J. Bradford DeLong's Blog, page 2302

Winston Churchill Liveblogs World War II: May 24, 1940:

Winston Churchill: May 24, 1940:

Prime Minister to M. Reynaud, for General Weygand: General Gort wires that coordination of northern front is essential.... Roger Keynes tells e that up to 3 p.m.... Belgian Headquarters and Kind had received no directive.... Gort furthe rsays that any advance by him must be in the nature of sortie, and that relief must come from south, as he has not repeat not ammunition for serious attack.... [W:]e are instructing him to persevere in carrying out your plan...

Alan Brooke Liveblogs World War II: May 24, 1940

Alan Brooke:

He [French General Blanchard:]... gave me th eimpression of a man whose brain had ceased to function.... The blows that had fallen on us in quic succession had left him "punch drunk" and unable to register events...

links for 2010-05-23

Mark Thoma: Gulfs in our Energy Security

MT: "Jeff Frankel argues that energy security does not mean minimizing imports of oil and maximizing domestic production of energy. Instead, it means insuring ourselves against future variations in supply that might damage the economy or interfere with our national defense needs. When approached in this manner, it's important to have large domestic deposits available under some scenarios that lead to long-term...

The New York Times Needs Help Badly...

Why oh why can't we have a better press corps?

A "libertarian" is somebody who prioritizes liberty: anti-immigration anti-choice Rand Paul is many things, but he is not a libertarian.

Ross Douthat simply does not know what a libertarian is:

The Principles of Rand Paul: Paul is a libertarian, certainly... a particular kind of a libertarian... culturally conservative (opposing both abortion and illegal immigration), radically noninterventionist.. views nearly everything today’s federal...

Winston Churchill Liveblogs World War II: May 23, 1940:

Winston Churchill: May 23, 1940:

Prime Minister to M. Reynaud: Communications of Northern Armies have been cut by strong enemy armoured forces. Salvation of these armies can only be obtained by immediate execution of Weygand's plan. I demand the issue to the French commanders... of the most stringent orders to carry this out and turn defeat into victory. Time is vital as supplies are short...

links for 2010-05-22

RIP Martin Gardner, 1914 – 2010







Michael F. Bryan and Brent Meyer: Are Some Prices in the CPI More Forward Looking Than Others? We Think So

MB&BM: "Some of the items that make up the Consumer Price Index change prices frequently, while others are slow to change. We explore whether these two sets of prices—sticky and flexible—provide insight on different aspects of the inflation process. We find that sticky prices appear...

Paul Krugman on the Arc of Post-WWII Social Democracy in the North Altantic

Paul Krugman:

Down The Memory Hole : Read almost any conservative commentator on economic history, and you’ll find that the era of postwar prosperity — the gigantic rise in living standards after World War II — has been expunged from the record. You can see why: the facts are embarrassing. Here’s a rough-cut version. The blue line, left scale, shows median family income in 2008 dollars; the red line, right scale, shows the top marginal tax rate, a rough indicator of the overall stance of...

Winston Churchill Liveblogs World War II: May 22, 1940

Winston Churchill: May 22, 1940:

To: Lord Gott: I flew to Paris this morning.... Reynaud, Weygand, and ourselves... agree:

That the Belgian Army should withdraw to the line of the Yser and stand there, the sluices being opened.

That the British Army and the French First Army should attack southwest towards Bapaume and Cambrai at the earliest possible moment, certainly tomorrow, with about eight divisions, and with the Belgian Cavalry Corps on the right of the British.

...

links for 2010-05-21

Evan McMorris-Santoro: Tuesday night Paul delivered this warning to the political establishment: "What I say to Washington is, 'Watch out, here we come." Forty-eight hours later, he was on the run

EM-S: "His past caught up with him... the extreme libertarian fringe of the Republican party. And, as we found out this week, that means he has baggage. A lot of it. First, Paul told NPR that he took issue with parts of the Americans With Disabilities Act (as well...

I'll Start Paying the Cost of the Print Edition to the FT If It Will Can Chris Caldwell...

Just saying. I wouldn't want the print edition--the FT could keep the money--I just would be willing to pay for it if they would remove the value-subtracting Chris Caldwell from their roster:

Christopher Caldwell: Profligacy and the primaries: Most Americans like Barack Obama personally, but support for his agenda has levelled off well below a majority. Mr Obama divides American voters because he has thrown a major decision into their laps. At a time of fiscal retrenchment in all western...