Social Issues

Via The Economic Cycle Research Institute,

With the economic expansion in its eighth year, over 15 million jobs added since the post-recession low in employment, and a steady decline in the jobless rate from its recessionary high of 10% to under 5%, many mainstream economists were convinced that the U.S. economy was in good shape. That misconception, at least where jobs are concerned, is a key reason so many were stunned by this month’s election verdict.

Did the politically-correct insanity just reach its tipping point? Just weeks after a notably politically-incorrect Donald Trump was swept to victory in the US election, HeatSt.com's Kieran Corcoran reports a university has pledged to end its culture of censorship and no-platforming, and has instead pledged to defend free speech.

Cardiff University in Wales has said it will no longer ban events by controversial speakers, declaring “censorship is not the answer.”

British MP John Mann has revealed that Members of Parliament sexually harass young employees but go unpunished as their victims feel helpless. The Labour MP made his remarks at the House of Commons’ Standards Committee on Tuesday, saying that sexual assault by politicians at Westminster was a “major issue” that needed to be addressed. Mann said “In here [Westminster], there are alleged sexual assaults by current members of Parliament and nowhere for people to go, or they don’t feel confident in going.

When we looked at the latest disappointing spending data this morning, we warned that GDP would likely be weakned, however we had no idea by just how much. The answer was revealed moments ago courtesy of the Atlanta Fed, which moments ago updated its GDPNow model and said that its forecast for real GDP growth in the fourth quarter of 2016 is 2.4 percent on November 30, down from 3.6 percent on November 23.

From the report:

An alcoholic in the Netherlands has been euthanized by the state because he had “no prospect of improvement” and could not continue living as an alcoholic. Mark Langedijk, who suffered from depression and anxiety, was allowed to choose the day of his death and was cracking jokes, drinking beer and eating ham sandwiches with his family hours before he passed away. He was killed by lethal injection at his parents’ home on 14 July, according to an account of the ordeal written by his brother and published in the magazine Linda.