skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, September 19, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Post-presidential debate poll shows a shift in WI; Teamsters won't endorse in presidential race after releasing internal polling showing most members support Trump; IL energy jobs growth is strong but lacks female workers; Pregnant, Black Coloradans twice as likely to die than the overall population.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The Teamsters choose not to endorse a presidential candidate, county officials in Texas fight back against state moves to limit voter registration efforts, and the FBI investigate suspicious packages sent to elections offices in at least 17 states.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

A USDA report shows a widening gap in rural versus urban health, a North Carolina county remains divided over a LGBTQ library display, and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz' policies are spotlighted after his elevation to the Democratic presidential ticket.

Experts Warn Zombies Lurk in Colorado Economy

play audio
Play

Monday, October 13, 2014   

DENVER - Millions tuned in to last night's season premier of 'The Walking Dead' on AMC. While zombies on our TV screens may be good for some white-knuckled entertainment, economists warn zombies in our economy are not.

"Zombie economics" is a term that describes economic principles that have been proven in practice not to hold true, explains Chris Stiffler with the Colorado Fiscal Institute.

"We say in scary movies a zombie is a corpse that comes back to life," says Stiffler. "But even scarier in the real world is this idea of 'zombie economics,' which we call dangerous doctrines that are repeatedly slain by evidence, but are still walking among us."

Stiffler says supply-side or trickle-down economics is an example of zombie economics that's the "hardest to kill." He says the theory that cutting taxes for the rich ends up helping everyone has been proven false several times in practice since it entered public dialogue in the 1980s.

Since then, he says the richest 20 percent of Americans have seen a 71-percent increase in their earnings, while the bottom 20-percent have seen a seven-percent increase.

Stiffler cites neighboring Kansas as another example of supply-side economics not working. The state signed into law huge tax cuts that experts say have resulted in large revenue loss and cuts to public services. He says that's the "trick" of "trickle-down" economics.

"No matter how low your taxes are on your business, if don't have the consumers to buy your products you're not going to have a successful business," he says. "So, at a common sense level you wouldn't think that would be true, but it's just plausible enough that people use it as a justification for tax credits and people accept it. It's kind of like - just like a scary movie - the more you want to believe it, the more real it seems."

Economist John Quiggin originally coined the term "zombie economics" in his 2010 book by that name.

In related zombie news, this Saturday, Oct. 18, Denver will host what it hopes to be the largest Zombie Crawl in history at Skyline Park. The event benefits the Bonfils Blood Center.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
Recipients of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Grant can now access funding to drive financing for thousands of climate-focused and clean energy initiatives. (bilanol/Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

Michigan's most vulnerable communities are receiving federal funding to fight the devastating effects of climate change. It's part of the $27 billion …


Health and Wellness

play sound

September is Health Literacy Month, and a Denver-based group is working to help health professionals break a persistent pattern of discrimination …

Environment

play sound

A new report contends fossil fuel funding has biased Columbia University's climate research. The report, by two Columbia students, shows the …


Alabama releases roughly 220,279 men and 78,247 women from its prisons and jails each year. (Chad Robertson/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

An Alabama woman is on a mission to help people who've been incarcerated for decades successfully transition back into society. The mission to …

Health and Wellness

play sound

In North Carolina, the gap between Medicaid reimbursement rates and the actual cost of dental care has reached a crisis point, impacting both …

So far in 2024, community health centers in North Dakota have screened 11,580 patients for food insecurity. Through those screenings, more than three thousand box meals have been distributed. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

September is Hunger Action Month. In North Dakota, it isn't just food banks trying to help underserved populations get nutritious items. Health …

Environment

play sound

Marine biologists conducting deep dives near five California islands are collecting data they hope will strengthen the case for ending gillnet fishing…

Environment

play sound

Researchers at Iowa State University are taking aim at the huge amount of energy used by data centers, now and in the future. They have developed a …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021