EconLib Newsletter

January 2020

Happy New Year, friends! We hope you have all enjoyed a glorious holiday season (and maybe you took us up on some of our many reading suggestions).

Speaking of reading, it's no secret how much we all love a good book... This year, we want to read with you more than ever. We enjoyed having you along for our online #EconlibReads groups in 2019. And don't worry- there will be more! This month, we're thrilled to be launching our first-ever Virtual Reading Group, based on Deirdre McCloskey's Why Liberalism Works. We will discuss the book LIVE on three Tuesdays from 4-5pm EST (January 14, 21, and 28) via the Zoom online platform. If you're interested in joining us, sign up today by emailing Shelly Rogers at [email protected]. Space is strictly limited, so don't delay!

As always, if you have comments and/or suggestions for us, feel free to drop us an email at [email protected]. We love to hear from you.

EconLib Feature Articles, January 2020

How Should ECON 101 Be Taught?

by Donald J. Boudreaux

Harvard Economics wunderkind Raj Chetty hopes to change the way students are introduced to economics. Chetty wants there to be more analysis of data and less attention to economic theory.

Heady stuff for undergraduates! Yet it’s very bad stuff both for economic education and public policy. The notion that data can be sensibly analyzed independently of theory is naïve, as is the related notion that students can learn an adequate amount of sound theory through the analysis of data. Read More.

It Was All So Unlikely: Wilfred McClay's Land of Hope

By Mark C. Schug

American history isn’t what it used to be. Once it was common for a history textbook author to tell a good story.

McClay believes that history at the high school level should serve as something like a rite of passage. Its purpose should be to enable students to become members of civil society by having a clear and balanced understanding of their cultural inheritance. Without resorting to an ahistorical interpretation of American exceptionalism, a major objective of McClay’s work is for students to develop a sense of patriotism that enables them to realize that in a flawed world, America is a remarkable nation. To some, this may be shocking. Read More.

Wall Street Mysteries

by Arnold Kling

Can algorithms beat the market? Is there a social value to securities speculation? This month, Arnold Kling explores the ideas in Gregory Zuckerman's new book, The Man Who Solved the Market. Read More.

FEATURED ECONLOG POSTS

Featured Post: Bryan Caplan, Socialism: The Failed Idea that Never Dies

I’ve easily read a hundred books on the evils of socialism. I was quite surprised, then, by how much I learned from Kristian Niemietz’s Socialism: The Failed Idea That Never Dies...

More Recent Posts

David Henderson, California Government Pensions and Opportunity Costs
Scott Sumner, T he business cycle is dying
Pierre Lemieux, Four Economic Lessons from the Nativity
Steven Horwitz, The Five Best Introductory Books in Austrian Economics
Alberto Mingardi, F ive Books to talk classical liberalism with your family over the holidays
Sarah Skwire, Look for the Union Label, not the Gender Role
Russ Roberts, My Five Favorite Novels
Amy Willis, Holiday Reading Roundup
Peter Boettke, Forgotten or Neglected Classics in Economics Modern Students Should be Reading

FEATURED ECONTALK EPISODES

Binyamin Appelbaum on the Economist's Hour
Journalist and author Binyamin Appelbaum of the New York Times talks about his book, The Economists' Hour, with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Appelbaum blames the triumph of free-market ideology for the rise in inequality and the decline in growth rates over the last half-century. The result is a lively, civil conversation about the economic events over that time period and the role of economists in changing economic policy.

P.S. Don't miss our EconTalk Extra for this episode, designed to facilitate further thought and discussion on this episode.

More Recent Episodes:

FEATURED CEE ENTRIES

Featured Entry: Fiscal Policy, by David N. Weil

Fiscal policy is the use of government spending and taxation to influence the economy. When the government decides on the goods and services it purchases, the transfer payments it distributes, or the taxes it collects, it is engaging in fiscal policy. The primary economic impact of any change in the government budget is felt by particular groups—a tax cut for families with children, for example, raises their disposable income. Discussions of fiscal policy, however, generally focus on the effect of changes in the government budget on the overall economy. Read More.

See also Business Cycles, by Christina Romer
Fiscal Sustainability, by Laurence J. Kotlikoff
Bonds, by Clifford W. Smith
Junk Bonds, by Glenn Yago
See also Alberto Alesina on Fiscal Policy and Austerity at EconTalk
Why Would Anyone Want Austerity? Book Review by Michael Munger
See also Robert Mundell, CEE Biography

P.S. Can you guess which CEE entry was the MOST visited in 2019? Email us with your guess at [email protected]. Winners can expect a surprise!

Copyright © 2020, Liberty Fund, Inc. All rights reserved.

11301 North Meridian Street, Carmel, IN 46032-4564

Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.