New Economic Perspectives

By William K. BlackMay 8, 2016     Kansas City, MO N. Gregory Mankiw writes leading textbooks in economics that present neoliberal economic nostrums as economic “principles.” Mankiw wrote a column in the New York Times entitled “The Economy Is Rigged, and Other Presidential Campaign Myths.” The title reflects the central nature of his attack on Bernie Sanders explaining how the economy is rigged in favor of elite bank fraudsters.  This first column in a series responds to Mankiw’s myths...

By J.D. ALT I’m attracted to “big picture” vistas that put the day’s momentary developments into what at least feels like a meaningful perspective. It helps me to imagine things are more manageable than they otherwise seem to be. In reading my daily news (currently The Washington Post), I’m always on the lookout for at least two articles that fit together somehow to create a glimpse of this over-arching view. Today (Friday, 6 May) I got what feels like a pretty good peek. First is an...

By William K. BlackMay 4, 2016     Bloomington, MN To the shock of no one, with the possible exception of men who would use such a site, it is alleged that the website devoted to helping their customers cheat their loved ones cheated their customers.  (Yes, another example of the myriad forms and layers of “spontaneous order” that von Hayek does not want you, or any economist, to think about.)  This was reported in Corporate Counsel.  Plaintiffs are trying to bring a class action fraud...

By William K. BlackMay 3, 2016     Bloomington, MN Open up a conventional economics text and you will be taught that high among the glories of “free markets” is the “fact” that they lead to firms earning “zero economic profits.”  Economic profits are not the same as accounting profits.  An economic profit occurs when a firm receives greater profits than the minimum required to be able to raise capital in their industry.  A firm that receives a profit greater than that minimum requirement is...

By  William K. BlackMay 2, 2016      Bloomington, MN Michael Bloomberg has just published, in Bloomberg, what he describes as “an adaptation of an address to the University of Michigan’s class of 2016.”  Having graduated twice from Michigan, as did our eldest, I was intrigued.  Bloomberg’s title was “Here’s Your Degree.  Now Go Defeat Demagogues.”  What Bloomberg means is that he is frightened that so many young people supported the “Occupy Wall Street” movement and support Bernie Sanders. ...

By J.D. ALT The essential ploy in politics is to give people a false choice. For dinner tonight, you can have fried potatoes—which are what I am serving—or you can have watered-down potato gruel, which is what my opponent is serving. Never mind that, if we take time to look, the larder is actually stocked with tomatoes, corn, zucchini, string-beans, hams and pork bellies. The political false choice is usually quite subtle, and invariably involves whether you want to be taxed or not. The...

By William K. BlackMay 1, 2016     Bloomington, MN Republican Party leaders are shocked that their three decades of pursuing the racist “Southern strategy,” California Governor Pete Wilson’s desperate attacks on Latinos, myriad assaults on women’s rights, and repeatedly sponsoring gay bashing propositions designed to energize the (bigoted) base have created a base that champions Donald Trump’s serial hatred.  Key leaders of the hard right in Germany are shocked by the same dynamic.  The...

By L. Randall Wray The drumbeat is quickening as Hillary’s surrogates insist that Bernie’s supporters fall in line. Bernie’s chances are said to be hopeless. Continuing to run only plays into the hands of truly despicable Republicans. And forget about trying to pressure the Democratic Party’s establishment to let Bernie play a role in formulating the convention’s platform. That also would just play into the hands of the Republicans. Time to unite behind Hillary, and let her move further to...

NEP/BWU’s Bill Black appears on the Vinny Eastwood show out of New Zealand. Topics of discussion are Financial Fraud, and the Panama Papers. [embedded content] Share this:

By William K. BlackApril 30, 2016     Bloomington, MN To no one’s surprise, President Obama lobs periodic attacks on Bernie Sanders’ plans to restore the rule of law to Wall Street elites.  Obama launched his latest attack, fittingly, through Wall Street’s sycophant-in-chief, Andrew Ross Sorkin.  Sorkin’s column expresses his shock at how Obama repeatedly extended their interview for hours beyond its scheduled length.  No one else is shocked that Obama, trying to make the case that bailing...