Teaching the value of money to kids … dad seeks advice

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April 7, Michael L. Davis, economics professor at the Cox School of Business, SMU Dallas, for a piece contemplating how to teach the next generation the value of money.  Published in the Dallas Morning News under the heading Teaching the value of money to kids … dad seeks advice: https://tinyurl.com/7jcwr77r 

Great! Now I have one more thing to worry about. In addition to teaching my kid about social media, cyber-bullying, artificial intelligence and a bunch of other stuff I don’t fully understand, I also have to teach her about light switches.

My parents had it easy. They had a simple rule: if the light was on, turn it off. I’ve recently learned that rule is no longer necessary. Thanks to the LED light — a technological breakthrough that is much, much more important than, say, TikTok — my kid can leave the bathroom light on all day if she wants.

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The Conflict at the Heart of the Galliano Documentary

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March 14, Rhonda Garelick, distinguished professor of English and Journalism at SMU Dallas, for a commentary about a John Galliano documentary that depicts his struggles and attempts at redemption as a fashion icon. Published in Garelick’s New York Times ‘Face Forward’ column under the heading The Conflict at the Heart of the Galliano Documentary: https://tinyurl.com/262xbprh 

What moral lapses should genius be permitted? John Galliano, self-styled bad boy of fashion, seemed determined to find out.

He was a fashion-world Icarus: a prodigious talent who soared high, then crashed to earth in 2011, losing his reputation and his position as creative director of Dior, after a series of highly publicized drunken, racist and antisemitic tirades. He would rise again, but the path back was steep.

The aptly titled “High & Low: John Galliano,” directed by Kevin Macdonald, chronicles this roller coaster of a career, while exposing some of the less beautiful side of the fashion industry — the toll it exacts from even those it most glorifies.

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What’s So Funny About a Naked Man?

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March 10, Rhonda Garelick, distinguished professor of English and Journalism at SMU Dallas, for a commentary about John Cena’s gag to come on stage in the buff to assist in the presentation of the Best Costume Design at the Academy Awards March 10. Published in Garelick’s New York Times ‘Face Forward’ column under the heading What’s So Funny About a Naked Man?: https://tinyurl.com/5dxy9bhc 

John Cena’s ‘streaker manqué’ routine at the Oscars was pretty funny. In an obvious setup, host Jimmy Kimmel asked, “Can you imagine if a nude man ran across the stage today?” upon which a seemingly undressed Mr. Cena popped his head out from behind the curtain to say, “I changed my mind, I don’t want to do the streaker bit.” When Mr. Kimmel reminded him that it was all for comedy, Mr. Cena replied with faux seriousness, “the male body is not a joke.”

But it was a joke. And soon, an entirely naked, and remarkably buff, Mr. Cena came onstage to introduce the Best Costume Design, nervously grasping the sealed Oscar envelope over his genitals, as a makeshift fig leaf. The audience howled as he inched along, hobbling sideways with painstaking little steps — trying to keep his envelope level and his private parts covered. Then, in a bit of television magic, he was draped in a toga-like, one-shouldered robe with a tasseled rope belt. Bit over, crowd delighted, and an obvious point made about the importance of costume.

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FTC doesn’t realize who Kroger and Albertsons are really competing against

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March 4, Michael L. Davis, economics professor at the Cox School of Business, SMU Dallas, for a piece critical of the Federal Trade Commission for attempting to stop the merger of grocery giants Kroger and Albertsons. Published in the Orange County Register under the heading FTC doesn’t realize who Kroger and Albertsons are really competing against: https://tinyurl.com/46vn6ndr 

Kroger wants to acquire Albertson’s. The Federal Trade Commission wants to stop them. Reasonable people can disagree about whether Kroger is making a good business decision— the price they’ll pay, about $25 billion, is a lot of money. But everybody who’s been paying attention to the way Americans eat should agree that the FTC’s lawsuit to block the deal is ridiculous.

If this was nothing more than a story of a risky, complicated merger and a clueless, bumbling bureaucracy, there wouldn’t be much more to say. Cincinnati-based Kroger is trying to make a living in a low margin/high competition business. Mergers and acquisitions are just part of their life. Everybody knows that. The FTC has been filing silly cases since 1914. Everybody knows that, too.

But let’s think for a moment about what this soap opera on the business page reveals about the stunning transformation in the way we live our lives.

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John Bruton’s Ireland demonstrated how government can promote peace and prosperity

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Feb. 29, Michael L. Davis, economics professor at the Cox School of Business, SMU Dallas, for a commentary about the governing successes of the late Irish Prime Minister John Bruton. Published in the Chicago Tribune under the heading John Bruton’s Ireland demonstrated how government can promote peace and prosperity: https://tinyurl.com/42k8kaxw 

You probably didn’t get up really early on Feb. 10 to watch the livestream from Ireland of John Bruton’s funeral. You may not even know about Bruton, who served as Ireland’s prime minister from 1994 to 1997. That’s understandable. There’s a lot going in the world right now, Ireland is a small place and the 1990s were a long time ago.

But small countries can be important countries. And events 30 years ago still resonate today,

So let me tell you a bit more about Bruton. Not so much to celebrate Bruton — although, by most accounts, he was an admirable man who transcended politics — but what we can learn about how he influenced history.

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Yulia Navalnaya, Seen in a New Light

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Feb. 27, Rhonda Garelick, distinguished professor of English and journalism at SMU Dallas, for a commentary about how Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of Aleksei A. Navalny, is going to carry on the Russian opposition that was her husband’s life’s work. Published in Garelick’s New York Times ‘Face Forward’ column under the heading Yulia Navalnaya, Seen in a New Light: https://tinyurl.com/y8tscyvr 

Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of Aleksei A. Navalny, the Russian opposition leader who died this month in an Arctic prison, has vowed to continue her husband’s work.

Ms. Navalnaya, 47, has been less public than Mr. Navalny, seen at his side and in his documentary, but mostly steering clear of the spotlight. She was, though, an important half of a global power couple: A telegenic duo who expressed unfaltering passion for each other and for their vision of a free and democratic future for Russia. “Everyone wanted a love like theirs,” wrote Julia Ioffe in a 2021 Vanity Fair profile.

Mr. Navalny galvanized millions with his combination of intellect, good looks and a breezy, ironic wit that, even in the grimmest of circumstances, offered a primer in resisting fear and intimidation. Although terrible things happened to him, Mr. Navalny somehow managed to survive, which lent him an aura of indestructibility.

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At 74, Miuccia Prada Makes an Unexpected Vogue Cover Model

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Feb. 21, Rhonda Garelick, distinguished professor of English and journalism at SMU Dallas, for a commentary on the occasion when fashion icon Miuccia Prada was the Vogue Magazine cover subject, striking a unique, timeless pose — straight ahead instead of facing the camera. Published in Garelick’s New York Times ‘Face Forward’ column under the heading At 74, Miuccia Prada Makes an Unexpected Vogue Cover Model: https://tinyurl.com/3tkyf5fs 

Throughout Vogue’s history, its typical cover stars have included a parade of youthful beauties: models, actresses, celebrities, the occasional stunning athlete and, once in a while, a politician or first lady — all glammed to the max.

Cover models serve as portals into a world of ideas about how women should look and dress, what Vogue represents and the magazine’s concept of the modern woman. Almost always, the models look at the camera, making contact with us, inviting us in. They are posed, buffed, polished and embellished to a level of poreless perfection well beyond the realm of regular mortals. The cover model embodies a glossy, aspirational and commercial glamour — the “lifestyle” that is Vogue’s stock in trade. However talented or interesting she may be, she is also, always, a commodity.

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A bigger, better children’s hospital in Dallas is worth celebrating

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Feb. 13, Michael L. Davis, economics professor at the Cox School of Business, SMU Dallas, for a commentary framing the proposed new Children’s Medical Center Dallas as more than a healthcare asset, but also an attractive sign of a healthy growing community. Published in the Dallas Morning News under the heading A bigger, better children’s hospital in Dallas is worth celebrating: http://tinyurl.com/4fybwsdr 

If you’re depressed about current events — and if you’re not, you haven’t been paying attention — let me try and cheer you up by telling you a story. It’s a story about chickens and eggs and children. Especially children.

I’ll start my story with the happy ending: Children’s Health System of Texas and UT Southwestern Medical Center just announced plans to build a brand-new hospital for kids. The new facility will be significantly bigger and more advanced than the current Children’s Medical Center Dallas. It will cost $5 billion and will not require taxpayer money.

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Capitalism may have a public relations problem, but it doesn’t have an inequality problem

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Feb. 5, Robert Lawson, Jerome M. Fullinwider chair in Economic Freedom, SMU Cox School of Business, for an op-ed challenging the perrception that capitalism inevitably leads to inequality. Published in the Orange County Register and the Southern California News Group under the heading Capitalism may have a public relations problem, but it doesn’t haves an inequality problem: http://tinyurl.com/yc2cmtsp 

Capitalism has a public relations problem. While many will grudgingly admit that capitalism, the economic system based on private property and free trading, yields faster rates of economic growth, higher income levels, and even reduces poverty, they will complain  capitalism’s big problem is inequality.

French economist Thomas Piketty has made his professional career by arguing precisely that capitalism engenders more economic inequality. His argument, in a nutshell, is that profits and rents will grow faster than wages and that over time there will be a growing gap between the owners of capital and wage earners. Piketty’s concerns have animated a growing academic debate about capitalism and inequality. Much of this conversation gets deep into the statistical weeds about how we measure inequality and will likely go on for a long time without a resolution.

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Can a U.S.-led coalition help to rebuild Gaza?

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Jan. 26, Erik “EJ” Rorem, an SMU senior studying political science who works as a research assistant at the SMU Center for Presidential History, for a piece proposing the U.S. should facilitate a coaliiton that could rebuild Gaza. Published in the Dallas Morning News under the heading Can a U.S.-led coalition help to rebuild Gaza? http://tinyurl.com/4r4sban6

The end of the war in Gaza is unforeseeable, but some form of Israeli victory seems plausible. Suppose Israel eventually dismantles — if not totally destroys — Hamas’ administrative and military power over Gaza. What comes next?

Unfortunately, Israel may soon become the dog that caught the car. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated publicly that Israel has no intention of occupying or governing Gaza, raising the question, “Who will?”

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