Ben Zipperer
@benzipperer.org
7.6K followers 670 following 580 posts
Economist at @epi.org https://www.epi.org/people/ben-zipperer/
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Reposted by Ben Zipperer
thomaszimmer.bsky.social
Heritage president Kevin Roberts, in a truly revealing passage of his Foreword to the Project 2025 policy agenda, states that the project of “dismantling the administrative state” is not about the actual size of government at all:

The goal is to cut “the secret lifeblood of the Great Awokening.”
jamellebouie.net
a key thing about vought — and all of these guys — is that they have a totally top down and hierarchical vision of the world. they believe that the cultural changes they hate can be turned off by destroying the federal government because they can’t imagine that they emerged bottom-up in society
thomaszimmer.bsky.social
What he’s railing against is a profound shift in culture, status… He’s obsessed with the idea that America is controlled by a leftist “ruling elite” - but “elite” isn’t defined socio-economically or by political power, it means something like: Getting to define “real America” and who gets to belong.
Reposted by Ben Zipperer
crampell.bsky.social
Epidurals are rare in Japan, where some believe that women who endure childbirth without pain-relief enjoy closer bonds with their children. Hoping to nudge up the number of babies being born, Tokyo govt has begun rolling out subsidies to help women pay for epidurals and chip away at that stigma
To Tackle a Baby Shortage, Tokyo Tries Easing the Pain of Childbirth
The Japanese capital is rolling out subsidies for epidurals in a country where cost is a barrier and women are often encouraged to endure the pain of delivery.
www.wsj.com
Reposted by Ben Zipperer
radleybalko.bsky.social
The Treasury Secretary declares himself to be pro-monarchy, and promises to punish the entire country if the people exercise their First Amendment rights.
atrupar.com
Bessent: "No Kings means no paychecks. No paychecks and no government."
Reposted by Ben Zipperer
davidjbier.bsky.social
ICE agents to US citizen: Turn around or you're getting the dog.
Reposted by Ben Zipperer
caitlindeangelis.bsky.social
ICE kidnapped a 7th-grader with a pending asylum claim and spirited him out of state without notifying his parents, seemingly with the cooperation of the local police in Everett, MA.

www.bostonglobe.com/2025/10/12/m...
Everett 13-year-old arrested by ICE and sent to Virginia detention facility
By Marcela Rodrigues Globe Staff,Updated October 12, 2025, 44 minutes ago



31
A 13-year-old boy was arrested by ICE in Everett and sent to a juvenile detention facility in Virginia.
A 13-year-old boy was arrested by ICE in Everett and sent to a juvenile detention facility in Virginia.
A 13-year-old boy was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Everett after an interaction with members of the Everett Police Department and sent to a juvenile detention facility in Virginia, according to his mother and immigration lawyer Andrew Lattarulo.

The boy’s mother, Josiele Berto, was called to pick her son up from the Everett Police Department on Thursday, the day he was arrested. After waiting for about an hour and a half, she was told her son was taken by ICE, Berto told the Globe in a phone interview.

“My world collapsed,” Berto said in Portuguese.

From the police department, the boy was taken to ICE’s holding facility in Burlington on Thursday evening, where he spent a night before being transferred by car to the Northwestern Regional Juvenile Detention Center in Winchester, Va., on Friday morning, his mother said. The juvenile facility is more than 500 miles away from Everett.

The boy is a 7th-grader at Albert N. Parlin School in Everett, his mother said. The teen and his family, who are Brazilian nationals, have a pending asylum case and are authorized to work legally in the United States, Lattarulo said.
benzipperer.org
For the CPS, it seems like the reference week is this coming week and the interview week starts Oct 19

www.bls.gov/cps/definiti...
Table of reference weeks for the CPS from the Bureau of Labor Statistics website
Reposted by Ben Zipperer
kevinjkircher.com
"Make cities safe and fun for kids to run around and play in" is a pretty good guiding light for urban planning
brenttoderian.bsky.social
“In a city once choked with cars and infamous for its traffic snarls, Paris has pulled off a remarkable turnaround…the French capital has officially become Europe’s best city for children to walk, cycle, and move around independently.” Via @momentummag.bsky.social

A victory for FAST leadership.
Paris Pedals to the Top: How the City of Light Became Europe’s Best for Young Cyclists
The French capital has officially become Europe’s best city for children to walk, cycle, and move around independently
momentummag.com
Reposted by Ben Zipperer
Reposted by Ben Zipperer
bbkogan.bsky.social
Simply could not be more clear that the firings have nothing to do with the shutdown. It’s just people Trump and Vought have been planning to fire for a very long.
Cady Stanton @cady_stanton • 52m
Seeing that some impacted workers who were not furloughed are receiving RIF notices - employees that are designated as essential during a shutdown, but are now being laid off.
Reposted by Ben Zipperer
benzipperer.org
yes, it's simply false that international students crowd out US-born students
The Impact of International Students on US Colleges: Higher Education as a Service Export

Mingyu Chen

June 3, 2021

Abstract

Between 2005 and 2016, international enrollment in US higher education nearly doubled. I examine how trade shocks in education affect public universities’ decision-making. I construct a shift-share instrument to exploit institutions’ historical networks with different origins of international students, income growth, and exchange-rate fluctuations. Contrary to claims that US-born students are crowded out, I find that international students increase schools’ funding via tuition payments, which leads to increased in-state enrollment and lower tuition prices. Schools also keep steady per-student spending and recruit more students with high math scores. Lastly, states allocate more appropriations to universities that attract fewer international students.
benzipperer.org
yes, it's simply false that international students crowd out US-born students
The Impact of International Students on US Colleges: Higher Education as a Service Export

Mingyu Chen

June 3, 2021

Abstract

Between 2005 and 2016, international enrollment in US higher education nearly doubled. I examine how trade shocks in education affect public universities’ decision-making. I construct a shift-share instrument to exploit institutions’ historical networks with different origins of international students, income growth, and exchange-rate fluctuations. Contrary to claims that US-born students are crowded out, I find that international students increase schools’ funding via tuition payments, which leads to increased in-state enrollment and lower tuition prices. Schools also keep steady per-student spending and recruit more students with high math scores. Lastly, states allocate more appropriations to universities that attract fewer international students.
Reposted by Ben Zipperer
fritschner.bsky.social
A few minutes ago in the House:

- Speaker Mike Johnson officially cancels votes next week, extending the House recess through a fourth week

- House Republicans block Democrats from passing a bill to pay the troops during the shutdown, ensuring they will miss paychecks next week
House Press Gallery: During today's pro forma session, the Clerk read a message from the Speaker designating Tuesday, October 14 through Sunday, October 19 as a district work period. Punchbowl's Briana Reilly: House gaveled in and out of its pro forma just now w/o recognizing Rep Elfreth, who was seeking to UC a mil pay bill from Rep Sykes. 

Elfreth told reporters after that House Dems stand “ready and willing to take” up standalone legislation to pay troops.
Reposted by Ben Zipperer
econberger.bsky.social
Lots of federal government workers filing initial claims as the shutdown got started. I imagine their CC will spike next week.
Reposted by Ben Zipperer
bencasselman.bsky.social
SCOOP: The Bureau of Labor Statistics is preparing to release the September C.P.I. report despite the shutdown. (Exact date still unclear -- almost certainly not the original Oct. 15 date.) #EconSky #NumbersDay
benzipperer.org
tried Claude code for a few things and it was useful... but what a potential security nightmare!!

What are folks doing in their daily work to sandbox these tools or to minimize bad stuff from happening?
Reposted by Ben Zipperer
ucblaborcenter.bsky.social
The UC Berkeley Labor Center mourns Kent Wong, our longtime colleague and friend. A passionate champion for workers—especially immigrants—and students, Kent dedicated his life to justice. Our hearts are with our colleagues at the UCLA Labor Center.
Photo of Kent Wong, smiling and looking into the camera, in front of a building with a Labor Center logo.
Reposted by Ben Zipperer
carlzimmer.com
Today my @nytimes.com colleagues and I are launching a new series called Lost Science. We interview US scientists who can no longer discover something new about our world, thanks to this year‘s cuts. Here is my first interview with a scientist who studied bees and fires. Gift link: nyti.ms/3IWXbiE
nyti.ms
Reposted by Ben Zipperer
aaronsojourner.org
If you give this administration a presumption of honesty, you are acting like a credulous sucker.
bsky.app/profile/nyto...
nytopinion.nytimes.com
“Regardless of what the president says, Portland is not a crime-ridden city that needs help,” Elizabeth Darby writes from Portland, Ore. “It is a lovely city.”
Opinion | Pushback at Trump and Troops in Portland
Readers object to President Trump’s use of the military in American cities. Also: ICE at the Super Bowl.
nyti.ms
Reposted by Ben Zipperer
marthagimbel.bsky.social
Hi all! We're still waiting on the official posting - but @budgetlab.bsky.social is looking for a new macro hire to add to our team! We're agnostic on level (Recent PhD, decades of experience, MA+ research experience, who knows?) - we care more about flexible thinking and curiosity
Reposted by Ben Zipperer
dlknowles.bsky.social
I visited the apartment building ICE raided on Tuesday today. Story to come, but you can walk right in. Half of the apartments have no doors on them. Children's stuff abandoned in some flats. *Citizen* residents told me they were arrested and held for hours in zipties. This is America
Reposted by Ben Zipperer
kristinacooke.bsky.social
I spoke to a Venezuelan woman who was arrested in this raid and later released with her 4yo son. She said agents broke down their door, pointed guns at them and made sexualized remarks about Venezuelan women. When she returned to her apartment it was boarded up and all her possessions were gone.