Steve Cicala
@stevecicala.bsky.social
11K followers 640 following 1.1K posts
Associate Professor Tufts University Department of Economics https://www.stevecicala.com http://goingelectric.substack.com
Posts Media Videos Starter Packs
Pinned
stevecicala.bsky.social
Welcome to the new arrivals. Here's a starter pack of Energy/Environmental economists to get you going:
bsky.app/starter-pack...
stevecicala.bsky.social
So they’re not precedents?
atrupar.com
Amy Coney Barrett defends heavy use of the shadow docket: "If we wrote a long opinion, it might give the impression that we have finally resolved the issue, and in none of these cases have we finally resolved the issue."
stevecicala.bsky.social
Welcome to Editorial Express
queenoliviaiii.com
In honour of spooky month, share a 4 word horror story that only someone in your profession would understand.

“The tapes wouldn’t start”
zaichishka.bsky.social
In honour of spooky month, share a 4 word horror story that only someone in your profession would understand.

“Translate 'yoroshiku onegai shimasu'”.
Reposted by Steve Cicala
profsecchi.bsky.social
I think bar associations really have a role to play in this revolting state of affairs. The arguments are in such blatant bad faith, the people making them should be shunned by their peers.
danteatkins.bsky.social
The case against Comey is beyond weak. The case against James is worse. It is based on a lie, and they know they're lying because exculpatory evidence that contradicts the indictment had already been presented to a grand jury in another jurisdiction. Everyone involved with this needs to be disbarred
stevecicala.bsky.social
And we need Democrats announcing their intention to hold them if there is to be any deterrence.
clarajeffery.bsky.social
We will need Nuremberg-like trials
longtimehistory.bsky.social
ICE secretly kidnap autistic boy during bathroom break—never notify parents.

Mother reported him missing a week ago—turns out ICE had him detained the whole time.

He was helping sell fruit and asked to go to the restroom—by the time she was done helping a customer he was gone.

Houston, Texas
stevecicala.bsky.social
I'd be curious to know how the economics compare for tunnel boring use cases. It's a MUCH bigger hole, and not improving on torque or other challenges. Is it sufficiently valuable to remove the cutter heads from the process?
stevecicala.bsky.social
Where do I send my W-4?
atrupar.com
Sen. Roger Marshall: "October 18 is when the protest gets here. This will be a Soros paid-for protest for his professional protesters. The agitators show up. We'll have to get the National Guard out. Hopefully it will be peaceful. I doubt it."
stevecicala.bsky.social
The US was much more on the periphery of the new physics then than Europe is for economics now. But US institutions and philanthropy capitalized on the moment and launched the subsequent century of research dominance.

I hope Europe rises to the occasion and gives free science a new home.
stevecicala.bsky.social
I really can't think of anything in economics that compares to the tectonic shift of Duflo & Banerjee moving to @econ.uzh.ch

The closest event has got to be Einstein resigning from the Prussian academy in 1933 and moving to the US.

mathshistory.st-andrews.ac.uk/Extras/Einst...
Adolf Hitler became Chancellor of the German Reich on 30 January 1930. At this time Albert Einstein was in the United States visiting the California Institute of Technology. Max Planck was Secretary of the Mathematics and Natural Science Section of the Prussian Academy of Sciences and president of the Kaiser Wilhelm Gesellschaft, the main German research organisation. On 23 February 1933, the Reichstag Fire gave Hitler the excuse to suspend all civil liberties in Germany. On 10 March 1933 Einstein reacted to the situation in Germany declaring that he could not live in a country where such liberties were not upheld:

As long as I have any choice, I will only stay in a country where political liberty, toleration, and equality of all citizens before the law are the rule. Political liberty implies liberty to express one's political views orally and in writing, toleration, respect for any and every individual opinion.

These conditions do not obtain in Germany at the present time. Those who have done most for the cause of international understanding, among them some of the leading artists, are being persecuted there.

Any social organism can become psychically distempered just as any individual can, especially in times of difficulty. Nations usually survive these distempers. I hope that healthy conditions will soon supervene in Germany, and that in future her great men like Kant and Goethe will not merely be commemorated from time to time, but that the principles which they inculcated will also prevail in public life and in the general consciousness.
stevecicala.bsky.social
Tremendous news. Congratulations @florianscheuer.bsky.social !
florianscheuer.bsky.social
I am delighted to share that Nobel laureates Esther Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee will join our Department of Economics @econ.uzh.ch at the University of Zurich on July 1, 2026, as Lemann Foundation Professors of Economics.

🧵 1/7
Reposted by Steve Cicala
aaup.org
AAUP @aaup.org · 4d
We encourage all AAUP members and concerned citizens to join the No Kings protest on Saturday, October 18. Actions are organized locally, and you can find details about an event near you at the link below👇
No Kings
As the president escalates his authoritarian power grab, the NO KINGS non-violent movement continues to rise stronger. We are united once again to remind the world: America has No Kings and the power ...
www.nokings.org
stevecicala.bsky.social
Economists are on the other side of the table, being asked why we don’t cite their work.
stevecicala.bsky.social
Poli sci / anthropology / sociology
jurisdudence.bsky.social
Corporate/ personal injury /criminal defense
stevecicala.bsky.social
There are worse rules of thumb.
stevecicala.bsky.social
For those keeping track, the government is simultaneously “banning communists” from entering the country and seizing the means of production from private firms. 🙃
scottlincicome.bsky.social
The Trump administration just took yet another equity stake in yet another private company, this time 10% in Alaskan miner Trilogy Metals. Sheesh. www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Reposted by Steve Cicala
kevinmkruse.bsky.social
Sounds like Republicans ought to get all the Republicans who form the Republican majorities in the Republican-led House and the Republican-led Senate together to pass the budget that Republicans wrote with the Republican White House and that Republicans now insist absolutely must be passed.
atrupar.com
Sean Duffy says the safety of the air traffic control system will start being impacted next Sunday if the shutdown continues
stevecicala.bsky.social
If ICE were instead on the receiving end, the reaction would be a fully kitted-out pre-dawn raid of gratuitous violence.

They’re going to laugh at a summons, and nothing will come of it.

Better to bring them in on terms they understand.

www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news...
Broadview police chief accuses ICE agents of making false 911 calls
Broadview Police Chief Thomas Mills said ICE agents are draining the resources of his department and the community by making false 911 calls.
www.cbsnews.com
stevecicala.bsky.social
The "think what Republicans could do without the filibuster" argument was more compelling when it actually restrained their activities. But at this point there are basically no laws for them in the traditional sense.

The filibuster only limits what Democrats will be able to do in the majority.
stevecicala.bsky.social
This should be central to the reporting: Republicans have the votes w/o the filibuster.

They *want* Democratic votes, but are unwilling to give up anything to get them. It's like throwing a tantrum at the dealership because they won't let you just drive off without paying. Not exactly high ground.
joshtpm.bsky.social
This is important. The GOP can open the government literally today with zero Democrats. Just ditch the filibuster. Go ahead. Why won’t they do it?
murshedz.bsky.social
Good to see resolve/resilience from rank and file and House Democrats. Good on @rephuffman.bsky.social daring the republicans to abolish the filibuster ▶️ "[L]et them proceed with GOP votes and let the country see with perfect clarity who owns all the damage and destruction they're fomenting." (1/2)
Reposted by Steve Cicala
volts.wtf
Chris Murphy: "In a different era, maybe just asking for a minor adjustment in health care tax credit policy would be enough. But it’s not a normal time. If you don’t mount a stand right now on behalf of democracy, there won’t be another opportunity."
Chris Murphy’s Extraordinary New Takedown of Trump Should Wake Up Dems
The Democratic senator has taken the lead in drawing attention to Trump’s authoritarianism. In an interview, he offers a stark new warning that should galvanize his fellow Democrats before it’s too la...
newrepublic.com