In early 2010, economist Russ Roberts (George Mason University) and former MTV, Nickelodeon and SpikeTV producer, John Papola, released a rap video highlighting the differences between Keynesian & Austrian School economic theories called “Fear the Boom & Bust: A Hayek vs. Keynes Rap Anthem”. (more)
Apparently Russia understands basic economics and self-control better than the Obama administration. (more)
Finally, President Obama said something I can agree with: that Americans do have differences of opinion, that not everyone agrees with him and the Democrats, and that compromise is part of our political system. So in the interest of compromise and deficit reduction, I note that conservatives can certainly throw some new tax proposals on the table in order to throw some Americans under the bus who richly deserve it. Normally we cringe when the usual assortment of “progressive” senators bitch and moan about why the “rich” aren’t paying taxes at a higher marginal rate. We instead favor a flatter tax code and don’t wish to punish success. However, we are willing to make an exception. (more)
WASHINGTON — A rift has emerged within the Democratic Party between liberal economists, who generally view the 2009 stimulus package as a success and say that Keynesian economics should remain the heart of the party’s economic policy, and elected officials, who in growing numbers have shunned affiliation with the $787 billion effort and are expressing doubts about the effectiveness of fiscal intervention. (more)
A rift has emerged within the Democratic Party between liberal economists, who generally view the 2009 stimulus package as a success and say that Keynesian economics should remain the heart of the party’s economic policy, and elected officials, who in growing numbers have shunned affiliation with the $787 billion effort and are expressing doubts about the effectiveness of fiscal intervention. (more)
Would John Maynard Keynes himself even agree with the perpetual deficit-spending that has been going on for the past 40 years in America? (more)
“Go on a 4-year recess!” many people are telling Congress right about now. (more)
On Thursday the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) announced the federal budget deficit for 2010 will exceed $1.3 trillion. This is already on the heels of a 2009 budget deficit of $1.2 trillion and on top of a national debt of some $13.3 trillion. The word ‘trillion’ seems to have, almost overnight, crept into our standard economic parlance and by the looks of it is here to stay. And with the CBO’s forecast of more than $6 trillion in federal budget deficits accruing over the next nine years from 2010 to 2019, many are logically wondering if the United States has effectively crossed, or is fast approaching, a virtual economic point of no return — an economic Rubicon if you will. (more)
In a recent Wall Street Journal column, Princeton economist Alan Blinder wonders why 64 percent of Americans do not believe the $849 billion “fiscal stimulus” bill “saved or created” many jobs. “The main reason,” he explains, “appears to be that the White House’s January 2009 forecast was too optimistic—projecting, for example, an unemployment rate around 8% by the end of 2009 if the stimulus passed.” He thinks that’s unfair. (more)
The debates raging over what policies will pull the U.S. economy out of its Great Recession replicate one that occurred during the Great Depression. Thanks to the efforts of Richard Ebeling, a professor of economics at Northwood University, we have compelling and concise documentary evidence. He has unearthed letters to the Times of London from the two sides that mirror today’s debates. (more)
This isn’t the first time we’ve had to ask this question, but this may be a more embarrassing example of the problem. My friend Scott Johnson at Power Line notes a multitude of formatting and spelling errors in an official release on the White House web site. (more)
Government efforts to control prices have failed whenever they have been tried. Price controls inevitably create shortages and unintended consequences that hurt consumers and taxpayers alike. But if there’s one thing we can count on from Congress, it is they never let a bad idea die. The latest price control crusade — Sen. Dick Durbin’s campaign to control the price of “interchange fees” on credit card transactions — is doomed to fail and consumers will be left holding the bag. (more)
America’s financial mess and our festering trade crisis were both caused by bad policies that mainstream economics told us were OK. This has made the public cynical about economists, but has produced few specific suggestions on how to actually fix the discipline. So—what should we do to restore its ability to give sound advice? (more)
Whatever he’s on (Quaaludes? Klonopin?) Washington Post blogger Ezra Klein sure is skippy about everything. In a graph-heavy post detailing why Republicans shouldn’t even bother running for anything in 2010 because Barack Obama is King of Charts, Klein writes, “the GOP needs the recovery to be too slow and halting to really touch people.” Which will be problematic, seeing as the difficulties facing normal Americans are as of this moment, illusory: (more)
If a meteorologist was asked what the day’s high temperature had been, would it be acceptable to simply repeat his/her earlier forecast? Of course not. The forecast was merely a prediction, which should now be replaced with what actually happened. (more)
Americans everywhere should applaud the Texas Board of Education action to reconstitute a more historically accurate (read: open and balance) traditional stamp on school curriculum taught in the Lone Star State. (more)
A crisis is quickly approaching that will undermine the strength of our country and rob our children of their future prosperity. When it comes to getting our nation’s fiscal house in order we are running out of options and the time to act is now. (more)
A recent column in which blogger Matt Lewis questioned the conservative credentials of Rep. Paul Ryan, Wisconsin Republican, got a lot of attention on our Web site. A number of Daily Caller readers have commented about Ryan, saying he has cast votes they disagree with, particularly in favor of the $700 billion TARP bailout for Wall Street, the auto bailouts and the taxes on AIG bonuses. (more)
When policies fail to reach their stated goal, just move the goal posts. That is the obvious lesson of the new report from the White House’s Council of Economic Advisors (CEA) claiming that last year’s stimulus bill created or saved somewhere between 1.5 and 2 million jobs. (more)
