Economic Theory
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New and Improved Economics? Don’t Believe It
The New Yorker’s January 13th, 2020, issue features a full-page ad for Richard Robb’s new book, Willful. At the top of this ad we read in large, two-color print that “Willful is a breakthrough in economics,” and near the bottom is a blurb from Nobel-laureate economist James Heckman describing this book as “a provocative and…
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How to Teach the Benefits of Trade
In an environment that constantly presents us with pessimistic reasons why things cannot be done, turning a paperclip into $225 of pizza in less than two days proves that opportunities to make everyone better off exist all around us if we just take the time to observe and act.
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Private Governance, Not State Capacity
Economist Tyler Cowen has released a provocative essay with, I hope, the opposite of its intended impact. State Capacity Libertarianism, which he deems the only “smart” path for libertarians and classical liberals, is as conventional in its thinking as it is strangely named. At first blush his eleven-point description sounds like something that would have…
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There Is No Such Creature as The People
Among the most important advances in the social sciences of the 20th century is Kenneth Arrow’s Impossibility Theorem. The full explanation of this theorem first appeared in Arrow’s 1951 book, Social Choice and Individual Values. As explanations go, this one is especially beautiful in its rigor, yet highly technical and inaccessible to the general public.…
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In Defense of the Quid Pro Quo
It is not the occurrence of quid pro quos that are a problem in society. It is all a matter of whether they are free and voluntary
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The Demolition of Keynesianism
The talents of economists have been consciously or unconsciously prostituted in the interests of political expediency.
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Gift Giving Is Better for Society than Economists Think
Remember that when Scrooge fully understood the joy of the season he became a full-fledged member of a truly wealthy society built upon compassion, trust, and strong fellowship.
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Economies Are Not Intelligently Designed
Taking this evolutionary thinking seriously leaves an agenda for economists that goes well beyond demanding the end of the state.
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Socialism and the Green New Deal are Economically Impossible
The marginal decisions and calculations necessary for rational economy do not go away even under a “moral equivalent to war” to defeat global warming.
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Government Intervention Is Unscientific
Sit in any time beyond the first month of a typical ECON 101 class and here’s what you’ll be taught: free markets work well, but only under conditions that seldom prevail in reality – a regrettable fact that requires the state to intervene to correct each of the many market failures. The apparent science on…
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•
New and Improved Economics? Don’t Believe It
The New Yorker’s January 13th, 2020, issue features a full-page ad for Richard Robb’s new book, Willful. At the top of this ad we read in large, two-color print that “Willful is a breakthrough in economics,” and near the bottom is a blurb from Nobel-laureate economist James Heckman describing this book as “a provocative and…
-
•
How to Teach the Benefits of Trade
In an environment that constantly presents us with pessimistic reasons why things cannot be done, turning a paperclip into $225 of pizza in less than two days proves that opportunities to make everyone better off exist all around us if we just take the time to observe and act.
-
•
Private Governance, Not State Capacity
Economist Tyler Cowen has released a provocative essay with, I hope, the opposite of its intended impact. State Capacity Libertarianism, which he deems the only “smart” path for libertarians and classical liberals, is as conventional in its thinking as it is strangely named. At first blush his eleven-point description sounds like something that would have…
-
•
There Is No Such Creature as The People
Among the most important advances in the social sciences of the 20th century is Kenneth Arrow’s Impossibility Theorem. The full explanation of this theorem first appeared in Arrow’s 1951 book, Social Choice and Individual Values. As explanations go, this one is especially beautiful in its rigor, yet highly technical and inaccessible to the general public.…
-
•
In Defense of the Quid Pro Quo
It is not the occurrence of quid pro quos that are a problem in society. It is all a matter of whether they are free and voluntary
-
•
The Demolition of Keynesianism
The talents of economists have been consciously or unconsciously prostituted in the interests of political expediency.
-
•
Gift Giving Is Better for Society than Economists Think
Remember that when Scrooge fully understood the joy of the season he became a full-fledged member of a truly wealthy society built upon compassion, trust, and strong fellowship.
-
•
Economies Are Not Intelligently Designed
Taking this evolutionary thinking seriously leaves an agenda for economists that goes well beyond demanding the end of the state.
-
•
Socialism and the Green New Deal are Economically Impossible
The marginal decisions and calculations necessary for rational economy do not go away even under a “moral equivalent to war” to defeat global warming.
-
•
Government Intervention Is Unscientific
Sit in any time beyond the first month of a typical ECON 101 class and here’s what you’ll be taught: free markets work well, but only under conditions that seldom prevail in reality – a regrettable fact that requires the state to intervene to correct each of the many market failures. The apparent science on…