Fiscal Policy
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“Alan Blinder and Mark Zandi’s Keynesian Black Box”
“In a recent Wall Street Journal column, Princeton economist Alan Blinder wonders why 64 percent of Americans do not believe the $849 billion “fiscal stimulus” bill “saved or created” many […]
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“Inflation and Deficit Spending Revisited”
“In a recent article in this journal, Giffin, Macomber, and Berry (1981), hereafter referred to as GMB, attempt to test the hypothesis that larger deficits cause increases in the money […]
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“Budget Deficits and Inflation”
“The sharp rise in the rate of inflation in 1973, after two years of diminishing rates, was a great surprise to many. What was the primary cause? Many rea-sons have […]
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“Some Unpleasant Monetarist Arithmetic”
“In his presidential address to the American Economic Association (AEA), Milton Friedman (1968) warned not to expect too much from monetary policy. In particular, Friedman argued that monetary policy could […]
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Summer Reading III
According to Reinhart and Rogoff, “for the advanced economies during 1800-2008, the picture that emerges is one of serial banking crises.” In This Time is Different, the authors bring us […]
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The Great Reflation
“The financial crisis, the speculative bubble leading up to it, and the aftermath have proven once again just how true the old saying is that if you want to know […]
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“An Old Battlefront Returns in War on Euro”
“In 1998, four renegade German professors tried to stop the introduction of the euro with a legal challenge in Germany’s highest court. Now, 12 years later, they are fighting against […]
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Debt to GDP: Who Really Carries the Burden?
Over recent months, much has been made of the rapid increase in public debt levels. Protests against excess government spending in the U.S. and severe economic problems in debt-laden European […]
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Highlighting Hayek
Is the world finally looking to the ideas of Friedrich Hayek? It appears that the intellectual debate may be heading in a new direction. Stimulus spending has done practically nothing […]
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Keynes vs. Hayek: The Great Debate Continues
The debates raging over what policies will pull the U.S. economy out of its Great Recession replicate one that occurred during the Great Depression. Thanks to the efforts of Richard […]
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“Liquidity Trap or Malinvested Resources?”
“Many people claim today that the U.S. economy is in a “liquidity trap” and only government can spend us out of this mess. Commentators from Paul Krugman to Martin Wolf […]
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The U.S. Debt Burden
In the aftermath of the financial crisis, the U.S. public debt-to-GDP ratio has been receiving special attention. A recent report from the Treasury to Congress said that the ratio of […]