Bob Murphy

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Illustration: Today’s Generation Eating More at Expense of Next 65 Descendants

[UPDATE below.] OK kids get a cup of coffee and study this thing: I spent a decent amount of time making sure the above works. I confess I didn’t actually fill in the whole table; I just did the beginning, then skipped to the end and worked backwards. But I’m pretty sure I could fill […]

CAP’s Unsustainable Energy Vision

I don’t reproduce all of my Institute for Energy Research (IER) blog posts here, because they are often variations on the same themes. But this one on the Center for American Progress (CAP)’s new study is a good one to represent the kind of stuff I publish at IER’s blog. Some excerpts: Yes, it is […]

Clark 3, Daddy 0

The following is a lightly edited transcript of recent events in Nashville, TN… BOB: Okay is the person alive? CLARK: Yes. He’s in our family. BOB: OK, you don’t need to tell me that, you just need to say “yes” or “no.” Uh, is it a man? CLARK: Yes. BOB: Is he on Mommy’s side […]

All Debt, All the Time: Hoisted from the Comments

Believe it or not, Major Freedom has been defending Abba Lerner in the qualified sense that MF says Lerner didn’t contradict himself, as I implied here. My response: MF wrote: All I can say is that the way I understand Lerner is that he is likely worried about whether the money will be spent at […]

Krugman Sees No Ponzi Scheme Here

Wow, Paul Krugman’s recent post on bubbles, fiat money, Ponzi schemes, and goldbug delusions could literally feed a man. It is amazing that Krugman can write: It’s true that Social Security is mainly a system in which each generation pays for the previous generation’s retirement, in the expectation that it will receive the same treatment […]

Details on Pre-Music City Liberty Fest Karaoke Night Nov 2

A special guest helps me get the word out…

Abba Lerner’s Article on Debt Burdens

Gene Callahan has done an important thing for our never-ending debate by bringing in Abba Lerner’s 1961 statement on the issue. It is almost eery how similar his arguments were to the exposition I gave here. In particular, we both saw the rhetorical usefulness of stressing how there isn’t a time machine; he even capitalized […]

Render Unto Benjamin What Is Benjamin’s

Just a quick one tonight: I was explaining to my son all of the cool examples of Jesus swatting away the traps that the religious leaders were laying for Him, and of course I discussed the question of whether it was lawful to pay taxes to Caesar. (Incidentally, I really set this up for him–he’s […]