David Kestenbaum

Who Hides Money Outside The Country?

David Kestenbaum — Tue, 14 May 2013 19:34:00 +0000

Over the past decade, some 39,000 people have come forward voluntarily to tell the IRS about offshore money they haven't been paying taxes on. This group provides a small window into the world of people who are hiding money in offshore havens. (It's a world we've been trying to learn more about, partly by setting up an offshore company in Belize.)

The names of the 39,000 aren't published anywhere, and they're not eager to be interviewed.

Lady Gaga Writing A New Song Is Like A Factory Investing In A New Machine

David Kestenbaum — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 07:30:00 +0000

I spoke yesterday with Dan Sichel, a Wellesley economist and a Lady Gaga fan. Both of these facts are relevant for this story.

The U.S. government is about to tweak the way it measures the economy, and some of the biggest changes will affect the entertainment industry.

Under the current system, Sichel told me, Lady Gaga's sales of concert tickets, online songs and CDs all count toward gross domestic product. But the value of the time she spends in the studio working on new songs isn't counted.

When A Famous Hospital Didn't Want An Expensive New Drug

David Kestenbaum — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 07:41:00 +0000

Last year, a new drug called Zaltrap was approved as a kind of last-chance therapy for patients with colorectal cancer. Studies suggested Zaltrap worked almost exactly as well as an existing drug called Avastin. In fact, the main difference between the two drugs seemed to be the price.

"I was rather stunned," Dr.

Three Ways To Totally Transform U.S. Immigration Policy

David Kestenbaum — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 08:05:00 +0000

With immigration policy in the news again, I asked three economists, "Dream big: If you could create any immigration policy for the U.S., what would it be?" Here's what they said.

1. The Best And The Brightest

Dean Baker of the Center for Economic and Policy Research would give out more visas to highly skilled workers: scientists, engineers, computer programmers and doctors.

In this universe, with fewer low-skill immigrants, low-skilled labor would be more expensive. So, food would cost a bit more. Child care might, too. There could be fewer restaurants.

Follow-Up To Our Show, 'An FBI Hostage Negotiator Buys A Car'

David Kestenbaum — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 20:51:00 +0000

We recently received an email from a listener about our show, An FBI Hostage Negotiator Buys A Car.

In that show, Cathy Tinsley of Georgetown University told a story about negotiating to buy pumpkins in a market in Africa.

The listener wrote:

Subject: Credibility issue w/ French pumpkin story
I enjoyed the negotiations podcast, but was surprised by the pumpkin negotiation anecdote.