Russell Roberts's Blog, page 1557

The nth reason against libertarianism

Wisdom from Alex Tabarrok.

I talk about the crisis

Having done 13 or so podcasts on the financial crisis, I give my take in the latest episode of EconTalk, drawing on my recent paper, Gambling with Other People's Money.

In addition to the central argument of the paper–that the rescue of creditors made it easier to use excessive amounts of debt, inflating rates of return and making financial institutions more fragile, I also discuss the role of bias in evaluating narratives like mine. At the end, I talk my doubts about my narrative–alternative ...

Drinkin' that Bubble-Up

Here's a letter sent today to the editor of the New York Times Book Review:

Critical of "a market-driven society," Henry Giroux asserts that "At the heart of this market rationality is an egocentric philosophy and culture of cruelty" (Letters, May 16).

Let's ignore the tens of millions of people cruelly enslaved, tortured, and slaughtered by their own anti-market governments during the past century – tyrannies cheered on by western intellectuals, such as Prof. Giroux, whose fetish for...

Tolerant, Humble, and Peaceful Saviors

Here's a letter sent last week to the New York Times Book Review:

The virus of totalitarianism is seldom detected when it first infects 'progressive' intellectuals.  Under such circumstances this virus not only deludes its hosts into believing themselves to be well-meaning and forward-thinking agents of beneficial social change, it also protects even the most outrageous demands of these hosts from serious scrutiny by other intellectuals.

Think of the fawning admiration bestowed for many years...

Some Historical Perspective, Please

My friend Andy Morriss sent this letter to the Wall Street Journal:

Joe Queenan's rant on the dismal prospects of the class of 2010 makes ridiculous claim that "Even the Pilgrim toddlers in 1620 had better prospects" than today's graduates. ("A Lament for the Class of 2010," May 15). What nonsense. It is true that a young Pilgrim had an easy time figuring out his or her career path than the drama and music major Mr. Queenan profiles – the choices in 1620 were simple: grow food to avoid...

Pragmatism's Principles

Here's a letter that I sent recently to an e-mail correspondent:

12 May 2010

Dear _____:

After introducing yourself as an admirer of Milton Friedman, you accuse me of suffering from "ideology created blindness" because of my "inability to see" that, if we moved to open borders, America's welfare state would attract "unlimited numbers" of "desperately poor migrants who would bankrupt tax payers."

You insist: "Pragmatism, Dr. Boudreaux, is what we need.  Not blind living in your fairy tale...

Dr. Congress and Mr. Hydieous

Here's a letter to the New York Times:

Paul Krugman claims that anti-tax conservatives have "deprived" Uncle Sam of tax revenues ("We're Not Greece," May 14).  Because these inflation-adjusted revenues reached an all-time high in 2007 (just before the current recession) – and because, even in 2010, they remain 61 percent higher than they were in 1980 (the year the alleged curse of laissez-faireism befell America) – the only way Prof. Krugman can salvage his claim is to note that these...

Fatten the Beast

Here's a letter to the New York Times:

Paul Krugman asserts that "taxes have lagged behind spending partly thanks to a deliberate political strategy, that of 'starve the beast': conservatives have deliberately deprived the government of revenue in an attempt to force the spending cuts they now insist are necessary" ("We're Not Greece," May 14).  Prof. Krugman's interpretation of the facts is worse than bizarre.

During the alleged ascendancy of laissez-faireism – roughly, the last 30 years –...

The Knowledge Problem

Here's a letter to USA Today:

Sen. Bill Nelson claims that "The ultimate answer to America's energy needs lies not in oil, but in the rapid development of alternative fuels" ("Halt offshore exploration," May 13).

How in the world does Mr. Nelson divine this alleged fact?  Does he have expert insight into the full costs and benefits of developing and producing non-fossil fuels?  Has he displayed a unique talent at predicting changes in the technologies that are used to extract petroleum? ...

Two mysteries

I really like Barry Ritholtz. I learned a lot from Bailout Nation and from interviewing him. His blog, The Big Picture, is consistently interesting.

But there is a mystery about his recent writing on the crisis:

When writing Bailout Nation, I tried to steer clear of partisan finger pointing. I kept the focus on what actually occurred, what could be proven mathematically. I blamed Democrats and Republicans — not equally, but in proportion to their what they did. Unsupported theories, tenuous...