Mike Norman Economics

It's the key to success.

Empirical study of global elites. Download PDF at link. Notice that the title assumes a social structure based on class and class differences. This is SOP in sociology; yet, the significance of class is denied in conventional economics, if not also the existence of class structure and even society as a meaningful concept. Cambridge UniversityWho Rules the World? A Portrait of the Global Leadership Class John Gerring, Erzen Oncel, Kevin Morrison, and Daniel Pemstein

Article linked to in German yesterday. Here is the English translation.Spiegel Online EnglishThe Case of Sergei Magnitsky: Questions Cloud Story Behind U.S. Sanctions Benjamin Bidder

Another way to look at this is a ratio of existing to new home sales. This ratio was fairly stable from 1994 through 2006, and then the flood of distressed sales kept the number of existing home sales elevated and depressed new home sales. (Note: This ratio was fairly stable back to the early '70s, but I only have annual data for the earlier years). In general the ratio has been trending down since the housing bust - and is getting close to the historical ratio - and I expect this ratio...

To protect their own futures, the people of Hong Kong must reflect carefully on the need to end violent protests and work together to address genuine grievances. The alternative is not some fantasy of an independent and thriving Hong Kong. It is a devastated economy, a divided society, and a lost generation. Project SyndicateCan Hong Kong Avoid Tragedy?Andrew Sheng, Distinguished Fellow of the Asia Global Institute at the University of Hong Kong and a member of the UNEP Advisory Council on...

Yesterday (November 26, 2019), the news came out from the Hellenic Minister of Finance that Greece had completed its latest repayment of 2.7 billion euros to the IMF early (Source). They owed around 9 billion euros to the IMF. Greece had to go ‘cap-in-hand’ to its “European creditors” to gain permission to make the payment early, which they claim saves them crippling interest rate payments. The loans were locked in at 4.9 per cent per annum – usury rates by any definition. Celebration seems...

The Game Really is Rigged — in a Casino Economy, Only the House Wins I try to put out what I think are really good articles, but every now and again one really sticks out, this is one of them. There’s a strange and terrible thing that’s happened to our societies. You already know it, because you might well be living it. And yet it goes largely unremarked upon. It’s become more or less impossible to live a decent life by doing an honest day’s or even career’s...

Former Head of Derivatives Product Development at the London Stock Exchange backs Labour to stand up to the UK finance lobby (unlike all previous governments since Thatcher). Josh-Ryan Collins The finance lobby, arguably the UK’s most aggressive, has turned London into the world’s leading centre for international banking and finance by rigging politics to ensure it pockets the fortunes. I should know, I was former Head of Derivatives Product Development at the London Stock Exchange....

Reknowned economist Dr. Michael Hudson spoke at the 14th Forum of the World Association for Political Economy, held in Winnipeg in July 19-21, 2019. The conference was entitled Class, State and Nation in the 21st Century. [embedded content]

Ruja Ignatova called herself the Cryptoqueen. She told people she had invented a cryptocurrency to rival Bitcoin, and persuaded them to invest billions. Then, two years ago, she disappeared. Jamie Bartlett spent months investigating how she did it for the Missing Cryptoqueen podcast , and trying to figure out where she's hiding. I can't believe the shear audacity of this sting operation.The BBCThe BBC - Cryptoqueen: How this woman scammed the world, then vanished