Revenge of the Savings Glut Theory? | 53 comments (53 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

Re: Revenge of the Savings Glut Theory? (4.00 / 3)

A little bit of economics can be a dangerous thing.
You have to get fairly deep into the subject, or you wind up believing crazy shit because your Macro 101 textbook had a pretty graph and your professor was more interested in writing papers than teaching properly. You get people believing that RATEX is actually true rather than simply a tool for isolating other variables, which leads to all kinds of other absurdities.

Maybe it's time to rewrite first-year economics textbooks.

If you only take a first-year physics course you may end up believing in a clockwork universe, but at least planets and billiard balls and boxes on slopes will behave as advertised in your textbook... And any misconceptions you may take away don't have toxic sociopolitical consequences.

By laying out pros and cons we risk inducing people to join the debate, and losing control of a process that only we fully understand. - Alan Greenspan

by Carrie (migeru at eurotrib dot com) on Wed Jun 9th, 2010 at 08:32:24 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Revenge of the Savings Glut Theory? (none / 0)

I suspect the textbook market is too fractured and polluted by competing views on teaching and political agendas for that to do much good. Everybody writes textbooks these days, because that's where the money is, and obviously professors are going to want their students to buy their textbooks.

I'm sure it's always been that way to some extent, but it used to be that Samuelson's textbook was quite common.

Although Krugman's intro texts are gaining some steam, as I understand it.

Be nice to America. Or we'll bring democracy to your country.

by Drew J Jones (pedobear@pennstatefootball.com) on Wed Jun 9th, 2010 at 08:40:42 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Revenge of the Savings Glut Theory? (4.00 / 2)

If you want to change economics you do what the neo-libs did - find promising students, pay their way through college, give them privileged access to movers and shakers, and guide them until they're installed as the next generation of professors.

This is rather more expensive than producing a textbook, but it would be very much more effective.

by ThatBritGuy (thatbritguy (at) googlemail.com) on Wed Jun 9th, 2010 at 08:51:26 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Revenge of the Savings Glut Theory? (none / 1)

I am under the impression that the portions of the macro economics that are thought to future MBAs are there to install the ideologically correct view of the world. "Greed is good, thus the company I work for does right in being greedy."

Bureaucrats work better if the believe in their organizations cause, and multi-nationals are no exception.

Sweden's finest (and perhaps only) collaborative, leftist e-newspaper Synapze.se

by A swedish kind of death on Thu Jun 10th, 2010 at 07:57:21 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Revenge of the Savings Glut Theory? | 53 comments (53 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

Top Diaries

Energy (and Other) Events Monthly - December 2023

Clean Energy Wire's Fact Sheet on Upcoming Dutch Election

Recent Diaries

Stoltenberg: A Big Win for Ukraine

Mark Rutte: Using the Nation to Become Secretary General

December 2023

Netanyahu Tells Biden Fu*k Off

Keeping Up with COP28

A Sort-a Truce Extended 24 Hours

Energy (and Other) Events Monthly - December 2023

NeXiT the Trump Era of Dutch PM Wilders

Erasure of Palestinians the Zionist Dream

21st Century Pax Americana and Violence

Dublin Far Right Riots After Knife Attack

Clean Break From Peace to War

Woodrow Wilson's Collapse and the Peace Movement

A Children's Sing-Along Annihilate Everyone In Gaza

Xi - Joe Launch a New Communication Probe

The Israeli War Hoax of 40 Beheaded Babies

If Palestinians Are 'Animals'? What Are the Israelis?

Gaza Atrocities and the UN Fail

Clean Energy Wire's Fact Sheet on Upcoming Dutch Election

Broadening the War to Lebanon and Syria-Iraq

Occasional Series