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Small Business Resource Fair in Covington connects entrepreneurs with free support and training
By Abigail Wright NKyTribune staff writer Local entrepreneurs, aspiring business owners and students gathered on Monday at the Kenton County Public Library’s Covington branch for the 2026 Small Business Resource Fair, an event designed to connect the region’s business community with free resources, training and networking opportunities. Hosted by the Economic & Community Development Institute...
Watch Novonesis on Business Strategy
Ester Baiget, CEO of Danish biosolutions company Novonesis, discusses the firm's China business and growth strategy. She speaks with Minmin Low from the sidelines of the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Dalian.
Starmer says he'll resign as UK prime minister, roiling British politics yet again
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Monday he will resign, forced out by his own party after missteps and mistakes soured voters’ goodwill following a landslide election victory two years ago on a promise of steady leadership and economic growth.
Cambridge city manager says Wu’s business summits are a ‘wakeup call’
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu has held three economic summits to address issues facing the region. Yi-An Huang has attended all three.
U.S. Bank Survey Finds Gen Z Small Business Owners Are Making Bigger Bets to Drive Growth
Gen Z Momentum: Gen Z owners are nearly twice as likely as Gen X and Baby Boomer owners to make bigger bets on growth, while also reporting stronger business performance Growth Continues, But Less Widespread: Many small businesses are still expanding, though fewer are doing so as economic pressures persist AI Adoption Gap: Businesses adopting generative AI and digital tools are more likely to be in a growth phase U.S. Bank released its fourth annual Small Business Perspective survey report today, highlighting how small business owners are navigating a more constrained environment, and how a new generation is building businesses differently. The nationwide survey of 1,000 small business owners, including an oversample of 200 Gen Z owners, shows that while many small businesses are still expanding, fewer are growing than a year ago amid ongoing economic pressures and rising costs. U.S. small businesses are still seeking to grow, despite economic concerns. “Growth may not be as
BofA forecasts 75 bps of rate hikes in 2026 on labour market resilience, new Fed chair
BofA Global Research expects the Federal Reserve to hike interest rates by 75 basis points in 2026, it said on Monday, citing resilient economic data and rising expectations of a hawkish Fed under new Chair Kevin Warsh.
Kansas City small businesses say World Cup is hurting sales. There's no bump like the city promised
Kansas City has welcomed thousands of visitors as the metro enters its second week of the World Cup. But as international crowds come in, many local shop owners feel they're taking a backseat. Some small businesses say the economic boost is not evenly distributed.
Big Business Urges Faster Electrification
More than 100 major companies are urging governments to accelerate electrification policies, arguing that reducing dependence on volatile fuel markets will improve energy security and economic stability.
Canes victory parade draws 180,000 people, brings economic boost to businesses in Raleigh
Parade organizers said they now have a clearer understanding of how to manage large-scale events downtown.
Global business leaders back faster electrification shift
MORE THAN 100 COMPANIES INCLUDING NESTLE, UBER URGE GOVERNMENTS TO MAKE ELECTRIFICATION CENTRAL TO ECONOMIC STRATEGY
Iran MOU signals ‘major shift’ from military to economic, political objectives for Trump: Retired general
Ret. Gen. Jack Keane on Sunday said the US-Iran memorandum of understanding signals a “major shift” in the Trump administration’s approach to foreign policy ideals in the Middle East. “It’s a…
Raising the minimum wage has been a big political winner. Now it's running into resistance
Raising the minimum wage has been a progressive policy winner at the ballot box, but recent losses suggest an economic mood slowing its political momentum.
Why Is There No Money In Star Trek? The Economics Of The Federation Explained
Star Trek operates in a post-capitalist space, and money is no longer used. Here's how the economics of the Federation work in the franchise.
How Trump’s Fragile Agreement With Iran Is Shaping the Midterms
Democrats say the president started an economically painful war that resulted in nothing positive. Republicans are more divided, even as they show some signs of relief at falling gas prices.
Helping Black businesses during Juneteenth can help everyone, economic leader says
Juneteenth events kick off across the state Friday and many Black business owners will be welcoming the influx of attention.
Roundup: Oil shock / AI receptionists / Warsh’s style
‘Baked-in’ damage: Even though the Strait of Hormuz has reopened in principle, analysts say the economic damage from the earlier disruption is already largely “baked in,” since supply chains, inventories and energy markets have already adjusted to shortages and higher costs. Oil prices have eased from their peak, but inflation pressures are expected to persist […]
UK borrowing surges over forecasts in May as government spending rises
Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news
RWJBarnabas Health Invests $1.5 Million to Support Local Community Health Initiatives in New Brunswick, Middlesex County
RWJBarnabas Health today announced a combined $1.5 million investment to support local organizations working to address barriers to care, food insecurity and economic stability among underserved communities in New Brunswick and Middlesex County.
UMG, The World’s Biggest Music Company, Is Investing In A Mental Health Ecosystem. Here’s How It Works
Universal Music Group's circle of shared care, access and economic responsibility that streamlines the process to obtaining mental health support from trained Amber Health clinicians is a blueprint for companies large and small.
Rockford Park District Sports Facilities Generate $14.1 Million Annually
New data highlights Rockford Park District sports facilities as powerful economic engines that attract visitors, generate tourism spending, and elevate the region's national profile.
The economic and societal contributions of University of Utah Health
Report sheds light on U of U Health’s significant impact on Utah’s economy and public well-being.
The Tricky Politics of Revenue
Our nation’s fiscal trajectory is unsustainable, in part due to the decline in revenue collection stemming from a series of tax cuts. Often enacted with bipartisan support, these tax cuts have severely damaged the linkage between economic growth and revenue flows to the U.S. Treasury. The result: Ev
1996 Olympics to FIFA World Cup: Historians compare culture, class and politics in the ‘Black Mecca’
How do the 1996 Olympics and 2026 World Cup compare three decades apart when it comes to fandom, overall electricity and economic inclusion?
Single-payer healthcare in California is possible. An economic and political thicket stands in the way
A pathway to single-payer healthcare would require dozens — or even hundreds — of difficult economic and political choices.
Single-payer healthcare in California is possible. An economic and political thicket stands in the way
A pathway to single-payer healthcare would require dozens — or even hundreds — of difficult economic and political choices.
Trump's economic approval rating hits new low, poll finds
Some voting groups that Trump handily won aren’t happy with his economic approach, including more thanhalf of white voters without a college degree.
Bank of England expected to leave interest rates on hold; UK unemployment falls
Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news
Before Making a Deal, Trump Demanded Iran’s Surrender. He Got a Surprise.
While the Iranians suffered substantial losses in the war, they emerged from a confrontation with the world’s most powerful military having proved they can use economic chaos as a weapon.
The economy looks steady on paper. Small businesses see something else.
New data shows small business owners are struggling with uncertainty, which could signal a wider economic slowdown.
Democratic socialists are on the rise in Trump-era mayoral races
The rise is fueled by a backlash to Trump policies, economic strain and fatigue with the Democratic establishment. A possible win in Washington, D.C., might be next.
Retirements, economic pressures, staffing challenges driving exodus of businesses
Rochester business owners are increasingly looking to sell, broker Stuart Levy says, citing shrinking margins, higher costs and staffing woes. BizBuySell lists 84 active Q1 listings, led by service firms.
Trump defends his Iran deal, criticizes longtime ally Israel as G-7 ends
In a sprawling news conference at the G-7 summit in France, the president touted the economic benefits of the ceasefire and threatened force if it fails.
Politics: Can Divides Over War Be Bridged At The G7 Summit?
This week, on the southern shores of Lake Geneva, leaders of the Group of Seven countries gathered for their annual summit.There are several pressing issues that require attention including the U.S. and Israeli war with Iran, the resulting economic crisis, the state of the Persian Gulf, and long term questions about the future of relations with Iran.The G7 meeting also notably brought Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy face-to-face with President Donald Trump. Trump told reporters that the war Ukraine was not a priority for the United States, saying that his country had “nothing to do” with a war that was “thousands of miles away.”We discuss what this 2026 G7 meeting reveals about the state of the U.S. relationship with its most important allies, especially after months of a war of choice with Iran.Find more of our programs online. Listen to 1A sponsor-free by signing up for 1A+ at plus.npr.org/the1a.
RWJBarnabas Health Invests $1.7 Million to Support Local Community Health Initiatives in Jersey City, Hudson County
RWJBarnabas Health today announced a combined $1.7 million investment to support local organizations working to address barriers to care, food insecurity, and economic stability among underserved communities in Jersey City and Hudson County.
CEO Economic Outlook Index Q2 2026
The Business Roundtable CEO Economic Outlook Index is based on a survey, conducted quarterly since the fourth quarter of 2002, of our member CEOs' plans for hiring and capital spending, and their expectations for sales, over the next six months.
US business inventories increase as expected in April
U.S. business inventories increased strongly in April, suggesting that inventory investment could contribute to economic growth in the second quarter.
April business inventories rise 0.1%
CNBC’s Rick Santelli breaks down the latest economic data to cross the tape.
Job Creators Network - Small Business Warning: Inflation, Interest Rates & the Hidden Impact of Washington Policies
Video originally published here. Elaine Parker speaks with Caroline Melear of the R Street Institute about how federal policy decisions affect small businesses and local economies across America. The conversation examines the connection between Washington policymaking and the economic realities faced by entrepreneurs, families, lenders, and communities. Parker and Melear discuss several major forces shaping...
Governor Sherrill Secures SBA Economic Injury Disaster Assistance for Businesses and Nonprofits Affected by Belleville Fire
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 17, 2026 Governor Sherrill Secures SBA Economic Injury Disaster Assistance for Businesses and Nonprofits Affected by Belleville Fire Business Recovery Center Opened June 16 in Belleville TRENTON – Small businesses and private nonprofit organizations affected by the devastating May 3, 2026 fire in Belleville Township may now apply[...]
Obama’s Nuclear Deal Looms Over Trump’s Iran Negotiations
President Trump is under pressure to significantly improve upon the Obama-era deal in order to justify the huge human and economic cost of taking the United States to war.
Politics in the logistics mix: How tariffs and polarization alter corporate supply chains
How do political ideology and perceived ideological alignment influence supply chain professionals' evaluation of operational decisions involving politically charged macroeconomic issues such as tariffs?
Seattle business group says JumpStart tax is pushing jobs, investment toward Bellevue
Seattle’s payroll tax was created nearly six years ago with a promise to tax the city’s highest-paid workers and use the money to help with economic recovery
Metro Atlanta Chamber host Spanish officials for international business summit
While Spain’s national team finished with a zero-to-zero draw in its first match of the World Cup, economic leaders are looking to score off the pitch.
Evers celebrates record-breaking tourism year at bike shop in West Bend
The annual report, released earlier this month, showed the state generated $27 billion in economic impact.
Great Canadian Entertainment Completes Sale of River Rock Casino Resort
Musqueam Traditional Territory (Richmond, B.C.), June 16, 2026--Great Canadian Entertainment ("Great Canadian") announced today the successful closing of the sale of River Rock Casino Resort ("River Rock"), located in Richmond, B.C. on Musqueam lands, to a partnership formed by Petroglyph Development Group ("PDG"), a wholly owned corporation of Snuneymuxw First Nation, and Musqueam Capital Corp ("MCC"), the economic development arm of Musqueam Indian Band. The closing completes the previously an
Economic Check-In: How rising fuel costs, tariffs are impacting American Science & Surplus
American Science & Surplus is a beloved Milwaukee store that nearly closed last year. Now under employee ownership, the store’s new owner shares how they’re operating the business during economic hardships.
Politics Still Trumps Economics in Determining Britain’s Future
The UK economy remains at the mercy of events both in Downing Street and further afield
Poverty levels improve for Kansas kids, but advocates warn of declining health
Measures of family, community and economic well-being improved for Kansas kids between 2019 and 2024, indicating a drop in child poverty, but education and health markers declined, leaving advocates concerned.
United States Announces U.S. Government Members of the U.S.-Uzbekistan Business and Investment Council
United States Announces U.S. Government Members of the U.S.-Uzbekistan Business and Investment Council Press Release June 16, 2026 Today, at the fifth annual Tashkent International Investment Forum (TIIF 2026), the United States announced the following inaugural members of the U.S.-Uzbekistan Business and Investment Council: U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) Vice President Bethany Aquilina Brez Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) Senior Vice President Sarah Witten Assistant Secretary of Commerce, David Fogel Assistant Secretary of State for Economic, Energy, and Business Affairs, Caleb Orr U.S. Ambassador to Uzbekistan, Jonathan Henick Launched in Washington, D.C., in April 2026, the U.S.-Uzbekistan Business and Investment Council serves as the premier bilateral platform to accelerate trade and catalyze private sector investment between the United States and Uzbekistan. The Council is Co-Chaired by Special Envoy for South and Central Asia, Ambassador Sergio Gor and Saida Mirziyoyeva, Head of the Administration of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan. The Council gives American businesses direct access to U.S. government financing, trade promotion, and market development tools to execute large-scale projects in Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan holds significant reserves of critical minerals essential to U.S. technology, defense, and energy sectors. The Council provides a direct mechanism to advance U.S. access to these resources through transparent, mutually beneficial partnerships. Through their participation, the American members of the Council will deepen the institutional framework for American commercial engagement in Uzbekistan.
Japan hikes interest rates to highest since 1995 to fight inflation from Iran war; Thames Water rescue in doubt
Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news
Taiwan’s website for intelligence tips from the mainland spurs debate
‘Contact window’ launched for political, military, economic and social intelligence but critics say disinformation will be a challenge.
Dave & Buster's Entertainment Q1 Earnings Call Highlights
Dave & Buster's Entertainment (NASDAQ:PLAY) reported weaker-than-expected first-quarter results for fiscal 2026, with management pointing to macroeconomic pressure in April, a softer consumer backdrop and promotional missteps as contributors to a 5.4% decline in comparable store sales. Chief Ex
Thanks For Making Me 12th Highest on Substack’s List Of “Rising” Business- and Economics-Related Newsletters
A big thank you to those of you who upgraded to paid subscriptions to read my two most recent paid memos: https://richardkatz.substack.com/publish/posts/detail/201675746?referrer=%2Fpublish%2Fposts%2Fpublished and https://richardkatz.substack.com/publish/posts/detail/201774434?referrer=%2Fpublish%2Fposts%2Fpublished As a result, total paid subs rose by 5.6% over the past seven days. And that put me at 12th on Substack’s list of “rising” newsletters in business and economics. “Rising” means those with the biggest percentage increase in revenue from subs over a short period of time. Of course, as is often the case with the issues I discuss, this is a good-news/not-so-good-news story. The good news is a rush of new subs. The caveat is that it’s easier to get a big percentage increase when the base is relatively small. I have enough paid subs to be in the initial rank of Substack’s “best seller list,” but a way to go before enough of the 12,000 subs to Japan Economy Watch are paid subs. For most hybrid newsletters—a combination of free and paid posts—2-7% of the total subs are paid. 5% is my initial goal. If you gain insight from reading this blog, please join those who’ve already upgraded; help me reach 5%—and beyond. Subscribe
Pastor Jamal Bryant On Asian Business Boycott, Black Spending Power
How one clip from an Asian creator pushed the Atlanta pastor to challenge Black spending habits and demand a test of economic dependence.
Regional Economic Development Inc. announces 2026 Small Business Grants
Regional Economic Development Inc. announced the recipients of the 2026 Small Business Grants on Monday.
Wichita Falls board to tackle business prospects behind closed doors
The Wichita Falls Economic Development Corporation meets Thursday to discuss property deals and business incentives in private.
2026 Short Course Highlight: The Disrupted World: Politics and Economics in Transition -
The Disrupted World: Politics and Economics in Transition Full Day Short Course | Register here 2026 APSA Annual Meeting & Exhibition — Boston, MA 9:00 am – 5:00 pm Workshop Overview The global political economy [...]
The shifting landscape for Black-owned businesses: An update to the Black Business Parity Dashboard
The latest Black Business Parity Dashboard reveals where Black-owned employer businesses are growing, where ownership gaps persist, and how closing those gaps could generate jobs, wages, and economic growth nationwide.
G7 meeting in France: What’s on agenda, who is attending?
The war in Iran, Ukraine and economic challenges are expected to be a key part of the agenda.
Oil price falls to three-month low and markets rally after US-Iran peace deal
Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news
Hormuz Reopening Would Offer Relief for Asia, but Economic Scars Will Remain
For months, Asia has suffered a physical supply crunch that will likely drag on its economies long after the crucial waterway reopens.
The U.S.-led war in Iran will dominate Trump's G7 trip to France
The gathering was originally expected to be a meeting focused on a variety of separate economic and security issues.
Middle-aged adults taking GLP-1s for obesity can save over $192K on lifetime medical costs, higher if they don’t have college degrees, new study finds
The National Bureau of Economic Research paper's lead author hopes putting a dollar value on the benefits of GLP-1s will lead to better access
Better Business Bureau: Major sporting events bring economic opportunities and increased scam risks
As excitement builds around World Cup matches – especially with Spain's team training in Chattanooga and tournaments being held as close as Atlanta – your Better Business Bureau is encouraging local fans and businesses to prepare for increased activity, heightened demand and the rise in scams that too often accompany major global sporting events.
In Retrospect: Poland, Russia, Europe
In April I spent a few days with Zryw, a Polish non-profit organization that recruits young people to enter politics and public life. Their aim is to build a new generation of civic leaders in Poland. I’ve followed their evolution from the beginning; my son is one of the founders. (“Zryw” means “impulse” or “burst of speed” in Polish). Julie Chmielewska, one of Zryw’s leaders, interviewed me at the event. Here is the conversation, lightly edited for grammar and context: Julia Chmielewska: Assuming that culture shapes institutions, could we conclude that some cultures are more prone to authoritarianism? Anne Applebaum: I don’t think so. Every culture, every nation, and every country has the potential for change. When we look at history, we can see that nations do change. Poland has changed, for example, from the 1980s to today. There’s a completely different mentality here than the one I encountered when I first visited, in 1988. The current generation sees the world through a different frame. So no, I don’t believe that certain nations are doomed to authoritarianism, or to anything. Of course, there are political and cultural traditions, but they can always be challenged. JC: So do you think there’s something intrinsic in human nature that pushes people to democracy, freedom? AA: I think there is something in human nature, a deep instinct, that pushes people towards freedom, yes. People who live in authoritarian countries – and I’ve heard this from them over and over again – sooner or later find themselves angered by a feeling of helplessness. They can see the unfairness of crooked courts, irrational political decisions. They naturally dislike the fact that somebody has all the power while they have none. In those circumstances, people who have no political background at all sometimes are politicized just by that frustration. I’m thinking of Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, for example, who was a Belarusian housewife, until the circumstances of her husband’s arrest forced her to become a politician. I met a woman who is a Uyghur from China, and who had come to live in Turkey. After several of her family members were arrested, she too was propelled into a political role. These kinds of experiences make people interested in democracy or political reform, even if they thought they didn’t care. I also think that the opposite is true: some people instinctively prefer homogeneity, order, hierarchy. They don’t like the confrontation of opinions or the noise of debate, and they lean towards a single leader or a unified regime. I think that most of modern history is shaped by the clash between those two different sides of human nature. JC: Which force do you find more powerful today? AA: I think they both have a lot of power and there’s no way of predicting who wins. Even in countries that seem very shut off or stuck in an authoritarian system can change. We’ve seen that happen. And vice versa, I think democracies can also begin to fail and slide into authoritarianism. So it’s very important not to be complacent in either direction. JC: I want to go into your history and your experiences. You’ve lived in Russia during a time of incredible change in the late 80s, and then you came back to do research in post-Soviet Russia. AA: I was a student in Russia just before the collapse of the Soviet Union. I then traveled and worked there extensively in the 1990s, and I met people who really were full of hope. They hoped that Russia could become a democracy, or at least a place that guaranteed freedom of speech, freedom of the press. These weren’t ideas that came from Washington. Although now the narrative in the Kremlin is different, I met many people who were working towards exactly that kind of transformation. A friend of mine ran a series of seminars – once a year, and then later several times a year, in cities all over Russia – designed to get people to discuss politics in new ways. She invited young politicians and journalists, as well as foreigners. I went to many of them, in Moscow as well as Volgograd and Novosibirsk. Over two decades, hundreds of people came to these seminars, and all of them wanted Russia to be different. I remain convinced that many Russians still want Russia to be different. It’s just that the old system, in the form of Putin, a representative of that system, returned. The KGB reimposed their power. And this wasn’t because of something to do with culture, this was to do with money and politics, and who was in charge. JC: You’ve partially answered my question... I wanted to ask whether that excitement of the 1990s was an exception from the Russian historical norm which has been rather authoritarian? AA: Of course, if you look at the history of Russia since the 18th century, there have always been liberal groups, reformers and revolutionaries. There were the Decembrists, in the early 19th century, and the rural populists later on, who tried to organize the peasantry. A significant group of liberal Russians appeared at the turn of the 20th century, people like the father of the writer Vladimir Nabokov, who was a Russian politician before the revolution. These groups were small in number, but sometimes had a broader significance. The Russian dissident movement in the 1950s and 1960s actually invented the modern human rights movement. It was their idea to hold the leaders of the Soviet Union accountable for the language they used, to remind them of the treaties they had signed and the promised they had made. They created the Helsinki group, for example, that held Soviet leadership to the language of the Helsinki Treaty, which formally ended the Second World War and which contained guarantees of human rights, at least on paper. That idea spread to Eastern Europe, and similar tactics were used here in Poland. (Benjamin Nathans recently wrote a great book about the Soviet dissidents, To the Success of Our Hopeless Cause) JC: But seemingly, even if they do ever get power, they could never hold on to it. AA: We don’t know, because they have never really had power. But in any case, we also don’t know what will happen in the future. There is no reason to assume that Russia will forever be condemned to totalitarianism. Even during the first fifteen years of Putin’s regime there was some form of democratic politics. Only when the full-scale war began did he bring everything to an end: he shut down all remaining independent organizations and killed his most important opponent, Alexi Navalny. But does that mean he is popular, that he enjoys legitimacy? Even now, we don’t really know what Russians think about him, or about the war. There is no way of doing real polling in Russia because nobody will answer an independent pollster over the phone. JC: Do you think that the flock of young people, especially young men, who fled Russia after the start of the war represent a continuation of liberal movements that refuse to partake in the authoritarian state, or do you think they are moving for the sake of self-preservation – “I don’t want to go to the army, so I leave”? AA: I’m sure it’s both. I actually know many people who left Russia for political reasons either in the very last years before the war, or else just after the war began. JC: And do you see a change in the young generation versus the old one that have fled? AA: It’s hard for me to say because the people who I know were mostly already politicized. I do know some younger people who left, but most of them were already either active in the opposition, or working as journalists. Many of them very self-consciously think of themselves as maintaining Russian culture abroad, just as in the 20th century the Soviet dissidents or the anti-communist White Russians once thought of themselves as people who maintained the true Russian culture, outside of Bolshevik Russia. JC: Let’s move on to Poland. One of your first experiences with Poland was reporting on Margaret Thatcher’s first state visit, in the autumn of 1988. You followed her around the farmers’ market. AA: She was making a symbolic gesture. She wanted to welcome free markets, but the only one she could really visit was the farmers’ market at Hala Mirowska. JC: And I want to talk about this area because today you can look out of any window in that district, Mirów, and see rows and rows of skyscrapers. How does it feel to see a country built from the ground in such a short time, both politically and economically? AA: You know, when you’re living in a period of dramatic change, it’s always hard to know whether the change is positive or negative. The transformation in Poland created winners and losers, as well as new classes of people, new political movements of different kinds. At the time, it sometimes just felt like turbulence. Now, we can look back at the 1990s and early 2000s in Poland and see in retrospect that the country was headed in towards prosperity and European integration. In around 2009 or 2010, I remember speaking to a woman who worked cleaning government offices, and who asked me if her daughter should study in Amsterdam or in London. This seemed to me to be a real transformation, and it happened very fast: within a few years, Poles stopped feeling like second-class Europeans, and a generation of younger Poles appeared who had no qualms about crossing borders. JC: We again live in turbulent times. Do you think we’re heading towards positive outcomes? AA: I can’t make predictions, because everything that happens tomorrow depends on what people do today. Also, history doesn’t have a trajectory. It doesn’t move in a particular direction. You only think it does afterwards. As I said, you can look afterwards at Poland in the 1990s and you could say this was a period of great progress. But not everybody at the time saw that. Sometimes people are very wrong about a given country’s trajectory. I remember people writing about Ukraine in the 1990s, about how dangerous it was that Ukraine was independent, that this was going to be an anti-semitic state, that Ukrainian nationalism was going to come back... and although you can say many bad things about Ukraine, the country made many bad choices, actually it became a pretty tolerant state which now has a Jewish president and until recently a Muslim defense minister. JC: In the 1990s Poland’s and Ukraine’s GDP were roughly similar. Ukraine was even a bit richer. So the starting point was similar for both of these countries, but they’ve turned out very, very differently. Even if we stop in 2014. Why do you think Ukraine “chose East”? Was it external influence? AA: No, I think Ukraine was in a different position. First of all, central and eastern Ukraine had been part of the Soviet Union since the 1920s, and had therefore experienced a longer period of occupation, repression, Sovietization and even Russification. Ukraine did not have, as Poland did, an alternative elite: a large cadre of economists and politicians, who already had some experience in opposition politics and in independent thinking. In Poland, the transformative finance minister, Leszek Balcerowicz, had already thought about how an economy might be decentralized before he took office. We can argue about how successful he was, but at least he was prepared to try something new. In Ukraine, people weren’t prepared. For one, there hadn’t been much space even for an illegal opposition in the previous couple of decades. Ukraine was also in many ways still emerging from colonial occupation. For the previous couple of centuries, many of the most capable Ukrainians had moved to Russia, and the first generation of leaders in independent Ukraine tended to be former Soviet apparatchiks. They didn’t immediately seek to become closer to western Europe. Instead, they looked for some kind of economic and political “third way” and an accomodation with Russia. Ukraine became stuck in this position, half-in, half-out and became pretty profoundly corrupt. JC: The Polish alternative elite had a vision of where they wanted the country to go. I think the general perception now is that this vision ends with the next election, right? Is this a natural process of gaining power? AA: Their vision, and it was shared by the time by politicians who now call themselves both left and right, was that Poland should join the EU and NATO, as fast as possible. My husband (Radek Sikorski) was in the very first government that said it wanted to join NATO. At the time this was taken very badly in Washington: the demand for NATO membership absolutely came from Poland, not from the US. But even then, in the early 1990s, many Poles already understood that the Russian sphere of influence would grow once again, that it was important to become part of the transatlantic alliance and an integrated Europe as fast as possible: NATO, the EU, the Council of Europe, all of the trading and security alliances. That consensus lasted through several different governments and over many years, even governments containing former communists. For twenty years, right, left and center disagreed about many things, but they all agreed on the direction that the country should go. In retrospect, that consensus created the basis for prosperity in Poland. JC: And regarding the Polish-Ukrainian relations. We know that antagonisms, e.g. the myth of Wołyń [a massacre of Poles that took place in what is now Western Ukraine, in 1943] are increasingly used in Polish political discourse today. In Ukraine, nationalist historians make heroes out of UPA, the Ukrainian revolutionary army, which is held responsible for this tragedy. Where do you see a start for burying the hatchet? Is the reconciliation of our nations possible? AA: So here’s a strange thing: For more than a decade after they both gained independence, Poland and Ukraine participated in a number of projects that were designed to solve exactly these kinds of Polish-Ukrainian differences. Books were published that were jointly written by Polish and Ukrainian historians, monuments were built. These projects were successful: If you’d asked me this question in 2010, I would have said that there are no real historical issues between Poland and Ukraine, that the two countries had mostly reconciled. For a number of reasons, this began to shift. In Poland, children and grandchildren of victims of the Wołyń massacre felt their tragedy hadn’t been fully recognized. In Ukraine, nationalist groups wanted the UPA partisans who had fought against the Soviet Union recognized for their heroism, despite the fact that some in this broad and not well-defined group were also linked to Wołyń. In both eastern Poland and western Ukraine, the memory of the ethnic cleansing that took place there in the late 1940s - Poles were moved West, Ukrainians East - to accomodate new borders has left feelings of displacement and bitterness. The wave of Ukrainian immigration, which started before the war, may have provoked some of this. But don’t underestimate the role played by Russia, which has always wanted to create discord between Poland and Ukraine, and pumps out propaganda to that effect in both countries. Vandalism on both sides of the border, damage done to cemeteries and monuments, is sometimes carried out by provacateurs working for Russia, just to create bad feelings. The Polish-Ukrainian conflict also hides a different reality: although there are real grievances and bad memories, the truth is that the biggest tragedies both nations experienced in the twentieth century were inflicted by the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany. That should unite these two countries, not divide them. JC: This week (19.04.2026 – Ed.) in Hungary we saw that using historical narratives to create grievance has no longer worked. Are you optimistic about the direction after Orban’s loss? AA: The Hungarian election was really important because it shows that people can actually resist powerful, dominant propaganda. The ruling party Fidesz controlled all of the TV, 90% of the newspapers, the constitutional court, the bureaucracy... and yet people had the nerve to vote against it and resist it. It’s also an important election because Hungary created a huge network of well-funded think tanks and foundations that were funding other far right groups and projects. So that loss is going to have a knock-on effect in other places too, maybe even in Poland. JC: What you’ve said about resisting propaganda reminds me of one of the interviews you did about talking to Russians in the post-Soviet era who claimed that people knew that the system was lying. Why do people choose to believe in these regimes anyway? AA: Because it’s useful. Stephen Kotkin, an American historian, once described how people would learn how to “speak Bolshevik”: It was just a language that you needed to use in order to get by in society. If you didn’t talk the way the regime wanted you to talk, then you might have problems, or lose your job, or your kids would not get into university. It was a way of getting along. Communist Poland was similar, at least in the early years. When I was writing a book about the Sovietization of Eastern Europe after World War II, I met a lot of people who wanted to talk a lot about the war, when many of them had done really heroic things. But almost nobody wanted to talk about the decade afterwards, between 1945 and 1956. This was when you had the short period of terror, violence and Polish Stalinism. To stay safe, people felt the need to just go along with what others were saying, or stay out of politics, or use communist jargon without necessarily believing it. I don’t judge them for it, and I wouldn’t describe all of those people as collaborators. It’s easy to feel moral certainty in retrospect, because we know that communism ended. But if you were living in 1949, it might not have been clear to you that communism was going to end. In very repressive societies, maybe about 10% of people who are really evil – collaborators, torturers. Maybe 10% of people are really brave and who find ways to resist. And then around 80% of people have kids, they have parents, they have to have jobs and they’ve had to get through it somehow. Strange though it may sound, I’ve found that the work I did on that book is now very useful in explaining some of what’s going on in the United States today. There are plenty of members of the Republican Party in Congress who know perfectly well that Donald Trump says many things that aren’t true. But they avoid criticizing him because it’s inconvenient, because they would get in trouble, because someone would attack them on the internet. So actually you don’t even need mass terror to get people to conform. JC: Is Gen Z reinventing agency? AA: We’ll see. In any generation you can find groups of people who want agency. If you live in a society that’s unfair, for example where a tiny number of people have captured most of the wealth, then at a certain point people rebel. This is always easier for younger people, who have you have less to lose. The question now is how the internet will affect the relationships between citizens and the state, and how it will change organizations. The “Twitter revolutions” people spoke about as early as 2008-9, mass protests organized online, have often proved to be very superficial. Although you can easily join something just by clicking, the work of creating a real movement requires physical participation. Successful mass movements of the past, for example the Civil Rights movement in the United States, were built by people who had spent many years together. They had participated in non-violent workshops together. They practiced and prepared. Just using the you can get everybody to show up at a certain moment, but then when the protest is broken up, nothing happens. It’s also true that the repressive regimes have more recently learned how to use the internet to undermine leaders and movements. Most of all, they now understand how to make people cynical. The form of propaganda that most modern authoritarians use - and I think the Russians really pioneered this - deploys sneering cynicism. Instead of praising the rulers, the regime propagandists mock the opposition movement leadership for being supposedly corrupt or sexually degenerate, with the goal of undermining any kind of idealism. JC: MAGA grew on the internet? AA: MAGA is a real grassroots movement. They had symbols, red hats, they showed up at rallies. But you’re right that the cynicism, the sarcasm and the distrust that the movement embodies came originally from the internet, and this is different. Fifty years ago, most European political parties had a social base in real organizations, in trade unions for Social Democrats, in church groups for Christian Democrats. As people stopped going to church and as the trade unions became smaller, the social base of these parties disappeared. Now people who wouldn’t have known one another in the past meet on the internet and create new movements, many of which don’t last. JC: Is history ending? Going in stale circles? AA: History never ends. In truth, human beings want contradictory things at the same time: order and freedom, stability and change. These things are never resolved, and when a society swings too far in one direction, people always push it the other way. But each time that happens, the result is different. Certainly it is true that we are now in a period when old philosophers and ideas from the 1930s are undergoing a revival. Carl Schmitt, who was a philosopher who was very influential on the Nazis, is back as an influence on both the far left and the far right, once again inspiring people to think that all politics has to be existential, that all politics is about defining and defeating enemies. In the US, some are also bringing back dominionism, the idea that we need a Christian and not a secular state. It’s also true that we are living through a more fundamental shift. The old left-right divide, which was mostly about the size of the state, is much less important now. Instead, we are arguing about more fundamental things: what are our rights, what protects our freedom. Or how much power do we want to give small elites, versus how much power to give ordinary people. In America a small group of very wealthy people now control information, because they control the social media platforms and AI, which means they determine what people will read and learn. Finding a way to preserve preserve zones of autonomy and independent thinking, this is going to be the main task for the next generation. JC: What is the one book that a person interested in Central Europe should read? AA: You could read my book “Iron Curtain: the Crushing of Eastern Europe” which tells the story of how the Soviet Union imposed its culture on the region. Or read Tim Snyder’s history of the region, “The Reconstruction of Nations: Poland, Ukraine, Lithuania, Belarus 1569-1999.” And everyone should read “The Captive Mind” by Czesław Miłosz, which describes exactly the phenomenon we were talking about: why do people collaborate? I joined Scott Galloway and the brilliant Fiona Hill in a discussion about the wars in Ukraine and Iran, the future of global power, and what these conflicts reveal about America's role in the world. Scott told us that this was the 400th edition of his podcast, which is quite a number: My friend Francesco Chiamulera runs a brilliant series of literary events, Una Colline di Libri, A Hill of Books, in the Prosecco Hills, a region of vineyards and elegant hill towns in the Veneto, north of Venice. We did an event in Vittorio Veneto and also drove and biked around the countryside. Buy Autocracy Inc Buy Iron Curtain Open Letters, from Anne Applebaum is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe
Business Buzz
The Business Buzz features news about the economic scene, promotions, acquisitions and expansions. Contact Pat Hill at pat.hill@pikespeaknewspapers.com or (719) 636-0358. Rhapsody Market & Bistro has opened in the former location of Rhapsody. The busness is at 121 W. Midland in downtown Woodland Park.
Legislative primaries could determine whether business issues take top priority
Voters will decide 23 legislative primaries on June 30. Many pit candidates focused on economic issues with those focused on social issues.
It’s my tree. Why can’t I cut it down?
Can the government stop you from cutting down your own tree? In many towns and cities these days, removing a tree now requires a permit. You might have to pay a fee, or promise to plant replacement trees. But sometimes, the city won't let you cut down the tree at all, even a tree in your own backyard.That's because trees are important for air quality, for flood control, and for public health. They help keep neighborhoods cool on hot days. But some think that tree protection laws have gone too far — that they might even be unconstitutional.On today's episode, it's the latest showdown between property rights and local zoning laws. Typically, towns and cities enjoy a lot of power when it comes to zoning and permits. They can ban certain types of buildings. They can make you paint your house a certain color. But can they make it illegal to cut down a tree? And what does it mean to "own" a piece of property anyway?Support:Planet Money+Read: Our book: Planet Money: A Guide to the Economic Forces That Shape Your Life Our weekly longform Planet Money newsletterOur weekly Indicator round-up newsletterFollow: InstagramTikTokYouTubeFacebookThis episode of Planet Money was hosted by Jeff Guo and Amanda Aronczyk. It was produced by James Sneed and Emma Peaslee, edited by Jess Jiang, and fact-checked by Vito Emanuel. It was engineered by Robert Rodriguez and Cena Loffredo. Alex Goldmark is our executive producer.
Bean Named General Counsel of the Year by St. Louis Business Journal
Eight Corporate Counsel Award honorees chosen by publication for 2026 Howl Bean II, general counsel for St. Louis Economic Development Partnership (STL Partnership), has been named the 2026 General Counsel…
Pro-economic growth policy back in business following primaries, some say
Some in the Republican party are feeling positive about returns from the June 2 primary when it comes to legislative races. Results could indicate a shift in policy and legislative leadership.
Tulane report urges healthcare investment to improve Louisiana economy, reverse population loss
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Washtenaw Business Lens: When homelessness and mental health challenges collide with local businesses
Ann Arbor businesses are feeling the impact of people suffering homelessness and mental health challenges. For this month's "Washtenaw Business Lens," WEMU's Caroline MacGregor and Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti Regional Chamber Executive Vice President and Director of Government Relations, Andy LaBarre discussed these economic impacts with the Executive Director of Washtenaw County Community Mental Health, Trish Cortes.
Business Park Access Road Debuts in Winchester: Business NH Magazine
The Winchester Economic Development Corp. on Friday unveiled the aptly named Opportunity Drive, a 2,100-foot access road that leads to the town’s Stone Mountain Business Park.
US Small Business Administration approves Economic Injury Disaster Loan after snowstorm
Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee announced the U.S. Small Business Administration has approved an Economic Injury Disaster Loan declaration for the state.
An Emmy, a world championship and the business of Idaho whitewater
Visit Idaho won a Northwest Regional Emmy for its whitewater documentary series, highlighting the economic impact of river tourism in Idaho.
Roundup: BREC millage / New gas pipeline / Screwworm in pets
Partnership backing: The Greater Baton Rouge Economic Partnership supports renewing BREC’s parks and recreation millage on the June 27 ballot, saying parks and trails are key to quality of life and economic growth. Leaders say the renewal will help maintain a valuable community asset while BREC undergoes a leadership transition. They emphasize the importance of […]
South African Business Body Questions Rate Hike as More Seen
South Africa’s main industry body questioned the central bank’s decision to raise interest rates at a time of weak economic growth and fragile business sentiment amid the war in Iran.
Social Security is Facing a Political Crisis
On Tuesday the Social Security Trustees released their latest report on the system’s finances. The numbers didn’t change much: Unless something is done, the Old Age Survivors and Disability Insurance (OASDI) program, Social Security’s official name, will be unable to pay full benefits starting in either 2032 or 2034, depending on some technical issues. That’s not far away: If the Trustees are right, the prospect of a Social Security crisis will loom over the next presidential administration. It’s important to understand, however, the nature of the looming crisis. It won’t be an economic crisis. It won’t even be a serious fiscal crisis. Whatever you may have heard, Social Security isn’t in danger of going bankrupt. What we’re facing, instead, is potential political crisis. Congress and the White House could easily take action to sustain America’s retirement system. But given the current state of our politics, there’s no guarantee that they will. There is a widespread misunderstanding of how Social Security works. While Social Security was designed to look like a pension fund, it isn’t. A pension fund pays benefits out of a stock of assets it has accumulated over time. In contrast, Social Security operates as a government transfer program, like food stamps or Medicaid. Now, unlike food stamps — but like the highway trust fund — Social Security is on paper supported by a dedicated tax, the payroll tax, that is assigned to that program. But I say “on paper” because from an economic point of view assigning the payroll tax to Social Security is just an accounting convention. What matters for the U.S. economy is the overall balance between government spending and government revenue, not the difference between one type of spending and one source of revenue. So there’s no inherent economic significance to the fact that by 2034 payroll tax receipts will be insufficient to cover promised benefits. There is, however, a legislative issue. As long as the Social Security Administration can pay benefits out of payroll taxes and its cash reserve, there’s no need for Congress to vote each year to authorize benefits — they just keep going out until further notice. However, once those resources become insufficient, benefits will fall —by 17 percent according to the Trustees — unless Congress passes new legislation that “tops up” Social Security’s finances. Yet the current administration and Republican party are such extremists that there is a real risk that Social Security will be held hostage on behalf of their goals. If this should come to pass, the hostage-takers will claim that shoring up Social Security is unaffordable. Right on cue, Mike Johnson, the Trump-sycophant Speaker of the House, declared on Monday that “entitlement programs” like Social Security “have to be adjusted and fixed,” and that Republicans will introduce a plan to that effect next year. But this is a ploy, because while the cost of maintaining Social Security benefits at their promised level isn’t trivial, it is in fact affordable. According to the Trustees’ report, the actuarial balance of OASDI up through 2050 — the amount of additional funds it would need to keep paying full benefits for the next 25 years — is 1.06 percent of GDP. To put that number in perspective, the Trump administration proposes increasing military spending next year by $420 billion, equivalent to about 1.4 percent of GDP – without any discussion of whether that’s affordable Yet how did we get to the point where Social Security will need to be topped up? The main answer is that we have an aging population, with a growing ratio of retirees collecting benefits to workers paying into the system: Trump’s anti-immigration policies are making this problem worse. According to the Trustees’ report, lower immigration will deepen Social Security’s financial hole because many immigrants are working-age adults who will pay into the system for decades before they collect benefits. In fact, this problem may be much bigger than the report acknowledges: The report’s baseline assumption is that we’ll have net immigration of almost 1.2 million people a year, and even the pessimistic case assumes 750,000 a year. Meanwhile actual net immigration has already been cut far below that — and may now be negative. Moreover, Social Security is being financially damaged by growing income inequality in America. Payroll taxes are levied only on wages up to $184,500, and they don’t touch capital income. With the distribution of income increasingly shifting from labor to capital, as well as becoming more unequal among wage-earners, revenue from the Social Security payroll tax has been falling as a share of national income. From 1990 to 2024, it fell from 5.02 percent of gross domestic income to 4.46 percent. Which brings me to the question that, these days, we ask about everything: How might Social Security be affected by the advent of AI? A short answer: If, as many of us fear, AI accelerates rising income inequality, it will further reduce the payroll tax receipts that currently pay for Social Security and further endanger its finances. On the other hand, if AI, as its advocates promise, leads to faster economic growth, it will increase the potential tax base that could and should be used to support Social Security and other social insurance programs. But to take advantage of that larger base, we’ll have to get serious about taxing wealth and capital income. Is Social Security in trouble? Yes, but only because of the way its financing is currently structured — a structure that no longer works well because our society and economy have become so unequal. Moreover, Trump’s immigration policies are further endangering its already deteriorating financial condition. So don’t believe Republicans’ gaslighting that it will be necessary to cut Social Security benefits. All that is necessary to preserve Social Security is political will to raise taxes on the wealthy and a sensible immigration policy. MUSICAL CODA Actually 67 under current law.
Ryanair being investigated over fees to seat parents with children
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Bay Area business says economic uncertainty stalling workforce growth
New York's candy stores sweeten economic gloom
While US consumer confidence is at an historic low the Big Apple's sweet shops are expanding.
Big Boy visit brings big business to North East
The Union Pacific’s Big Boy — the world’s largest steam locomotive — brought a significant economic boost along with large crowds to North East on Tuesday. Visitors not only gathered al…
Local businesses roll out custom merch as World Cup crowds expected to boost economy
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Trump’s most tone-deaf comments on Iran and the economy, ranked
President Donald Trump has repeatedly dismissed Americans’ economic pain and military casualties from the Iran war with comments critics call insensitive.
The Health and Wellbeing of Formerly Incarcerated People in Connecticut: Insights from the DataHaven Community Wellbeing Survey
By Carter Shannon, Nat Markey, Nora Hodgson, Samantha Lydell, Andrew Carr, and Mark Abraham, DataHaven About this Report Approximately 1 in 5 men aged 18–64 in Connecticut have experienced incarceration at some point in their lives. This population includes people who have been held in a local jail for a single night and those who have served lengthy prison sentences, and it cuts across race, age, geography, and socioeconomic background in ways that reflect broader structural inequities in the criminal legal system. Yet across nearly every indicator of wellbeing, formerly incarcerated people in Connecticut face significant disparities compared to those without an incarceration history. This report explores data on the experiences of formerly incarcerated men in Connecticut from the DataHaven Community Wellbeing Survey (DCWS). The DCWS illuminates significant gaps in economic wellbeing, physical health, mental health, and social support between men with and without incarceration histories in Connecticut. The survey also reveals worse self-reported outcomes for formerly incarcerated people across a range of quality-of-life indicators, with disparities that are often most severe among those who have been incarcerated more than once. These disparities do not arise by chance. They are shaped by a policy landscape that erects lasting barriers to housing, employment, and healthcare for people leaving incarceration, as well as by the physical and psychological toll of incarceration itself. This report is being written in the political context of federal funding cuts to social programs and proposed rollbacks to Medicaid eligibility, changes that will disproportionately impact people with incarceration histories, who are more likely to rely on public health coverage and other safety net supports.
How Much Should Governments Invest in Sports? Soccer Offers a Test Case.
The growth of soccer in the United States reflects decades of public-sector involvement, raising broader questions about sports-related economic development.
Loyal Liberals
Loyal Liberals have broadly progressive political values across many issue areas and a strong allegiance to the Democratic Party. Highly educated and relatively secure economically, they are strong supporters of the United States’ traditional diplomatic alliances. Loyal Liberals are one of nine groups in Pew Research Center’s 2026 Political Typology. To learn more about the […]
Order and Opportunity Left
Order and Opportunity Left are the largest group in the political typology, making up 18% of the American public. They generally support a larger federal government with more services and are critical of some aspects of the economic system. But they couple this with a greater sense of economic individualism than the typology groups more […]
Pragmatic and Polite Right
Pragmatic and Polite Right hold a mix of conservative, moderate and somewhat liberal issue positions: They skew more conservative on economics and the role of government, while tilting more liberal on issues related to race and in their orientation to the rest of the world. They are also moderate in their style, prizing civility and […]
Peekskill restaurant known for pizza and live entertainment to close
The owner of this longtime Peekskill restaurant cited economic challenges as reason for the closure.
Trump’s AI fund idea is good politics, but bad economics
Plans to share the gains from technology could cause more problems than they solve
Hegseth Visits Guantánamo Bay Amid U.S. Tensions With Cuba
The trip comes as the Trump administration pushes for political and economic changes on the island.
Policy and politics are hitting CT families with rising summer costs
If you wanna get away this summer, the economic cost of a far-away war in Iran might affect your ability to spend here at home.
Asian stocks fall as US and Iran exchange fire
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Shapiro Administration Highlights the Need for Funding to Grow Pennsylvania’s Innovation Economy, Visits AlphaLab Health in Pittsburgh - PA Department of Community & Economic Development
AlphaLab Health is a start-up accelerator collaboration created by Innovation Works and Allegheny Health Network to address healthcare problems experienced by clinicians and patients. Pennsylvania has always been a leader […]
Marinette mayor hosts podcast to keep locals in loop about projects
Mayor Steve Genisot joined Spectrum News 1’s “Your Local Leaders” segment to share about recent projects that contribute to the city’s economic output.
Business Leaders Gather to Hear Economic and Business Outlooks at the 16th Annual DuPage County Regional Business Outlook Event
/PRNewswire/ -- More than 600 of the region's top business and civic leaders gathered Thursday, June 4, 2026, at the 16th Annual DuPage County Regional...
Exclusive: SBA's Kelly Loeffler predicts AI will fuel Main Street growth
Despite economic fears, Americans are filing to start new businesses at near-record rates.
How Sports Are a Local Growth Engine
A recent Wharton panel discussed the potential economic impact of Philadelphia hosting the FIFA World Cup and other major events.
Tokenomics will lead to opportunities in 'edge AI,' Citrini says
Citrini Research predicts that the economics of tokenmaxxing will prompt a shift to "edge AI" that will have implications for investors.