Leslie Ehrlich
@leslieehrlich.bsky.social
Trained economist. Ex-global financial institutions (consumer focused). Payments nerd. Native New Yorker. Parent. Knitter. Bridge player. Petter of dogs.
More unsound attacks on journalists covering the Fed. Powell got it right: "The Fed’s work is only as effective as the public’s understanding of it, and you, the press, are essential to keeping the public informed about what we do and why. The people we serve benefit from your careful reporting.”
Watching the steady stream of Fedspeak now reminds me of my piece after the June meeting. The search for the shadow Fed Chair is on ...
Claudia Sahm @claudia-sahm.bsky.social · last mo.Kevin Warsh may want a quieter Fed, but markets will fill the silence, just less reliably and at a high cost. Who—or what—becomes the “shadow Fed Chair” when the real one won’t talk? My latest: stayathomemacro.substack.com/p/will-the-s...
Governments can now deploy the best artificial intelligence technology locally, bypassing costly U.S. cloud rentals https://restofworld.org/2026/china-moonshot-kimi-k3-free-sovereign-ai/?utm_campaign=row-social
With Moonshot’s free Kimi K3, China changes the sovereign AI playbook
Governments can now deploy top-tier AI locally, bypassing costly U.S. cloud rentals.
restofworld.org
Susan Collins announcing she'll vote against a controversial nominee is basically the moment it becomes clear that nominee will be confirmed. It means Thune has enough votes to confirm, and thus, Collins gets a pass to look independent.
It's demoralizing living in a nonstop Abuse-a-thon: we've had to learn the sordid details of so many men's abhorrent behavior; I mean this summer has been Graham Platner, Andrew Tate, Jared Leto, Max Miller, plus the horrific L.A. rape-murder of the child by the rapper, to name a few lowlights.
And it’s deeply misogynistic. Take a look at the gender breakdown in the affected fields. 🤮
Paul Renfro@renfro.bsky.social · 2d agoThis is the tragic yet logical result of a decades-long project—undertaken by rightwing politicians and “business-minded” administrators alike—to distort the meaning of higher education, to deny the intrinsic value of the pursuit of knowledge, to deprive us all of richer, more purposeful lives.
John Cornyn, a member of the majority party, is lying to all of us.
Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · yesterdayCornyn: "There's nothing we could do to rein in the president"
The takeaway chart for me.
ryan cooper@ryanlcooper.com · yesterday"Germany is not poorer than the US. It has just chosen to cash out more of its productivity in the form of free time than the US has. The other Western European countries have made similar decisions." peoplespolicyproject.org/2026/08/04/w...
Last week, while walking my daughter home from camp in her stroller, a car with Virginia plates and $8000 in NY traffic fines blew threw a red light and honked at us to get out of the way while we crossed the street. Maybe start there instead of some dramatized Citi Bike nonsense.
Speaker Julie Menin@speakermenin.bsky.social · yesterdayEvery New Yorker deserves to move around our city freely and safely, regardless of how they get around. That’s why the NYC Council is launching a comprehensive review of where existing laws can be stronger enforced, and what additional solutions are needed to keep New Yorkers safe.
My theory: survival stories and true crime are actually photo negatives of each other, because in true crime, someone's dead who should be alive, and in survival, someone's alive who should be dead, and in both cases you're trying to figure out why
Jeff Sharlet@jeffsharlet.bsky.social · yesterdayOne more thing on What to Carry, What to Burn: Podcasting's devolution into chat /true crime has depressed me as listener & writer. It's labeled--wrongly--as latter, & at first seems to be @blairbraverman.bsky.social "just" talking. But it's so arfully structured! podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/w...
Lost in the chatter about Todd Blanche and Trump's slush fund is the fact that anti-abortion Senators have demanded Blanche do a whole mess of things for them. The judiciary committee votes Tuesday morning. We're in the danger zone
Susan Rinkunas@susanrinkunas.com · last wk.In the past month, Josh Hawley, Ted Cruz, and Mike Lee have asked Todd Blanche to: *review DOJ's stance on the Comstock Act, a law antis claim bans all abortions *force FDA to end abortion pills via telehealth to settle a lawsuit *fan flames about abortions later in pregnancy this is all Bad News
Today, August 4, 2026, is the setting of Ray Bradbury’s short story “There Will Come Soft Rains” about a fully automated house continuing on after the family who lived there and the world around it died in a nuclear blast.
The lack of focus on the president’s deportations on the campaign trail is a strategic and moral error.
Democrats’ missed opportunity on Trump’s immigration cruelty
The lack of focus on the president’s deportations on the campaign trail is a strategic and moral error
salon.com
Trump endorsed both Ashley Moody and James Uthmeier in advance of the August 18 primary yesterday. Both are implicated in the suspected theft of $10M in Medicaid payments to use for political purposes--basically what Trump is trying to frame Tim Walz for. www.cbsnews.com/miami/news/f...
The message "they want to inspect your daughter's genitals" would be astoundingly effective. Which is also why conservative Democrats who want to cave won't say it. In general, they would rather lose and be comfortable than win and have to push hard.
Michael Hobbes@michaelhobbes.bsky.social · 2d agoInsane that democrats keep trying to cave on this issue rather than amplifying the fact that it’s being spearheaded by bigots and freaks
I HAVE BEEN SUBSIDIZING WALMART AND AMAZON STARVING THEIR EMPLOYEES FOR MY ENTIRE LIFE.
USA TODAY Opinion@usatodayopinion.usatoday.com · 2d agoOpinion: Mamdani's idea may sound appealing, but it's NYC taxpayers who will take the hit, subsidizing discounts they may never even use.
Deeply fucked that “regardless of what genitals a little girl has, I don’t think adults should demand to look at them” is considered a radical freak position in some corners
A USAF officer, who developed a taste for German bread while stationed in Germany, told me that the Offutt AFB PX sells fresh bread flown from Germany to Nebraska. That’s one hell of a government grocery store! I get mine from a SoCal bakery that gets flour shipped from EU by sea.
USA TODAY Opinion@usatodayopinion.usatoday.com · 2d agoOpinion: Mamdani's idea may sound appealing, but it's NYC taxpayers who will take the hit, subsidizing discounts they may never even use.
I have, with my own eyes, watched my tax dollars in the form of missiles as they hit buildings inhabited by civilians. I'd much prefer subsidizing a grocery story I don't use.
USA TODAY Opinion@usatodayopinion.usatoday.com · 2d agoOpinion: Mamdani's idea may sound appealing, but it's NYC taxpayers who will take the hit, subsidizing discounts they may never even use.
The sun sets behind the Statue of Liberty in New York City, Monday evening #newyorkcity #nyc #newyork #sunset #statueofliberty
American factory construction continued declining in official data released today as CHIPS Act projects finish, IRA projects get cancelled, and tariffs weigh on nearly all industries Total US factory construction is down 32% from its 2024 highs and 22% over the last year alone
The entire point of demanding Pirro frame people for vandalism was to distract from the disastrous outcome of Trump's own corruption. And now Trump's pique with Pirro for not sustaining the frame job is distracting from the disastrous outcome of Trump's corruption. www.wsj.com/politics/pol...
Official data was released today, and after adjusting for inflation, American office construction has fallen to the lowest level since 2011 It's down nearly 60% since the onset of the pandemic and 15% over the last year alone
It's "Electability" season once again so let me just remind everybody possessing this incredible power of foresight to tell us something useful like November stock prices.
If I were married to this person I’d divorce him. How do I know he’s not recording me?
Futurism@futurism.com · 2d ago"I'd hate my parents if I found out they did this."