Religion & Liberty Online Archives

Acton Occasional Series

September 26, 2018

7 Figures: Income and poverty in the U.S. (2017)

The U.S. Census Bureau released its latest report on income and poverty in the United States today. Here are seven figures from the report you should know: 1. Real median household income of all male workers increased 3.0 percent from 2016, while real median earnings for their female counterparts saw no statistically significant change between 2016 and 2017. Continue Reading...
September 25, 2018

Can you (or anyone) beat the stock market?

Note: This is post #94 in a weekly video series on basic economics. When even professional stock pickers are not able to consistently beat the market, you probably shouldn’t invest your life savings on the the hot stock tip from your brother-in-law. Continue Reading...
September 20, 2018

Philadelphia ends ‘policing for profit’ program

The News: The city of Philadelphia ended a four-year lawsuit involving what critics said was “policing for profit.” According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, “Philadelphia officials on Tuesday pledged to reform the city’s  civil forfeiture program, which had been used to seize thousands of homes and vehicles and millions of dollars in cash from criminal suspects — and in some cases from people never charged with a crime.” Continue Reading...
September 19, 2018

5 Facts about Jewish High Holy Days

The Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah ended last week, and the holy day of Yom Kippur ends tonight at sundown (see also: FAQ: What is Yom Kippur?). Here are five facts you should know about the High Holy Days on the Jewish calendar: 1. Continue Reading...
September 18, 2018

How expert are expert stock pickers?

Note: This is post #93 in a weekly video series on basic economics. In his 1973 book, A Random Walk Down Wall Street, economist Burton Malkiel made a controversial claim: a blindfolded monkey, throwing darts at the financial pages, could select a basket of stocks that would do just as well as a set chosen by the pros. Continue Reading...
September 14, 2018

5 Facts about hurricanes

Hurricane Florence has struck the Carolinas, dumping massive amounts of rain that could trigger catastrophic floods inland. Here are five facts you should know about these types of deadly storms: 1. Continue Reading...