In his first major document, “Dilexi Te,” Pope Leo does not talk about the creation of wealth—which is essential to any work of charity.
Paul D. McNelis, S.J.
Paul D. McNelis, S.J., is America’s contributing editor for economics and a visiting professor of economics at Boston College.
Posted inShort Take
In Trump’s America, the federal debt forecast is looking dire
As with a leaky roof, it is better to pay for repair work sooner, reducing debt, rather than letting the roof collapse and ending up with much higher costs.
Posted inPolitics & Society, Short Take
Trump’s trade war misses the point: Americans do not save enough
The root cause of the chronic U.S. trade imbalance is macroeconomic: We save too little relative to our major trading partners. Tariffs will not address that problem.
Posted inPolitics & Society, Short Take
Raising tariffs on Chinese goods could be bad for peace and the planet
Reducing our tariffs on Chinese exports, particularly solar panels and electric cars, would be an environmentally friendly move and would promote world peace.
Posted inPolitics & Society, Short Take
Life after globalization: What to expect for higher ed, trade and the environment
Geopolitical crises and the aftereffects of Covid are prompting the United States and other nations to find alternatives to globalization in education, trade and environmental protection.
Posted inFaith, Short Take
Bishops should get regular performance reviews
Seeing the pope every five years is not enough.
Posted inPolitics & Society, Short Take
Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse revealed the moral hazards of our banking system
Why do banking crises keep happening? When depositors are protected, some banks cannot resist making risky loans. And paying fines for doing so has become a usual cost of doing business.
Posted inPolitics & Society, Short Take
The U.S. has a moral responsibility to raise its national debt ceiling
Refusing to raise the cap on our national debt would not lead to reduced government spending. But it would endanger economies all over the world.
Posted inPolitics & Society, Short Take
Reagan taught us how to reduce inflation. Biden can’t afford to wait any longer to learn from him.
We can’t let inflation go unchallenged. President Biden is running out of time before investment dries up because of confusion and fear.
Posted inPolitics & Society, Short Take
Inflation, infrastructure, Build Back Better: How should we judge the economy during Biden’s first year?
President Biden is playing the long game in trying to revitalize the economy after Covid. It may take a long time to figure out how to measure the results.