Oslo, the first Óðinsdagr of mörsugur, in the 28th year of the reign of King Harald V, Despite Brexit, many Brexiteers maintain that the United Kingdom will maintain excellent ties with the with the EU and its member states. The UK is supposed to regain its sovereignty, but this should not mean that close cooperation... Continue Reading →
Groningen, a.d. III Non. Dec. MMDCCLXXI A.U.C., In his 1970 book Exit, Voice and Loyalty, Hirschman argues there are two ways in which we can influence the behaviour of those around us. Firstly, we can exit, that is, if we are dealing with another person or organisation, and we disapprove of that person's or organisation's behaviour, we... Continue Reading →
Having watched the collapse of France in a mere six weeks, Shirer set out to find out how it was possible that one of the victors of the First World War imploded in face of the German onslaught. This is quite a daunting task, if only because it is hard to avoid many of the... Continue Reading →
Groningen, a.d. IV Kal. Nov. MMDCCLXXI A.U.C., As I described in my last post, it is quite common for conservative parties to draw away attention from poverty and inequality, and instead to focus on issues such as family values, public decency, jingoism, safety or migration. I also argued that the Conservatives in the UK are... Continue Reading →
Amsterdam, a.d. III Id. Oct. MMDCCLXXI A.U.C., The Conservative party in the UK runs a serious risk of splitting into two different parties. While combining populism with an economically right-wing programme has a long pedigree, the situation the Conservative party finds itself in is more fraught with risk than that. Having been the party of free trade... Continue Reading →
Groningen, a.d. XIV Kal. Oct. MMDCCLXXI A.U.C., Toerisme is zowel een bron van inkomsten als een last. Terwijl de toerist geniet van zijn vrije tijd en de toerismesector zijn welverdiende brood hieraan verdient, is de omgeving, die om dit alles niet gevraagd heeft, de klos. De toerismebelasting kan uitkomst brengen. Dit betoogt COELO-onderzoeker Joes... Continue Reading →
Groningen, a.d. XVI Kal. Sept. MMDCCLXXI A.U.C., Voor het eerst kan iedere Nederlander nu zonder moeite zien hoeveel hij of zij moet betalen aan gemeente, provincie en waterschap. Vandaag presenteert het Centrum voor Onderzoek van de Economie van de Lagere Overheden (COELO) van de Rijksuniversiteit Groningen de eerste uitgebreide Lokale Lasten Calculator. Hiermee zijn de lokale... Continue Reading →
Groningen, a.d. X Kal. Aug. MMDCCLXXI, A.U.C., Worldwide poverty has been falling over the last few decades. 150 years ago every country in the world was a developing country with raging epidemics and widespread poverty. Fortunately that has been much reduced. Meanwhile, however, inequality may be larger than ever. The middle class in developed countries... Continue Reading →
Somewhere between Almere and Amsterdam, prid Id. Jul. MMDCCLXXI A.U.C. As a frequent traveler between Groningen (job at the university there) and the area around Leiden (friends, family) I often use the train. Unfortunately the rail connection between the North of the country and the west is highly unstable, so I often have long delays.... Continue Reading →
