economics Passing on a passion for teaching One of the great joys that comes from teaching is the chance to share your passions with your students. Whilst I’ve only taught for 18 months as an Associate of Teach For Australia, I’ve already had many such moments, where my passions have been absorbed and championed by
apple Wisdom via iTunes: Understanding the booming podcast market and what’s worth a listen With the latest operating system update for its mobile devices (iOS8), Apple acknowledged the resurgence of an industry that had become maligned after its stunning rise in the mid-2000s. Back then, podcasts had been a mandatory app for all mobile devices. They took the digital world by storm in and
Economic adjustment Life in the country – how do regional economies cope in the 21st century? Having moved to Portland, Victoria, in January, as part of the Teach For Australia program, my economic experience has changed drastically. From studying economics at the University of Melbourne, I am now teaching it to VCE students at a rural secondary school. However, the biggest change has been in developing
economics Unemployment in America: the forgotten economic crisis This article was featured as part of Equilibrium 2013, our annual print publication. President Barack Obama assumed office in 2009 during a crisis of epic proportions, particularly demonstrated by the skyrocketing unemployment rate in the wake of the Global Financial Crisis.However, nowadays it seems that the second-term President’s
adam smith After 4 years of economics, now what? So after four years at the university of Melbourne, studying economics and a bit of politics along the way, it’s suddenly all come to an end. Which feels odd because for the greater part of this year, my Honours year, the focus hasn’t been on finishing the degree,
america The US government shutdown - any end in sight? What a joke. Really, there isn’t anything else that can be said about the latest fiscal crisis in the United States. With the federal government shutting down most operations on the 1st of October, as the House of Representatives (controlled by the Republicans) and the Senate (controlled by the
australian senate Election 2013 - Abbott’s agenda up for amendment? Whilst the outcome on Election Night was clear – a decisive victory for Tony Abbott and the Liberal-National Coalition – the likely outcome in the Senate where various minor and micro-parties with specific agenda have won seats, has raised myriad questions about the fate of the incoming government’s policy programme. With
australia Election 2013 - let’s talk tax reform! This article forms part of an ongoing series looking at economic issues as Australia heads into the Federal Election. More coverage can be found on the Election 2013 page of ESSA’s website. This election campaign has already seen its fair share of gaffes, negative ads and costings claims. Perhaps
america Permanent Crises, Bitter Politics and Weak Policy - The New Reality of US Budgets When President Barack Obama came into office in 2009, it was under a wave of optimism and hope for a more conciliatory, robust and bipartisan policymaking process between Democrats and Republicans. The country was in crisis at the time of Obama’s election, and there was the expectation that out
austerity Rogoff & Reinhart - Excel, Austerity and #StatsFAIL When I first learnt via the Twittersphere that something known as Rogoff & Reinhart had been called into question over its methodological inconsistencies, it seemed to be just another instance of quibbling economists – unique only in that instead of occupying the corridors and libraries of universities, it was permeating my Twitter
angus The joy of debating economics ... Seriously! In an affirmation of the natural order of things, on Thursday night out at Monash University, the University of Melbourne team (composed of myself, 1st-year student Emad, and the incomparable Prof. Jeff Borland) took out a closely fought debate to determine whether the Eurozone has been a success or a
drug pricing report The Intern Experience - Public Policy Reform, Drugs and Rock’n’Roll Whilst the reputation for the intern experience is one of fetching coffees for superiors and photocopying a litany of documents, the experience I was fortunate to have at the Grattan Institute over Summer 2012/13 will be one to remain with me for years to come. Founded in 2008 with
congress The US Budget - Petty Politics Equals Poor Policy Throughout the hoopla of the Leadership Spill that wasn’t I was struck by how parlous politics in Australia had become. Then I wandered over to one of my regularly-read blogs, the ever-engaging Ezra Klein on The Washington Post, who highlighted the endemic nature of intransigence in the budget-making process
and Book Review: The Signal and the Noise Ever since he took the world of political punditry by storm in 2008 with his electoral prediction website, FiveThirtyEight, Nate Silver has been one of the more high profile stats-gurus going around. Having been an avid follower of his blog (before and after its move to The New York Times)
barack obama The Fiscal Cliff - A Done Deal, But How Good? As I wrote back in December, everyone understood the need for a deal to be made between President Obama and Congress to avoid going over the ‘fiscal cliff.’ That is, to come to an agreement that would avert the scheduled expirations of a host of tax cuts and reductions in
america The Fiscal Cliff - Where are we at? No one ever said being President of the United States was an easy job, and that has certainly been the case for the newly re-elected, President Obama. After a bitterly fought re-election over Republican nominee, Fmr. Gov. Mitt Romney, he was literally back to work the next day, beginning the
america America Votes - 15 Days To Go How things change. In my last article on the Presidential Election, from the United States, I suggested that the election hadn’t really engaged the voting public, with the coverage at the time focusing on the missteps within Mitt Romney’s campaign and the support the President was receiving in
america America Votes - The Land of Great Contrasts As Chris continues his travels across the United States, he reflects on his cross-country journey observing how the world’s leading economy is such a contrasting display of economic highs and lows. If I’ve learnt anything during my two-week visit to the United States it’s that this a
america America Votes - 45 Days Out As Chris travels the United States, he gives his perspective on the latest happenings on the Presidential Campaign and asks, does the data matter all that much? I have been in the United States for the last week, travelling across the country from Los Angeles to where I am now,
australia Student Recap - ESSA Q&A The word is in from the students – ESSA’s inaugural Q&A was a resounding success. Featuring some of the University’s most famed economists (Max Corden and Neville Norman) and some of the nation’s leading economic commentators (George Megalogenis, Stephen Koukoulas, Stephen Long and James Paterson), it was
american election America Votes - Three Months Out I wonder if Bill Clinton’s master campaign strategist, James Carville, ever thought that his maxim “it’s the economy stupid” would be trotted out on news broadcast after another, 20 years after coining it. It may be a simplistic phrase to describe the trials and tribulations of election-year politics,
chris weinberg The Curious Case of US Unemployment In my first article as a writer for ESSA, I wrote about how the unemployment rate was going to have a significant impact on President Obama’s re-election chances. In the 2 months since that article was written there have been some significant developments in the US economy and in
australian government budget balance Putting the Australian Budget in a Global Context There will be a lot of people tuning into Wayne Swan’s budget speech on Tuesday night, and not just from within Australia. Provided that the Treasurer delivers a much-hyped budget surplus (despite a softening in tax revenues due to the global slowdown), he will be able to claim that
buffett The Buffett Rule - Election Year Politics or a Path to Fairness? Last year in the United States, amidst an indifferent recovery, a politically motivated near-default on its vast debt, and the beginnings of the Occupy Wall Street movement, Warren Buffett wrote an op-ed in The New York Times last August highlighting how he paid a lower effective tax rate than his
america US Health Care Reform on Life Support? The future of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (oft-dubbed Obamacare), President Obama’s signature policy reform of his first term, is in the balance. After a week of oral arguments before the Supreme Court, between the Administration’s lawyers and those representing the twenty-six states, and the National
