Erik Hare

Erik Hare is an Economics and Business columnist for MintPress. Hare is author of "The Long View", which focuses on decades long trends that influence our economic lives. Hare is also a freelance writer and world renown blogger at Barataria. His work has appeared in Salon, the Star-Tribune, St Paul Pioneer Press, many other publications. Hare also holds a degree in Chemical Engineering from Carnegie-Mellon, and holds 9 US patents.

The Big Gamble: Deritiative Trading Remains The Wild West Of Financial Markets

The total value of financial derivatives may be 20 years of total world product, much of it set up as nothing more than a gamble. But it remains unregulated because of its complexity and international unwillingness to tackle the problem.

Erik Hare
By Erik Hare
Anatomy of A Derivative

In a paper published in 1999, Martin Mayer of the Brookings Institute wrote, “The system is easily gamed, and it sacrifices the great strength of banks as financial intermediaries -- their knowledge of their borrowers, and their incentive to police the status of the loan.” In the 15 years that have passed since “The Danger of Derivatives” was

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A War Of Words: Media Coverage Of Ukraine

The standoff between Russia and Ukraine still hints at World War III, but a media battle has been the main center of conflict – much of it coming from a hacked phone call posted on YouTube.

Erik Hare
By Erik Hare
Arseniy Yatsenyuk, Catherine Ashton, Jose Manuel Barroso

The voices are clear, but the tone is downhearted and dispirited. The call, in English, apparently came from EU Foreign Minister Catherine Ashton’s office on Feb. 26, seeking an update from Estonian Foreign Minister Umas Paet the day after he visited Ukraine. It is not known who recorded the call or who posted it on YouTube under the name “Michael

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A Fine Line Between Prudent Policy And A Currency War

Low interest rates and deficit spending can goose a slow economy, often trashing the value of the currency and making exports appear cheap. But sometimes this policy looks like a type of war.

Erik Hare
By Erik Hare
Russia Ruble

"We're in the midst of an international currency war," Guido Mantega, the Finance Minister of Brazil bluntly told an industrial trade group in September 2010. "This threatens us because it takes away our competitiveness. The advanced countries are seeking to devalue their currencies." His remarks came in response to the Federal Reserve’s policy of

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Ukraine And The Rule Of Law

To the world, the Russian occupation of Crimea is a geopolitical and military problem. To the people of Ukraine and all of Europe it is about something even more fundamental.

Erik Hare
By Erik Hare
Yuri Lutsenko

On Nov. 21, 2013, protesters gathered in Independence Square in Kiev, Ukraine. There had been many protests against the government there over the years, but this one quickly filled the square Within days, it became a bloody confrontation, and it eventually led to the flight of President Viktor Yanukovych to Russia for assistance. An interim

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Banking Industry Cries Foul Over Credit Union “Competitive Disadvantage”

Credit Unions are growing rapidly, fueled by low fees and lower interest rates on loans. But this growth has come with more attention from regulators and commercial banks who feel they are at a competitive disadvantage.

Erik Hare
By Erik Hare
Protesters Richard Hanzel, left, Brendan Hutt, and Richard Shavzin, right, of the Screen Actors Guild, dressed as wall street bankers, march from Goldman Sachs' office to a rally in Federal Plaza demanding Wall Street reform, Wednesday, April 28, 2010, in Chicago.

Fed up with banks? You’re hardly alone. Credit unions have grown dramatically in the last 20 years, fueled largely by high fees charged by commercial banks. A recent survey by Bankrate.com found that 72 percent of all credit unions still offer free checking, something almost unheard of at commercial banks. "Free checking remains well within reach

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Ominous CBO Report Triggers Congressional Inaction

When the CBO warned Washington of problems looming over the next 10 years, the information was held like a ball in a partisan game.

Erik Hare
By Erik Hare

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report released on Feb. 4, has a simple title, “The Budget and Economic Outlook: 2014 to 2024.” It’s a dry work with a lot of charts and graphs and more than a few assumptions, outlining the challenges for the next 10 years of governing. Rather than being taken as an outline on the work that needs to be

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Where Are The Jobs?

Two dismal job reports have ignited fears there is a slowdown in hiring. But this is probably not the case.

Erik Hare
By Erik Hare
In this Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2014 photo, job seekers line up to meet prospective employers during a career fair at a hotel in Dallas. January was a second straight disappointing month for U.S. job seekers, though mainly in the government and retail sectors with the end of the holiday shopping season, according to the Labor Department, Friday, Feb. 7, 2014. (AP Photo/LM Otero)

The monthly employment report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics is a highly watched set of economic data both politically and economically.  With at least 10 million people unemployed, and many more either having given up or stuck with short hours, the report is a major indicator of how the economy is recovering. A bad report reverberates

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