Personal finance: Pilot pay – why you may want a licensed job
Experienced airline pilots earn $400k to $500k/year, thanks to licensing, unionization and anti-competition laws passed by Congress.
Economy, Demographics: Are young men under 30 doing worse today than 3-4 decades ago?
Per economist Marian Tupy, young men are doing much better today.
Government: State spending, per capita (2024)
State spending per capita (2024). Some states spend (and presumably tax) much more than other states.
Gen Z: Decline in home ownership due to a change in personal values?
Media and social media posts compare home ownership percentages of young cohorts in the 1980s and today and conclude it's due to price. May be not.
Demographics: Chart illustrating the dramatic change in teens working part time
Nice Federal Reserve chart showing teen labor force participation rate (age 16-19) from the past to the present.
Economy: Median home prices over time since 1960
Median home price has appreciated by 43% over the past 10 years. Some insane X posts claim home prices went up by 10x! Hah hah.
Business: Globalization and free trade is dead
Protectionism is now hip. Free trade is so 20th century.
Doomerism: Life is pretty good, contrary to the doomers
Life for most people is WAY better than just decades ago - but doomerism media and social media pundits have convinced people that everything is awful.
Generation: Gen Z giving up on home ownership, spends instead of saves, works less
Knowing some history might lead to better decision making.
Media, Economy: 6-7% of retirees “unretired”
About the same percent it has been for decades, says the US BLS. But leave it to media doomerism to spin this...
Economy: Average hourly salary by state
87% of US workers earn at least $15/hour or more.
Economy: Gen Z, Millennials Spend up to $1000s per year on restaurant meal delivery
1 in 3 adults said they ordered take out restaurant food, delivered, at least once per week. No wonder they complain of a lack of money.
Economy: Does the US really need more housing units?
The US currently has the highest number of housing units per population in history. This is because we have fewer occupants per household.
Economy: Median days homes for sale on market
Housing Inventory: Median Days on Market in the United States (MEDDAYONMARUS) | FRED | St. Louis Fed
Economy: “50% of US households have less than $60k in assets”
This is true but it might not mean what you think it means.