Author Archives: Vijay Mathur

Individual rights and common good

We always hear about individual rights to own guns, to not buy health insurance, to beg, to exercise free speech, but we seldom emphasize rights of the rest of society for the common good.  For example, if I have the … Read More

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Funding problems facing Utah state pension plans for public employees

In my previous blog on March 28, I discussed, in general, Defined Benefit Plans (DBP) and Defined Contribution Plans (DCP), 401(k) type plans. The state changed its pension system for employees hired on and after 2011. It closed DBP for … Read More

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A simple explanation for the state pension plan

Numerous state pension systems are underfunded, i.e., the systems do not have enough assets to meet their pension liabilities. There are two types of systems. Traditionally the most common pension plans were defined benefit plans (DBP).  A typical pension in … Read More

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Is minimum wage increase at this time harmful to the economy?

The last time the federal minimum wage was raised to $7.25 to all covered and non-exempt workers was in 2009.  Given the current average hourly wage of $20 President Obama is proposing a moderate hourly minimum wage increase of $9 … Read More

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Immigration is again on the front burner

We have made some progress on the issue of immigration, as evidenced by the bipartisan framework for reform announced by eight Senators, four Democrats and four Republicans.   The compromise has four basic elements.  First, it creates a path to citizenship … Read More

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Utah’s poor quality public education reflects its value system

I am sure if you ask Utah’s political leaders about the quality of education, they will most likely say that we provide good quality education with less spending than other states.  However, the recent school rating’s report by Education Week, … Read More

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Bogus arguments against gun control

The recent mass killing at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut has once again ignited the gun debate, with the same old for and against arguments.  In past such mass killings, the same bogus arguments were made against gun … Read More

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More inflation at this time may be beneficial to the economy

Most Americans including politicians, media pundits, conservative economists and policy makers are averse to inflation (increase in prices).  In general this attitude makes sense.  In fact, in 1970 public opinion considered inflation as the greatest threat to the economy, and … Read More

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Implications for the economy due to decline in household formation

 Recently in the publication Economic Commentary, August 23, 2012, of the Cleveland Federal Reserve Bank, Timothy Dune wrote an article on the decline of household formation in general and of young adults in particular due to the recent Great Recession.  … Read More

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A proposal for reforming federal taxes

There is a constant debate between the Democrats and Republicans about Federal taxes and programs such as Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.  Recently at a private fundraising event, a secretly taped video highlighted Mr. Romney’s views about taxes, entitlements and … Read More

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