Melvyn Urofsky suggested in a New York Times op-ed yesterday that Obama and his new administration can learn a few things from Louis Brandeis’s 1914 book, Other People’s Money, and How the Bankers Use It. Brandeis wrote the book after revelations of a Congressional investigation into the predatory practices of J. P. Morgan and other big bankers. The…
DetailsGuest blog post by Author Finn Brunton The history of money is history itself. From the accounting and contracts of Sumerian cuneiform tablets (the earliest written language) to buried coin hoards, stamps and letters of credit, Incan khipu knot-counts, or the maps and censuses written in the service of levying taxes, part of the great…
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ERIC SINOWAY I suggested to him that, in at least a couple of respects, his was a normal reaction. It’s hard to find the same energy working for someone else after you’ve been the top dog. There’s also an understandable letdown— a sense of lost momentum— when you’ve brought a major career goal to fruition,…
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JESSICA EISE Unlike the United States, Mauritius was virgin territory. There weren’t any native inhabitants apart from the birds and the bees. Safeguarded by a coral reef, the small island was protected even from waves and the crystal clear waters sparkled bright blue in the sunlight. The dodo bird was allowed to evolve into utter…
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LAURA RENA MURRAY I got off the crowded BART train a little after 11am and followed a stream of people filing out to join Oakland’s general strike on November 2nd. Everyone clutched signs and backpacks as they ascended the stairs, talking excitedly about the day’s events. Downtown Oakland’s Frank Ogawa Plaza, renamed “Oscar Grant Plaza”…
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ROBERT WATSON When George Washington arrived in New York City in late April of 1789 to assume the presidency of the United States, he was uncertain as to how he should approach the new office and had no clear plan for the many challenges facing the young republic. His fellow citizens were just as uncertain…
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MARC RENDELL, MD Due to the high prevalence of Diabetes and the many serious health problems which result, the health care burden of this disease on our society is enormous. We now are on the threshold of a major expansion of health care in our population. U.S. President Barack Obama has rightly recognized that health…
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MICHAEL SHAHANI As we are in the midst of the back-to-school season with the winter months ahead, now is a good time to start thinking about what we can do to keep healthy as the weather gets colder. People will start to spend more time indoors, becoming more susceptible to colds and flu. Probiotics, sometimes…
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ROBERT GUTHRIE A world of instant information and over-reporting can flood us with potentially vital but often trivial health information. Understanding the credibility of the study at the source can help you eliminate the static and recognize the relevant. Recently, I saw a small study published in a very obscure medical journal covered on a…
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DAVID T. NASH, MD About three generations ago, most physicians learned very little about cholesterol during their medical school and in-hospital training, other than the history of very early work by a Russian researcher feeding cholesterol to rabbits, creating an atherosclerotic-like lesion. Many practicing physicians one generation ago doubted the value of treating elevated levels,…
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