by Gary Menger | Apr 27, 2023 | Demographics, Menger's Musings
One of the great economists of the last century, John Kenneth Galbraith, once quipped that “the only function of economic forecasting is to make astrology look respectable.” The same can be said for pretty much anything that we foolishly insist on forecasting –...
by Gary Menger | Apr 20, 2023 | Geography, Maps
Between the county and block group levels – one too general, the other often too detailed. For many analytical tasks, an in-between layer is just what the doctor ordered. So, is there a goldilocks solution? There are four primary choices of standard geographies...
by Gary Menger | Apr 13, 2023 | Census, Menger's Musings
Prior to the 2020 census, there was considerable debate about the politicization of the census through the proposed question on immigration status. The ultimate decision by the Supreme Court to disallow the question was largely because of the concern that the accuracy...
by Gary Menger | Dec 8, 2022 | Demographics, Quality of Life
In the Panorama segmentation system, the most affluent segments are assigned to the lowest numbers with 01 One Percenters holding the top spot for affluence. Does money translate into happiness, or at least a better quality of life? To answer that question, we...
by Gary Menger | Dec 1, 2022 | Menger's Musings
This week, I read with considerable sadness of the passing of an old friend and mentor, Tony Lea. As many will know, Tony was an integral part of the success of Environics Analytics in Toronto over the past two decades. I first met Tony some forty years ago when I...
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