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The Free Advice "Speak Out!" Award Goes to Mario Rizzo

Our first Speak Out! award goes to Mario Rizzo. Both on his new blog and in the comments section at other sites, Mario has continually pounded home the message that microeconomics is still relevant, even when there is a recession. The second link above is to an Arnold Kling EconLog post. Kling says he’s “firmly” […]

Tyler Cowen Opposes Fiscal Stimulus on NPR

He still wants to bail out state and local governments, but nobody’s perfect. All in all, great stuff Tyler. Perhaps my constant nagging on his site is paying off?

Marianne Sierk Standup

Somebody ages ago mentioned to me that Marianne Sierk, a girl from my high school class, was doing stand up in NYC. For some reason I googled her today, and she’s pretty funny. (I didn’t really know her in high school, what with her being a girl and all, and me being interested in physics […]

James Hamilton Gets Us Up to Speed on the Fed Balance Sheet

Jeff Hummel passed this post along. I haven’t read it carefully yet, but it looks promising, with lots of charts and not assuming the reader is an expert. And I was definitely intrigued when I saw this: And how about the Fed’s “free money” from the ballooning excess reserves? If those funds do start to […]

James Grant Is the Man, though Idealistic for the NYT

The NYT reviews James Grant’s book, Mr. Market Miscalculates, which reflects on his warnings about the financial storm (HT2 von Pepe). The reviewer basically credits Grant for making spot-on predictions, then takes away the compliment through various nitpicks. A representative excerpt: Mr. Grant’s targets have been many, but none more so than the Federal Reserve. […]

Pragmatic Function of Mosaic Laws

(Note to new readers: Every Sunday I try to do a post on religious themes, but sometimes it spills over into Monday.) I am working my way through the Book of Exodus. Last night was chapter 29, which concerned the sacrificial duties of Moses’ brother Aaron and the other newly anointed priests: 10 “Bring the […]

The SEC Makes Wall Street More Fraudulent

So I claim at mises.org, focusing on the Madoff scandal. An excerpt: In the private sector, when a firm fails, it ceases operations. The opposite happens in government. There is literally nothing a government agency could do that would make the talking heads on the Sunday shows ask, “Should we just abolish this agency? Is […]

Did FDR Prolong the Great Depression?

Here’s a rather silly post about the Great Depression and whether FDR hurt or helped (HT2 Bob Roddis). To be sure, you can credibly argue that the New Deal had its share of problems. But overall, the numbers prove it helped — rather than hurt — the macroeconomy. “Excepting 1937-1938, unemployment fell each year of […]