Back in 2008 when I wrote this post I had this prediction to make: This is very much where we are today. Everyone from the EU to GWB Jr., has been doing neoliberal damage control. The problem is that it is being done with public money and the refusal to either indict the ideology or […]
People who would want to avoid reading my dissertation or anything about neoliberalism but nonetheless would like to have some idea about what has been going on in the world of public policy and economic policy in particular ought to read the 24 page special publication by the OECD “Evolving Paradigms in Economic Policy Making.” […]
This is something that should always be kept in mind in economic policy discussions: most economists are pro-Market, not pro-Public Interest. It is especially important to keep this in mind when we read commentary such as this, in which an economist from one of Canada’s smaller economics departments conflates being pro-market with being in the […]
Rarely do we get a chance for something close to a natural experiment in the social sciences and the introduction of the national minimum wage legislation in the UK in 1999 is not one such example (no control group). But is nonetheless an interesting case. As everyone knows most economists (less so than before but […]
How fked up is public discourse, pretty fked up if you ask me. All over the world, literally, unionised and non-unionised workers are being asked to take it on the chin for the GFC. Here is the money quote from the blog Naked Capitalism that lets the facts breath some fresh air: If you live […]
For some I know this will seem a little too low on the list, but it is low because it really is low. When you are trapped inside GET (general equilibrium theory) reality is your enemy. Inside GET everything is tranquil–like a heroin addict after the needle is in and the payload delivered. In this […]
A recently released research paper coming out of the IMF is worth your time. Particularly so if you find yourself making what you take to be a serious argument about the link between inequality and macroeconomic stability but can’t seem to get any respect. Over thirty years of neoliberalism it has been constantly argued that […]
I wish I had the time to work through this more systematically but I do not. But can anyone watching the US senate grilling of G&S execs believe in the micro-foundations of orthodox economics (scientific liberalism)? What I liked was Sen. Levin’s interpretation of a Market Maker (MM) and G&S’s interpretation of MM. The G&S […]
Testimony of David Colander Submitted to the Congress of the United States, House Science and Technology Committee for the Hearing: “The Risks of Financial Modeling: VaR and the Economic Meltdown.” September 10, 2009 Some non-economists have blamed the financial heart attack on economist’s highly technical models. In my view the problem is not the models; […]
I encourage people to read Matt’s full blog post. Below I have reproduced what I think to be the most insightful elements: or when Matt hits high dough. Particularly when he argues that the causes of the great financial crisis were in fact legally sanctioned fraud carried out under the watchful eye of a bought […]
Relentlessly Progressive Political Economy 