Causes of the 2007-2008 U.S. Financial Crisis
Although we discussed some of the reasons why the U.S. economy has not recovered very robustly from the 2007-2008 financial crisis, we have not looked at exactly why the crisis happened. … Read More
"There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy."
Although we discussed some of the reasons why the U.S. economy has not recovered very robustly from the 2007-2008 financial crisis, we have not looked at exactly why the crisis happened. … Read More
So now the Supreme Court has ruled that it does not matter what the plain language of a legislative bill is. They claim to be able to sense what the … Read More
I was expecting “Japan’s lost decades” to be an easy story to tell. However, when I started researching for this post, I discovered a controversy existed on whether a lost decade … Read More
For all of my life the nations of Europe have been very much to the left of center. I suppose this condition is the legacy of dirigisme and socialism in France, Bismarck’s … Read More
Although we are technically no longer in a recession, the rate of economic growth is so low that the economy for many people seems like it is in recession. Below … Read More
Because of the complexity of the Great Depression, there are several different ways in which you can date the beginning and ending of this immense event. Many people date the … Read More
There are times when I get an almost surreal feeling that we are hurtling toward Armageddon. In the midst of American negotiations with Iran on limiting their nuclear program, international … Read More
This morning I read something immensely disturbing on the Wall Street Journal opinion page (access requires subscription). It reconfirms for me (as if I were ever in doubt) how controlling the … Read More
Rich Danker in the Weekly Standard writes in the guise of a book review about a favorite conservative theme: How a distressed economy in recession, left to its own devices … Read More
The acronym BEPS stands for “Base Erosion and Profit Shifting” and the BEPS project is an effort by the OECD to study perceived flaws in international tax rules. The perception that multinational … Read More
When we left this discussion, we had found that a Keynesian economist believes government stimulus spending must be used to kick-start (pump-prime?) the economy out of recession.
Neoclassical economists on the other hand believe care must be taken not to damage an already distressed economy further.
Quite possibly the most consequential ideological conflict within Western nations today is the battle of economic ideas between Keynesian and neoclassical thought. Since Keynesian ideas mandate greater power and a larger … Read More
Flag of the Federal Reserve Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons The Federal Reserve System is one of those government organizations that most people hear about from … Read More
In the very first post in this series I asked how can ISIS challenge the mighty west? And the answer is that they really cannot so long as we are willing to … Read More
Before we seriously engage ISIS in combat (which we haven’t yet), we should think a bit about our capability to do so. My own experiences as a junior artillery officer … Read More
This morning Michael Barone passed on a suggestion from Charles Murray: Government has become so intrusive in our lives and limits so much of our personnel freedoms, particularly economic, that … Read More
Last week some news outlets took note of a big crime wave that began in Baltimore after six Baltimore police officers were indicted for the murder of Freddie Gray [See … Read More
Yesterday the government announced its first revision of first quarter annualized GDP growth. The revision, as expected, was downward so that Q1 growth is no longer recorded as the first … Read More
If we do go to war with ISIS, a large national commitment would have to be made in assets, both economic and military, to accomplish the task. Given both our historically … Read More
This is the last of the major neoclassical economic laws we must cover. It completes the basic framework of neoclassic economics around which other economic statements can be derived. See reference … Read More
One big disagreement between the right and the left over the past year is how we should think about ISIS. Should we think of the conflict between ISIS and western … Read More
In the previous post I gave the opinion that we were more than capable enough to destroy ISIS if we would only decide to fight. I also opined that we … Read More
Today is Memorial Day, when we remember the past services and sacrifices of our veterans, and the present day sacrifice and service of today’s armed service members. Nobody but a … Read More
David Ricardo by Thomas Phillips, oil on canvas, circa 1821 Wikimedia Commons / Thomas Phillips (1770-1845) The next classical law of economics we shall investigate is Ricardo’s law of comparative … Read More
A new post by Walter Williams raises the subject of a perennial conflict between progressives and conservatives. What is the major cause of the social and economic problems of black … Read More
After thinking on what I posted yesterday on Say’s law of markets, it seemed to me that the formulation of the law should be given some further thought. Certainly, Say himself was … Read More
The next classical law we will look at is a statement that no self-respecting Keynesian would recognize as a law at all. Say’s law of markets was propounded by Jean-Baptiste … Read More
It seems that some Keynesians, worried by the slow economic growth since we emerged from the “Great Recession” in 2009, are dusting off the old Keynesian idea of “secular stagnation.” Larry … Read More
Although it might not be immediately obvious to you, the law of supply and demand implies one of the most important functions of money. Everyone knows money serves as a … Read More