Yearly Archives: 2013

Cowen Condemns the Corporations he Comes to Praise

Posted on October 21, 2013 by | 1 comment

By William K. Black

Tyler Cowen often seeks to defend corporations from what he views as unjust criticism.  He does not, however, evidence any understanding of the relevant criminology or economics literature on “control fraud” so his defenses sometimes actually represent indictments of the risks posed by corporations.  A good example is blog about libertarianism and the workplace.

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Market Myths and the Real Drivers of American Progress

Posted on October 20, 2013 by | 41 comments

By Dan Kervick

A dogma can be a very powerful thing. When dogma is sufficiently powerful, the people in its grip can lose sight of who they are, where they have come from, and how they got from the place where they started to the place they now occupy. Americans during the past few decades have been in the grip of an especially strong dogma, the dogma of Market Fundamentalism. Falling in with the preachers and zealots of this charismatic sect, they have convinced themselves that their once lofty economic place in the world was primarily due to an American preference for miniscule government coupled with the visionary leadership of free-wheeling entrepreneurial heroes, latter-day secular saints who were able to set the economic agenda and pursue it unencumbered by regulatory ties. For some Americans, this mythic free enterprise utopia, bestridden by business titans, represents the very essence of American freedom. And so the free market faithful have pursued a neoliberal political agenda in order to see to it that the tablets of this magnificent ancestral wisdom are carried down unbroken into the present all-too-errant age.

But the creed is bunk. It is a fictive concoction filled with tales of an imagined past that never existed. And yet, the more enthusiastically the apostles of Market Fundamentalism have attempted to put the spurious creed into practice, the further they have taken us away from historical truth and the real-world sources of our actual prosperity. We need to drop the totemic legends and look that real history squarely in the face, so we can remember who we really are.

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What Happens Now?

Posted on October 19, 2013 by | 19 comments

In the aftermath of the great 2013 government shutdown/debt ceiling crisis, and the kicking of the can down the road while maintaining austerity once more, the subject on many minds is where do negotiations over fiscal policy go from here? Will the new “budget committee” produce more austerity and do a grand bargain including the “chained CPI”? Will Congress finally turn towards economic growth and job creation, or will we continue to have more shutdowns and debt ceiling crises in 2014?

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How to Talk About Debt and Deficits: Don’t Think of an Elephant*

Posted on October 18, 2013 by | 57 comments

By Stephanie Kelton

Many economists (perhaps even those who agree with us) refuse to talk about the national debt and government deficits the way we do on this blog. Instead of boldly challenging the assertion that the U.S. faces a long-run debt (or deficit) problem, headline progressives typically do what Jared Bernstein did in his column today — i.e. they pay “obligatory” tribute to the Balanced Budget Gods, thereby reinforcing the case for austerity at some point in the not-so-distant future when we will be forced to to deal with this very bad thing called the government deficit. Followers of my work here and on Twitter know that I refuse to pay homage to the Balanced Budget Gods. Instead, I prefer to shift the burden of proof onto those who contend that the U.S. faces a long-term debt or deficit problem. The first step is to establish that solvency can never be an issue for a government that spends, taxes and borrows in its own (non-convertible) currency. The following quote from the St. Louis Federal Reserve usually does the trick, but this great confession from Alan Greenspan also helps.

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Why is The Economist Chortling over the Prospect of Oil Pollution in Ecuador?

Posted on October 18, 2013 by | 6 comments

By William K. Black

The Economist has increasingly been copying the descent of the Wall Street Journal into dogma.  One of it perennial hates is President Rafael Correa of Ecuador.  Correa, an economist, has committed the unforgivable offense of succeeding through economic policies that The Economist despises.  This is passing strange because Correa’s four foundational policies are expanded health care, expanded education, improved infrastructure, and encouraging entrepreneurs by reducing the time and cost of starting a business in Ecuador.  The Economists’ pages are littered with praise for right-wing governmental leaders and candidates who promise that they will implement those same four policies (but rarely do in practice).  Correa has actually delivered on his promises – quickly – and the improvements in the economy of Ecuador and the lives of ordinary citizens have been huge.  The result is that Correa is the second most popular head of state in the Americas.

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Here Lies the Tea Party, 2009 – 2013

Posted on October 17, 2013 by | 4 comments

Marshall Auerback appears on the Thom Hartman Program. Topics of discussion include the budget follies. (Marshall appears at about the 5:00 minute mark)

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MMT and the Struggles of Political Democracy

Posted on October 17, 2013 by | 54 comments

By J.D. Alt

A principal dilemma of the theory of modern fiat currency (MMT) is the question of how the state spends the money it issues: who decides, and by what process? It may be frustrating to watch U.S. Congressmen and Senators bicker and behave as if their national government has run out of dollars, but it is sobering to consider what would happen should these legislative prodigies suddenly realize that, in fact, there are no currency constraints on their spending at all. It is hard to imagine who, or what, would step in to impose some kind of discipline and planning for the spending spree that would ensue. I suspect that many who actually understand fiat currency are hesitant to overtly embrace it for precisely this reason—because they are unsure what structure exists, or could be put in place, that would rationally manage the remarkable levels of sovereign spending MMT makes possible.

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Would Janet Yellen as Fed Chair Mark a Shift in Economic Policy?

Posted on October 16, 2013 by | Comments Off on Would Janet Yellen as Fed Chair Mark a Shift in Economic Policy?

The latest episode of the Black Finance and Fraud Report from The Real News Network. Bill is discussing whether Yellen’s confirmation marks a victory for progressive democrats?

Or you can visit the TRNN site that includes transcripts.

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The Tea Party’s Tactical Brilliance and Strategic Incompetence

Posted on October 16, 2013 by | 5 comments

By William K. Black

The Tea Party and its (non) think tanks have proven that they are tactically brilliant in manipulating the Republican Party, but strategically incompetent.  Today’s Senate Bill, which will be forced down the House Tea Party members’ throats, is the result of that strategic incompetence.  The Tea Party has learned that there are a few things many GOP elected officials are still unwilling to do.  Specifically, once the admittedly slow-witted House GOP leadership realized that the Tea Party had marched it to the far edge of a bridge to nowhere and the choices were (Option One: suicide) to keep marching off the bridge into the river (doing grave harm to the Nation and the world, ruining the GOP “brand,” returning the House to control by the Democratic Party, and threatening their own seats or (Option Two: truce) to stop and beg the Democrats for a truce – the GOP leadership would abandon the Tea Party and blame it for the humiliating rout.

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Off the Debt Limit Hook for at Least the Next Four Months

Posted on October 16, 2013 by | 35 comments

By Joe Firestone

Provided that the Senate and House follow through on the scenario now on the table, it looks like the game of chicken worked for the Democrats this time. We’re off the hook on default and Government shutdown for now, and Washington village pundits are in full-throated cries of celebration.

Congress is off the hook too. They don’t have to offer any solutions to real, rather than manufactured, problems.

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