The Trump Tax Cuts and the Which Way Is Up Problem in Economics

Much of the response to the tax cutting plans of Donald Trump shows us yet another illustration of the "which way is up?" problem in economics. The point is that economists can't even seem to agree on the most basic issues about the economy and the problems we now face.

I usually use the "which way is up?" problem to refer to the people who warn us about robots taking all the jobs. This is a theme that gets lots of air time in the media and is supposed to have us all very worried. There are t...