Author Archives: wciecon
Eurozone Adjustment Asymmetry
Adjustment to resolve asymmetries should be symmetric. Both sides should adjust. But sometimes it isn't symmetric. One side may choose to adjust; but the other side is forced to adjust. Like under the Gold Standard. So if the Eurozone does break apart to resolve the asymmetry: I think it will not be through Germany choosing […]
Over-selling soap
The news item dominated the New York Time's "Most Popular" list for weeks: For your dishwasher's sake – go easy on the detergent. According to the authoritative appliance repairman cited by the Times, “Most people use 10 to 15 times the amount of soap they need, and they’re pouring money down the drain." Wait a […]
The 2010Q3 GDP report: Investing in a silver lining
The third quarter GDP growth rate – 1.3% 1.0% at annual rates – is disappointing even though it wasn't entirely unexpected. But there was one important and encouraging piece of news hidden in the lackluster GDP numbers: fixed business investment has finally started to play a role in the recovery.
New Keynesian Macroeconomics, with and without barter.
[Update 4 December: after long arguments with Adam P., which finally started to bear fruit in the comments of December 4th, I'm now clearer on what's essential in this model about the difference between "monetary exchange" and "barter exchange". It's this: In monetary exchange, there is no restriction on what the seller can do with […]
Does monitoring charities make a difference?
The website charitynavigator.org rates US charities. Although it's now changing its rating system, a charity that spends a low percentage of its budget on fundraising and administration will usually get a high rating. It's not clear how much influence sites like charitynavigator have. A recent article reported that only 10 percent of Americans consulted a […]
Beyond Magneto Trouble
Paul Krugman and Brad DeLong have both written very good and very depressing posts. The economy had magneto trouble. We failed to prevent it; and we failed to fix it. Their posts are about why we failed to prevent it and why we failed to fix it. Suppose either of them are right in their […]
Monetarism: the hegemony that need not speak its name
Fish don't feel the water they swim in. (I've heard that's false, but it's too good to check). Paul Krugman does not feel the Monetarist hegemony he swims in. The only part of Monetarism that he does feel, and that he now identifies with Monetarism, is that one small part of Monetarism that failed to […]
Conversations with a banker: ATMs and the Money Supply
I met a friend of mine last weekend who holds a regional manager-type position at a bank. We got to talking about banking and economics (go figure) and she described a particularly interesting problem they were discussing at work: What is the optimal policy to refill an ATM with cash?
Can the EU survive?
Just for once, this is not a question best left to the Poli Sci. Because the main forces will be money/macro. For nearly two years now, I've been worried that one or more of the Eurozone countries might do an Argentina. I've been asking whether the Eurozone could survive. I think it's time to change […]
The evolutionary value of cancer
A recent article in Nature Reviews documents the rarity of cancer in antiquity, and speculates that "carcinogenic environmental factors in modern societies" may explain today's much higher cancer rates. Without disputing the authors' basic premise or conclusions, I wish to posit an alternative explanation: old people are useless. Women typically finish child bearing by 40 […]
Worthwhile Canadian Initiative 
Recent Comments