This week's news on the work-life conflict, care, the care crisis, the care economy and human well-being.
Friday, September 14, 2012
ARTICLES
Romney's Tax Plan Leaves Key Variables Blank
From: The New York Times
By: Annie Lowrey and David Kocieniewski
"If any single question can be said to dominate the presidential campaign, it is whether the conservative policies advocated by Mitt Romney would help or hurt the middle class. And no issue hits the heart of that question more than taxes."
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/10/us/politics/romneys-tax-plan-leaves-key-variables-blank.html?_r=1&ref=us
U.S. Poverty: Census Finds 46.2 Million Impoverished As Median Income Drops
From: Huffington Post
By: Associated Press
"The ranks of America's poor remained stuck at record levels, although dwindling unemployment benefits and modest job gains helped stave off what experts had predicted would be the fourth rise in a row in the poverty rate."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/12/us-poverty-census_n_1877197.html
RADIO
Does Political Mommy Talk Make You Cheer or Gag?
From: NPR's Tell Me More
By: Michel Martin
"Both major party presidential campaigns are focusing on family this election season. Some parents relate to the personal stories, but others say the candidates are just pandering. Host Michel Martin takes a look at how family is playing out in this campaign. She checks in with moms Leslie Morgan Steiner, Jolene Ivey, Dani Tucker and Gayle Trotter."
http://www.npr.org/2012/09/11/160943355/does-political-mommy-talk-make-you-cheer-or-gag
Can Marriage Save Single Mothers From Poverty?
From: NPR's Morning Edition
By: Jennifer Ludden
"Newly released census figures show a long-standing and glaring contrast: A third of families headed by single mothers are in poverty, and they are four times more likely than married-couple families to be poor. The disparity is on the rise, and as the number of single mothers grows, analysts are debating if more marriages could mean less poverty."
http://www.npr.org/2012/09/13/161017580/can-marriage-save-single-mothers-from-poverty
From: The Diane Rehm Show
By: Diane Rehm
"Employers added 96,000 jobs last month, fewer than expected, and the unemployment rate remains above 8 percent. These latest figures serve as pointed reminders of the economy's lackluster recovery following the 2008 financial meltdown. Still, the economy has been growing since the middle of 2009, and the stock market has largely come back, but many companies are sitting on what's been described as "piles of cash." Although many people have suffered economically in recent years, for others, especially those at the top end, it's remained relatively comfortable. Please join us to discuss economic winners and losers of the Great Recession."
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2012-09-10/us-economy-2008-whos-better-and-who-isnt
Millions of New Jobs, But Many Don't Pay Well
From: NPR's Morning Edition
By: Wendy Kaufman
"The economy has added about 4.6 million jobs since the recession ended. But nearly 40 percent of these jobs don't pay well and have only limited benefits."
http://www.npr.org/2012/09/11/160924592/many-of-those-4-6-million-new-jobs-have-low-pay
Los Angeles VA Has Made Millions On Rental Deals
From: NPR's Morning Edition
By: Ina Jaffe
"Most Los Angeles residents only know the Veterans Affairs medical center in West Los Angeles as something they glimpse from their cars when they're on traffic-choked Wilshire Boulevard. From the road it looks like a park, but within the grounds is the largest medical facility in the VA's health care system."
http://www.npr.org/2012/09/10/160736598/los-angeles-va-has-made-millions-on-rental-deals
BLOGS
Changes in Inequality the 21st Century
From: Economix, a blog from The New York Times
By: Casey Mulligan
"A couple of important measures of labor-market inequality have played out since 2008 much the way they did previously."
http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/12/changes-in-inequality-the-21st-century/?ref=business
What Romney Could Learn From the N.F.L.
From: Economix, a blog from The New York Times
By: Nancy Folbre
"In a recent speech, Mitt Romney likened the election to a football game. I wonder if he has considered the merits of the National Football League's regulatory regime."
http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/10/what-romney-could-learn-from-the-n-f-l/?ref=business
GRAPHS
Every Job We Created and Lost in the Last 5 Years-in 2 Graphs
From: The Atlantic
By: Derek Thompson
"The Great Recession hit rock bottom in February 2010. If you compare jobs lost two years before the trough with 30 months after the trough, you'll find only three large sectors have made up their losses."
http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2012/09/every-job-we-created-and-lost-in-the-last-5-years-in-2-graphs/262176/