Roger Pielke Jr.’s Appallingly Bad Analysis of Billion Dollar Disasters
October 26, 2025
In a recent paper called Scientific integrity and U.S. “Billion Dollar Disasters”, Roger Pielke Jr. published a chart that's so bad I've devoted a whole essay to debunking it.
Insights from the Lotka-Volterra Model
September 15, 2025
The Lotka-Volterra equations are a toy model of predator-prey dynamics. But despite its simplicity, the Lotka-Volterra model has a lot to say about how humans exploit resources.
The Soviet Experiment with Empire
May 13, 2025
I chart the rise and fall of the Soviet Union, as measured by its share of world energy consumption.
The Half Life of Empire
May 04, 2025
I look at the rise and fall of the British and US empires, measured in terms of their share of world energy consumption.
The Deep Roots of Fascist Thought
April 15, 2025
Now seems like a good time to talk about fascism. In this post, I use linguistic data to probe the deep origins of fascist thought. And I gaze at the rising tide of fascist sentiment in anglophone writing.
Partisan Politics and the Road to Plutocracy
January 31, 2025
In this essay, I take a deep dive into the history of American plutocracy and its conspicuously Republican roots.
Economics from the Top Down features in-depth quantitative essays written and researched by Blair Fix. It is entirely supported by readers like you.
The American Housing Crisis: A Theft, Not a Shortage
October 23, 2024
I test if the US housing crisis could be solved by taking money from the rich and handing it too the poor. Spoilers … it would work.
From Commodity to Asset: The Truth Behind Rising House Prices
August 22, 2024
Houses are getting more expensive. In this post, I look at the reasons why.
A Tour of the Jevons Paradox: How Energy Efficiency Backfires
May 18, 2024
Efficiency isn't a tool for conserving energy — it's a catalyst for technological sprawl.
Five Years of Economics from the Top Down
April 27, 2024
It appears that I've been blogging for five years. Here's some obligatory navel gazing to celebrate.
Is Bitcoin More Energy Intensive Than Mainstream Finance?
March 21, 2024
Yes, the Bitcoin network uses loads of energy. But so does mainstream finance. So which system is more energy intensive? In this post, I do the math.
Nixing Technological Lock In
February 17, 2024
I take a dive into the world of software and look at the problem of managing dependencies. From the Unix design, we've inherited many problems. Can we nix them with 'Nix'?
Top Posts of 2023
December 29, 2023
I spent the better part of 2023 debunking the idea that higher interest rates down-regulate inflation. Here were the top 5 posts.
Massaging the Message: How Oilpatch Newspapers Censor the News
December 22, 2023
Building on Regan Boychuk's work, I take a quantitative look at how newspapers in Canada's oilpatch censor the reporting of environmental journalist Mike De Souza.
Stocking Up on Wealth … Concentration
November 23, 2023
There's a straight line that connects elite wealth concentration to corporate consolidation, and the neoliberal wave of mergers and acquisitions.
When Stocks Go Up, Who Benefits?
October 28, 2023
Rising stock prices clawback wealth from the poor and hand it to the rich. It's Robin Hood in reverse, and here's what it looks like in the United States.
The Great Gatsby Curve Among America’s Über Rich
October 13, 2023
I continue my Forbes kick by looking at the Great Gatsby Curve among the richest Americans — the tendency for increasing inequality to come with decreasing social mobility.
How the Rich Get Richer
September 24, 2023
It turns out that studying the Forbes 400 is a great way to understand how the (American) rich have gotten richer. This is the first in series of posts in which I analyze the Forbes 400 archive.
Billionaires Are So Predictable
September 03, 2023
I use data for income inequality to show that billionaires are socially made.
Mapping the Ownership Network of Canada’s Billionaire Families
June 23, 2023
DT Cochrane and I look at the network of corporate power behind Canada's richest families.
A Blind Leap
June 18, 2023
With my postdoctoral fellowship wrapping up, I muse about what comes next.
No, AI Does Not Pose an Existential Risk to Humanity
June 10, 2023
I’m sick of the AI hype and scaremongering. The idea that AI could take over the world is laughable.
Masochistic Fun with Plutocratic Murder
May 20, 2023
Twitter trolls don't think much of my chart relating income inequality to murder rates. Here's a detailed response.
Red Team Blues: Cory Doctorow's Anti-Finance Thriller
May 13, 2023
How do you tell the story of plutocratic crime? If you're Cory Doctorow, you write a detective novel about a forensic accountant. It's a must-read book that sheds light on the often-ignored world of elite finance.
