Seth Moskowitz: “Today, the mob acts primarily through social media, meaning that the pile-on can come for anybody, at any time, with little to no warning. The critics humiliate their victim until the accused issues an apology to end the nightmare. And then the mob either doubles down, or it moves on to its next subject. In the long run, obsequious apologies for imagined crimes pave the way for a destructive cycle of inquisition. Unless brave people stand up and say, “Enough,” the mob will continue steamrolling victims, leaving behind a trail of careers, reputations, and a culture of conformity. So, if the mob comes for you and you don’t believe you have done anything wrong, I have a modest proposal: Don’t apologize.”
Luck Kellaway on the pain and pleasure of starting a new career in her 50s: “Starting again turns out to be much easier, less stressful and less scary than starting out the first time. I often compare myself with my young teacher colleagues. It has occurred to me that I like my job more than they do, and I’m much less dragged down by it all. The reason is obvious: they need to climb the ladder, to make more money and to impress their managers. I don’t need to do any of these things.”
Arnold Kling on pent-up inflation (US context): “The government has showered the economy with paper wealth, raising the ratio of dollar wealth to wages and prices. The way this will resolve itself is for wages and prices to rise. Firms are in denial about this for now. So inflation remains pent up. I think that prices will rise first, as firms realize that they can make price increases stick and in fact they have to raise prices to ration demand, because they cannot hire enough workers to meet demand at current price levels. Then wages will rise as workers realize they have to seek higher pay in order to keep up with the cost of living. Workers are certainly in a frisky mood, with many quitting and others contemplating doing so.”
