
Don't sass a mod, man, just tell us what's what.
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.
@Krieger: I used "Communist Party" in full knowledge that Singapore is not any brand of socialist (except possibly when compared to the US Republican Party platform, which doesn't count).
The People's Action Party is a Leninist vanguard party that has abandoned anything resembling Communist economics (and in fact governing from the center-right, albeit with a relatively strong welfare state) while retaining the Communist Party structure. China and Vietnam are similar but have maintained a more "socialist" orientation (though note that the Singaporean government is heavily involved in the Singaporean and external economies through government assets and sovereign wealth funds).
edited 7th Jul '16 6:53:42 PM by Ramidel
It's just one rail down the middle of the lane, providing power. The problem of the car's connection with it is essentially solved, you can access and leave the rail pretty much at will. Non-electric cars need not care one way or another.
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.