By Monty Pelerin, on March 8th, 2010 A lengthy article focuses on the problems ahead. It appeared in the February American Spectator.
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By Monty Pelerin, on March 7th, 2010 The wisdom of the crowd once again seems to be ahead of the professional economists. Rasmussen reports:
Just 25% of U.S. voters now say the country is heading in the right direction, the lowest level of voter confidence since early January 2009.
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By Monty Pelerin, on March 2nd, 2010 Economic development vs. undevelopment affects lives. The populations of undeveloped countries live close to the subsistence level, often one drought, poor growing season or other exogenous event away from famine. But economic development does more than assure ample food production. It is often the difference between life and death in a number of ways. Recent tragic events in Haiti and Chile demonstrated only too clearly the advantages of a productive versus an unproductive economy.
Bret Stephens in The Wall Street Journal focused on building quality and stated: “It’s not by chance that Chileans were living in houses of brick—and Haitians in houses of straw—when the wolf arrived to try to blow them down.” The more wealth a country has, the more options it has. That is why poor countries tend to be worse polluters than rich ones. Clean air is a luxury good that persons barely eking out a subsistence living can afford. So too, are houses built to withstand hundred-year events.
Stephens editorial deals with Milton Friedman’s oft-criticized role in helping Chile rebuild its economy and some of the loonie left criticisms that were leveled at him.
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By Monty Pelerin, on February 28th, 2010 We know there is virtually no business experience amongst the President’s advisors. That has been documented in various places. Yet that could have been inferred from the number of wrongful policies that have been proposed or implemented.
There are so-called economists in the Administration. Larry Summers, for example, is a legend amongst the economic community, or at least in his own mind. Where is this man? Since the election, he has done his best imitation of the invisible man. Is he advising the President or is he just there for the salary? Has he gone into hiding to save his reputation? Is he unable or unwilling to resign? It would be nice to know if he is designing these policies or just watching them being hatched by political hacks.
Based upon what keeps coming forth from Washington, one has to wonder whether there is anyone qualified advising this President. Or is all of this being driven by the political and ideological objectives of the President and the political cronies that surround him?
The latest proposal as reported by the New York Times is just another example of misguided (at least for the country) policy:
“The Obama administration is planning to use the government’s enormous buying power to prod private companies to improve wages and benefits for millions of workers, according to White House officials and several interest groups briefed on the plan…. Because nearly one in four workers is employed by companies that have contracts with the federal government, administration officials
Continue reading No End to Economic Stupidity
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By Monty Pelerin, on February 27th, 2010
“No Recovery?” In the best Claude Rains fashion, “I am shocked, shocked!”
There is no economic recovery, and there will be no economic recovery this year and probably not next. Yet the media, mainstream economists and the Administration insist we are in the midst of one. Things are definitely getting better, at least according to them. This concerted propaganda effort is reminiscent of a major Madison Avenue advertising campaign designed to wear down the resistance of the targeted buyer. The campaign is not based in reality. Its success is dependent upon three things: 1) constant repetition; 2) the public’s short memory span; and 3) the public’s economic illiteracy.
As time passes, however, more data appears and contradicts the “advertising” message. Spinning the data becomes harder and harder to do. Daryl Montgomery provides an excellent article detailing the inconsistencies of the data with the claims of a recovery. He states:
A number of economic reports in the last few days indicate that the U.S. economy has not only not failed to recover from the recession, but continues to fall deeper into a hole. Banking, consumer confidence, employment numbers, durable goods and the housing industry – each representing a different aspect of the economy – are all sending out troubling signs. Despite the onslaught of negative data, mainstream economists continue to echo the official U.S. government view that “the recovery is still on track.”
For an old movie buff, each spinning provides a “Rains moment.” No, supporters do not express “shock” when
Continue reading The Claude Rains Recovery
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Friedrich von Hayek
Friedrich von Hayek founded the Mont Pelerin Society.
“Monty Pelerin” is a pseudonym chosen by this blogger to convey general agreement with the philosophy, goals and spirit of the Mont Pelerin Society. No other connection exists between the blogger and the Society.
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