Author Topic: Economics Explained second half discussion thread  (Read 3808 times)

grantmeaname

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Economics Explained second half discussion thread
« on: August 01, 2012, 05:41:49 AM »
Economics Explained, by Robert Heilbroner and Lester Thurow, is the August 2012 MMM Book Club selection. This thread is for the discussion of the last two parts of the book: Microeconomics: The Anatomy of the Market System and Problems. In the fourth edition (released 1998), that's pages 143-228.

grantmeaname

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Re: Economics Explained second half discussion thread
« Reply #1 on: August 15, 2012, 06:54:46 AM »
Anybody here yet?

I'm on the globalization chapter. The globalization chapter's warning about the process is that companies are becoming more transnational and so fiscal policy is becoming more global in nature even while national governments remain limited to controlling their own turf. The authors note that this will become a large problem as political power and financial regulation diverge.

The book was written in 1998, the year before the introduction of the euro.  It seems their warning is very applicable to the Eurozone crisis now: Grecians work and borrow with the same currency as Germans, despite the first nation's corruption and lack of the political concept called "actually collecting taxes". The Germans can sort of kludge together a little political power over Greece when it comes to crisis time by requiring austerity before they'll approve the creation of more Greek government debt, but they certainly don't have political power over Greece concomitant with the degree to which they're financially joined at the hip.

Thoughts?

kisserofsinners

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Re: Economics Explained second half discussion thread
« Reply #2 on: August 15, 2012, 05:53:35 PM »
I got stuck on their description of inflation... Can anyone explain why they are saying the the opposite of inflation is depression? Maybe i don't understand what depression is... I do realize it's an option, but wouldn't deflation happen first?

grantmeaname

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Re: Economics Explained second half discussion thread
« Reply #3 on: August 16, 2012, 03:20:48 PM »
I could probably do you some more good with a page number. Where are you seeing that?

kisserofsinners

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Re: Economics Explained second half discussion thread
« Reply #4 on: August 17, 2012, 01:10:09 PM »
In the 1994 edition- page 148,

I think it's really the example of the coal company that is messing me up...

Ha! Found it, "How does it happen that vulnerability results in inflation, and not depression or some other malfunction?" Then he goes into the coal company example and i'm totally lost... :(

kisserofsinners

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Re: Economics Explained second half discussion thread
« Reply #5 on: August 25, 2012, 03:29:39 PM »
Meh, i ignored it and kept reading...

Anyone who thinks this is "slanted" liberal, there is a very reasonable dose of anti-union action.  It all seems very moderate to me-Says the kid from California. :)

 

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