Mike Norman Economics

It appears to be a mistake to refer to the price level when discussing the theoretical properties of an economy; at best, there are a few price levels in play at a given time. If we are referring to the measured level of a price index, such as the Consumer Price Index (CPI) there is no difficulty, however this aggregate price index should not be expected to correspond to any useful theoretical construct. This article explains my logic, and then looks at the practical implications of what...

Mocking the latest in the "Russian influence" mania.  Hopefully, exposing it as ridiculous will make it go away. But I doubt it.  Anyway, Matt Taibbi is always a fun read. Rolling Stone Latest Fake News Panic Appears to Be Fake News Matt Taibbi

Yves recaps the recent MMT conference. Very positive. It is followed by Raúl Carrillo's recap, linked to previously here at MNE. Yves here. This post is the write-up of one of the presentations at the first international MMT conference in Kansas City in September. Over 200 people, including your humble blogger, attended. We’ll be writing much more about this conference over the coming weeks as the conference organizers post videos and complete transcripts. Jamie Galbraith gave one of the...

Moon of Alabama explains how ridiculous, but dangerous for democracy nevertheless, the "Russian influence" media mania has become. He speculates felicitously that perhaps Putin is funding it to make the US look weak and Russia strong. Looking from the outside the U.S. media have simply gone nuts. There seems to be no other way to explain the silliness of their "reporting". Then again: Could they all be under Russian influence? Are Russian secret services paying for such stories? Consider...

The internet has received a substantial amount of blame for the recent increase in political polarisation. Using US data, this column argues that, in fact, the internet has played no significant role in a generally increasing trend of political polarisation that goes back at least to the 1970s. The results highlight the importance of looking beyond convenient narrative explanations, and the need for a deeper understanding of the drivers of political sentiment. Although unmentioned, an...

In recent weeks, investigators looking at how people acting on behalf of Russia targeted American voters have focused on Trump’s data operation. But although the FBI obtained a court order against Facebook to make it disclose evidence, the exact way in which US citizens were profiled and targeted remains largely unknown. But British data protection laws may provide some transparency on the company at the heart of Trump’s data operation – Cambridge Analytica – and how it created profiles of...

"The rent is too damn high." The problem with capitalism is rent extraction owing to market power resulting from effects of social, political and economic asymmetry. Neoclassical economics models capitalism (economic liberalism) in terms of perfect competition. This is not only an ideal, but also it is an unreachable ideal owing to institutional arrangements, on one hand, and asymmetry resulting from history and culture. In addition, government is inextricably bound up in the economy...

Giving the GOP establishment heartburn. Hey, they asked for it. RawStoryJoe Arpaio tells GOP he’s hot on the trail of Obama’s birth certificate and running for Congress Newsweek also Newsweek Joe Arpaio Revives Birtherism, Defends Record As Sheriff, Teases Return To Politics In Fresno Alexander Nazaryan See also FortuneRoy Moore Makes Ted Cruz Look Like a DemocratAllen Tullos is a professor of history at Emory University

Quite probably of course the very success of my blog, which jumped from 26000 monthly connexions to more than 200 000 monthly connexions could explain why what was thought to be “tolerable” in 2012 is no more by 2017 under Mr Macron’s rule.This suspension amounts to an act of arbitrariness and an act of politically motivated censorship.... Censorship rears its ugly head in France under the Macron government. The ruling elites of the world getting worried?Real-World Economics Review...

Synopsis review.Thoughts On EconomicsDean Baker's Rigged And Robert Reich's Saving CapitalismRobert Vienneau