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Some time ago, I delved into the unique advantages of the Theil index of inequality over the Gini index, when data is available. The Theil index offers a distinct advantage in its ability to provide a consistent quantitative deconstruction of inequality. It does so by utilizing various concepts such as class, region, gender, or any other relevant factor. This feature allows for a comprehensive explanation of (changes in) inequality using the same set of concepts. The Theil index...

Corporate profits have received much more scrutiny in recent years. High inflation provoked on-going debates about the role of profit margins with terms like “greedflation” and “price gouging” levelled at corporations. People recognized that, at minimum, corporations are profiting from inflation. Analysis of 4,550 publicly-listed corporations found that 33% had record operating profits in 2021 or 2022.[1] Further, corporations with pricing power were found to be actively worsening...

from Dean Baker Suppose the G-7 finance ministers sat down and worked out a plan to spend tens of billions of dollars a year to subsidize developing countries in their transition to a green economy. Many of us might think this is a good idea since global warming poses a real threat to the planet. Unfortunately, the G-7 finance ministers seem to have done the exact opposite. According to the coverage in the New York Times, they discussed ways to retaliate against China over its own plans...

The Conversation asked economists about the budget. I thought the questions poorly framed. Q: What grade would you give the budget, given Chalmers’ stated objective of “fighting inflation in the near term and then growth in the medium term”? A, B, C, D, E or F My answer: An exclusive, or even primary, focus on a rapid return to an arbitrary inflation target represents a misconception of the role of fiscal policy. I decline to offer a rating on this basis. Considered more...

by Ten Bears Homeless on the High Desert Mormon Militia Moves To Take Over Central, Eastern Oregon Government Note that the link is to an article in The Guardian, a British publication that is to my observation the straightest, least bias / most honest reporting today. Bear in mind as you read these happenings out on the Oregon High Desert that people are reading about them in England, and around the English-speaking world Sometimes...

Εκδήλωση – συζήτηση  Σάββατο 25/5, 6.30μ.μ., ΚΑΠΗ Πόρτο – Ράφτη Θα μιλήσει : Σταύρος Μαυρουδέας, Καθηγητής Παντείου, υποψήφιος στις ευρωεκλογές Θα ακολουθήσει συζήτηση με συμμετοχή και άλλων υποψήφιων.  Ευρωεκλογές: ψηφίζουμε ΑΝΤΑΡΣΥΑ – Ανατρεπτική Συνεργασία  ...

from Lars Syll While one can understand that some of the elements in DSGE models seem to appeal to Keynesians at first sight, after closer examination, these models are in fundamental contradiction to Post-Keynesian and even traditional Keynesian thinking. The DSGE model is a model in which output is determined in the labour market as in New Classical models and in which aggregate demand plays only a very secondary role, even in the short run. In addition, given the fundamental...

My Budget response from The Conversation This week’s budget was Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ third and – for practical purposes – final for the current parliamentary term. Even if the 2025 election is delayed long enough to give Labor another budget, that speech would represent more of an election manifesto than any deliverable legislation. We are therefore now in a position to assess the Albanese government’s record on public spending and taxation. Most strikingly, the...

Ilan Pappé is a brilliant Israeli historian & his scholarship exemplifies the meaning and importance of intellectual integrity. Below is a link to his talk titled “Gaza in context: past, present, & future”. I urge you to watch it & share it (the talk runs from minute 28 to minute 76). We all abhor Holocaust […]

from Peter Radford A pile of bricks is not a house.  A group of individuals is not an economy. A lot has to happen between the one and the other.  Which is why writing theories about economies as if it were simply an accumulation of individuals and their associated capital base misses the mark.  Nor is it simply a matter of how those individuals behave —rationally or not — their interactions create novelty that cannot and does not exist at the individual level. Of course economists...