Category Archives: Economics

WHY ATTEMPTS AT PRECISION ON ECONOMIC VARIABLES CAN BE GOOD THINGS

Posted on February 20, 2019 by Philip

WHY ATTEMPTS AT PRECISION ON ECONOMIC VARIABLES CAN BE GOOD THINGS. Now I want to qualify my last post. The Federal Reserve Bank has a structure which acknowledges that judgments about the economy are difficult. The Fed’s decisions are made … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, Politics | Leave a comment

WHY PRECISION ON MACROECONOMIC VARIABLES IS BAD.

Posted on February 19, 2019 by Philip

WHY PRECISION ON MACROECONOMIC VARIABLES IS BAD.I call attention to Volcker’s argument against precision on economic variables because he is correct. Economists and central bankers just don’t know enough and never will. Volcker uses price indices as an example of … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics | Leave a comment

VOLCKER ON THE DANGERS OF TRYING FOR TOO MUCH PRECISION IN ECONOMIC POLICY.

Posted on February 18, 2019 by Philip

Paul Volcker was chairman of the US Federal Reserve Bank from 1979 to 1987 — and a very successful chairman. Volcker had an article on federal reserve policy on the Bloomberg site (October 24, 2018) that is well summarized by … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, History | Leave a comment

NOMADS AND FARMERS (COMMENT).

Posted on February 3, 2019 by Philip

NOMADS AND FARMERS (COMMENT). Annalisa commented here about the Yamnaya that: “Is it common for nomads to displace the settled local population? I hadn’t thought so. I was under the impression that farming technology and attitudes led to the rise … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, History | Leave a comment

MY FATHER’S THEORY OF WHERE MY ANCESTORS CHOSE TO LIVE.

Posted on January 30, 2019 by Philip

MY FATHER’S THEORY OF WHERE MY ANCESTORS CHOSE TO LIVE. I posted here about how my father would point out from time to time at the dinner table that our Irish and Danish ancestors had in common that rather than … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, History | Leave a comment

HOW DID THE YAMNAYA —WHO WERE LATE ARRIVALS— PREVAIL?

Posted on January 29, 2019 by Philip

HOW DID THE YAMNAYA —WHO WERE LATE ARRIVALS— PREVAIL? Reich says: “it is clear that the single most important source of ancestry across northern Europe today is the Yamnaya or groups closely related to them.” (p. 119) But the Yamnaya … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, History, Science | 1 Comment

MASS MIGRATION—THE YAMNAYA.

Posted on January 28, 2019 by Philip

MASS MIGRATION—THE YAMNAYA. One of the dramatic findings of ancient DNA has been to discover that: “the population of northern Europe was largely replaced by a mass migration from the eastern European steppe after five thousand years ago.” About 5000 … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, History | Leave a comment

MIGRATION OR THE SPREAD OF CULTURE?

Posted on January 27, 2019 by Philip

MIGRATION OR THE SPREAD OF CULTURE? During the last fifty years there have been debates over whether inventions and influences in the distant past resulted from migrations or from the spread of culture—-for example, by traders. Ancient DNA thus far … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, History, Science | Leave a comment

THE DISAPPOINTMENTS AND SUCCESSES OF DEVELOPMENT ECONOMICS.

Posted on January 14, 2019 by Philip

THE DISAPPOINTMENTS AND SUCCESSES OF DEVELOPMENT ECONOMICS. Nick commented here on my celebration—-along with Nicholas Kristov—-of the economic success of the world’s poor in 2018. I agree with Nick that other important goals remain to be achieved. However in my … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, History | Leave a comment

“WHY 2018 WAS THE BEST YEAR IN HUMAN HISTORY.”

Posted on January 11, 2019 by Philip

“WHY 2018 WAS THE BEST YEAR IN HUMAN HISTORY.” Nicholas Kristof had an op ed with that headline in the New York Times (January 5, 2019). Kristof has lots of support for his thesis. For one example, Kristof writes: “Until … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics, History, Politics | 1 Comment