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Have you ever had someone say to you, “I’m fine” and not really believe that was the case?  If we were in a room, you’d see my hand go up.  You can often tell by the person’s tone or look that it may not be true. 

As the Fourth of July approached, America’s sky prepared to display vividly colored fireworks in rhythmic fashion, a spectacle that reminds one of the ebbs and flows of our economy.  Just as fireworks launch into the night, so too does our economic activity, bursting with energy and brightness during periods of prosperity.

Economics is sometimes accused of physics envy, and this note will do nothing to dispel that.  Halloween is months away, but pumpkin seeds on my wife’s farm have been and continue to be sown.  Meanwhile, strange tales are coming from the University of Rochester New York where quantum physicists are experimenting with small building blocks of reality called particles, helping con

Atlas likes to poke fun at the Federal Reserve from time to time because it employs so many PhDs yet doesn’t have complete mastery over how the economy behaves.  One only needs to think about the “transitory” period of inflation as an example of their limited power.  You may recall that Jerome Powell, Chair of the Federal Open Market Committee, used the term for mont

California has been the birthplace of many cultural and economic trends that have rippled across the globe.  From the laid-back style of skate culture to the free-spirited boho chic, and the timeless cool of the denim jacket, California's influence on fashion is undeniable. California is the state that made black turtleneck shirts cool for a little while.

Shrink is an interesting word.  For a simple, monosyllabic word, it has many meanings.  More and more, it is used frequently in the fields of economics and finance.

The Federal Reserve (Fed) is currently grappling with a significant dilemma reminiscent of the classic Trolley Problem, where any decision carries considerable consequences.  This predicament stems from the Fed's dual mandate: to achieve maximum employment and maintain stable prices, specifically targeting low inflation which they have determined is 2.0 percent on a trending basis.&nbs

Thistles are plants that can spread rapidly across a landscape.  They are a resilient weed that have evolved to survive in some of the harshest conditions.  A thistle is thorny and can cause discomfort if one is not careful.  Before we paint them with too broad a brush, however, its worth noting that they have some redeeming qualities.  They provide a food source for some wi

Ghosts are typically associated with negative connotations.  Only Casper the Friendly Ghost comes to mind as an apparition with a positive reputation.  Unlike his spooky peers, this one is kindhearted, seeking to befriend people, not scare them.  Banks can sometimes get a bad rap as well.  After all, their reputations haven’t fully recovered from the frightening episod