From the article by Andrew Sheng and Xiao Geng: “Indeed, today’s mainstream micro- and macroeconomic models are insufficient for exploring the dynamic and complex interactions among humans, institutions, and nature in our real economy. They fail to answer what Paul Samuelson identified as the key questions for economics – what, how, and for whom are …
Central bankers have the power to provide limitless cheap credit to governments. But that doesn’t fix the economy. Central Bank Power And Its Limit By Larry M. Elkin The euro will not dissolve, and the U.S. Treasury can borrow as much money as it wants while paying practically no interest, all because a couple of …
QE Infinity: Unintended Consequences (via Market Shadows) QE Infinity: Unintended Consequences There is an intense debate going on in the first-class cabin of Economics Airlines about the direction in which our plane should be pointed. And while those of us back in the cheap seats don’t get to help decide, knowing where we will land …
We Need to Teach Collaboration for an Office-Less World By Holly A. Bell Cheating vs. Collaboration Earlier this month we heard about a cheating scandal at Harvard University in which students worked together on a take-home exam they were expected to complete independently. As a professor I have a couple of concerns with this. First, …
On malinvestment from Seeking Alpha: “Malinvestment is one of the most useful concepts in Austrian economics. As Wikipedia puts it, malinvestment refers to “investments of firms being badly allocated due to what they assert to be an artificially low cost of credit and an unsustainable increase in money supply, often blamed on a central bank.” …
Is China The Biggest Malinvestment Case Of All Time? Read More »
Are You Seeing What I’m Seeing? (via Market Shadows) Courtesy of Jim Quinn of The Burning Platform Is it just me, or are the signs of consumer collapse as clear as a Lowes parking lot on a Saturday afternoon? Sometimes I wonder if I’m just seeing the world through my pessimistic lens, skewing my point of …
Guest Article: Are You Seeing What I’m Seeing in the Economy? Read More »
Incorporating the Rentier Sectors into a Financial Model (via Market Shadows) Incorporating the Rentier Sectors into a Financial Model Courtesy of Michael Hudson By Dirk Bezemer and Michael Hudson As published in the World Economic Association’s World Economic Review Vol #1. ABSTRACT Current macroeconomics ignores the roles that rent, debt and the financial sector play in…
Mitt Romney and Taxes By Holly A. Bell I don’t disagree with Mitt Romney’s comment that the 47% of Americans who don’t pay personal income taxes won’t vote for him, but for a different reason. He describes these individuals as “victims” who are dependent on entitlements. While the U.S. probably has people within this group …
Why The 47% Won’t Vote for Romney and Why It Reflects Poorly on America Read More »
Redefining Defined Benefit Pensions By Holly A. Bell For most people in the private sector, defined benefit pensions have become a distant memory. Something their grandfather talks about over Thanksgiving dinner while reminiscing about his days at “the plant”. These plans, which guaranteed a certain percentage of a worker’s wages or salary in retirement, have …
Nudging Retirement Savings: A New Approach to Pensions Read More »
The Fed as Central Planner By Holly A. Bell In an article in the Wall Street Journal (available here), John H. Cochrane of The University of Chicago accuses the Federal Reserve of moving from a central bank to a central planner by engaging in fiscal policy and determining the allocation of credit. I must say …
Is the Power to Implement Fiscal Policy Being Transferred to The Fed? Read More »
