Haven Pell

Edward Snowden is an unusual fellow. He is a 29-year-old high-school dropout who did not complete community college, yet he made more than $200,000 per year working for Booz Allen Hamilton, a major defense contractor. He has been employed by the…

Apple CEO, Tim Cook, wore a tie the other day for his Senate grilling about the taxes paid ( -- or rather not paid) – by his company. Following the lead of former Apple CEO, Steve Jobs, Cook prefers open- neck shirts, fashionable in his home court (…

Some may have been surprised, during the 2013 State of the Union, when President Obama said, "So, tonight, I ask Congress to change the Higher Education Act so that affordability and value are included in determining which colleges receive certain…

There are 537 elected officials in the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the White House. Of these, 257 are Democrats (54 in the Senate, 201 in the House and two in the White House), 279 are Republicans (45 in the Senate and 234 in the…

Later in the week a no good, very bad thing called the "sequester" is supposed to happen because 535 senators and representatives, one president, and legions of earnest staff people can not decide how to make this country live within its means…

The United States government, joined by quite a number of states, has sued Standard & Poor's Corporation for doing a very bad job of rating various kinds of mortgage-backed security during the housing crisis. There are some lessons here but you will…

Investment pros will tell you that there is a difference between a good company and a good stock. Recently, owners of Apple have come to understand this clearly. A company can make excellent products, but the capability is too well known. The stock…

In its continuing quest to determine exactly how stupid we are, some in our government have come up with a truly idiotic plan. We know just how dimwitted it is based on a careful application of the “Paul Krugman” test. According to scrupulous…

Imagine for a moment that you are Timothy Geithner, the Treasury Secretary appointed by President Obama. You are 51-years-old and you have just spent four years as a punching bag for congressional Republicans. What’s next? The answer is obviously…

What makes a CEO the worst? It could be anything from a tumbling stock price to taking laps around the conference table in pursuit of comely summer interns. The Slant thinks Ron Johnson of JC Penney (reader alert: note the industry) was the worst of…

The year is not quite over and this will be published before it is, so there is still only one answer to which five trades were Wall Street’s worst of the year: who knows. For example, you might be double short the Mayan prediction that the world…

Sequels to horror movies often begin “just when you thought you were safe.” Cue the eerie music because Silvio Berlusconi, the former Italian prime minister, is back. He would like to be prime minister again and he is bringing a friend. Berlusconi…

Today’s stories in England differ from those you might be reading in America. First, the topics differ but, of greater interest, so does the tone. The big issue today relates to freedom of the press, a topic reliably carried on page one above the…

It was hard to find much to like about the Presidential Debate at Hofstra University last night. President Obama and former Governor Romney seem to dislike each other intensely – no surprise there after a year of mutual nastiness – and, if there was…

The Ryder Cup is, miraculously, one of the world’s best sporting events, “miraculously” because it remains a true athletic competition despite the television hype. Twelve professionals from Europe compete over three days in three different formats…

Concluding our three-day look at whether any of the country’s problems are likely to be solved in the coming years, we turn to the House of Representatives, which is presently held by the Republicans. There are 435 seats at stake, each for a…

According to David Sheinin in the Washington Post, even President Obama has expressed strong views about the NFL’s lockout of its referees. “Terrible, I’ve been saying for months we’ve gotta get our refs back” said he. For the 17 people in America…

One-third of the Senate is up for election this year, but Senate control of the national agenda over the next two years is not likely to happen, unless you count blocking initiatives as control. (They do.) Unlike the presidency, there is a do-over…

With just over six weeks to go until Election Day, it is by no means clear that voters will receive any more information about how they will be governed in the next four years. Of course, there will be lots more about getting to stand under the…