And even that meager amount of growth was entirely due to increased labor input — women, old people, and young people going to work — rather than to productivity increases. In fact, Japanese workers produced less per hour in 2019 than in 2007, falling well behind other advanced nations:
He is making the argument that Japan collapsed after 2008 rather than in the 1990s as is the conventional wisdom. His description of what Japan was like before 2008 is remarkable, and his amazement is well placed. The same can be said for his hope for Japan and their prospects despite substantial headwinds.
The rate of field goal attempts of 55 yards or more has increased by 135 percent compared to just four seasons ago, in 2021. And the number of makes from 55-plus has tripled in just four seasons. I’m guessing we’re in for some mean reversion — but so far on the year, kickers are actually converting 64 percent of their attempts from super-long-range. [see the post for clickable source links]
In the post he has a lot of interesting stats on how football is changing from drive strategy to 4th-down decisions (the economists finally won the battle!).
Americans born in the 1960s and hitting age 65 over the next decade are promised an average of 33% more in Social Security benefits than they paid over their lifetimes in taxes, including interest on those taxes.
His proposed reforms are aligned with mine.1 Namely, reduce the maximum benefit and increase the minimum benefit. In my proposal all seniors would eventually get the same minimum benefit—and no more—making Social Security a universal basic income for the elderly. I would also gradually increase the date of when benefits begin and have that be the same date for all recipients. His reform might be more politically realistic by keeping some greater benefit for higher earners, who are of course higher payers into the system, but that would not be in the actual spirit of the program as a social safety net.
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