The Austrian theory of the business cycle is often misunderstood as an overinvestment theory–where too much investment causes a boom, which must be corrected by a bust. Prominent economists such as Paul Krugman characterize it this way, Call it the overinvestment theory of recessions, or “liquidationism,” or just call it the “hangover theory.” It is […]
Archives
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Why we know Obamacare will cost jobs
19 Aug 2013
In my last post on ideologues, I chastised those representing the Obama administration for willful ignorance on the evidence of job loss associated with Obamacare (principally lost hours as workers hours are cut to below the 30 hr/week threshold). While I linked to several anecdotal reports, I did not provide “systematic evidence” of job loss. […]
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When Ideologues Rule
16 Aug 2013
It is all too easy in a blog-filled world for terms to used in ways that are meant to be used simply as an ad hominem attack–we too easily attack the person rather than the policy. And as Christians, we must always endeavor to speak the truth in love. Nevertheless, we cannot avoid the use […]
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So says a new book reviewed by Martin Wolf in the Financial Times, The Entrepreneurial State. The basic thesis is that Yes, innovation depends on bold entrepreneurship. But the entity that takes the boldest risks and achieves the biggest breakthroughs is not the private sector; it is the much-maligned state. Martin Wolf approves of this […]
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Late this afternoon Gov. Snyder of Michigan authorized Detroit’s emergency manager moving Detroit into Ch. 9 bankruptcy. I have not seen the details of this proposal (and much more is coming out tomorrow), yet what we do know is encouraging from the perspective of the people of Detroit. Detroit is an utter disaster in many […]
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Much is being made of the D.C. city council’s 8-5 decision to impose a “living wage” of $12.50 on Wal-mart. Wal-mart has announced cancellation of three planned stores and a review of 3 stores being built now. Mona Charon over on NRO correctly highlights the harm this decision will have on its citizens: Vincent Orange […]
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There is little doubt the Fed’s easy money policy, and especially the deliberate QE of buying long term instruments, has resulted in speculative flows investing in those assets. As we related last week, the Fed’s discussion of tapering has resulted in immense turmoil, as speculators are wondering if capital needs to be redeployed away from […]
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If you think Keystone XL is a risk, can you please repeat after me: Deepwater Horizon (or even Exxon Valdez)? Bret Stephens has a piece on this today in the WSJ, par excellence. Extreme environmentalists, for whom environmentalism is their religion, do not understand the inevitability of tradeoffs in the fallen world we live in. […]
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Bloomberg reports that the current Congress is on pace to produce far less legislation than previous Congress’s, and suggests the problem is due to Republican ideology. But is this a problem? Or is the Bloomberg report itself rather a reflection of a differing ideology? Brookings Scholar Thomas Mann says, The 113th Congress is on track […]
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At least that’s my take, based on this summary from Politico. Republicans get what they want, ~20,000 more border police, with 700 more miles of fence. Democrats get what they want–more democratic voters (or at least that’s what they think they’re going to get; I’m not so sure). Do we really want more of a […]
Bert Wheeler
Jeff Haymond
Marc Clauson
Mark Caleb Smith
Tom Mach