Comments for Kristof's Misplaced Praise for Economists at http://www.cepr.net , comment 1 to 8 out of 8 comments http://www.cepr.net Sat, 18 May 2013 19:22:30 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.3 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/kristofs-misplaced-praise-for-economists#comment-9050 PeonInChief, I'd wager that after enough exposure to modern mainstream economics, people would come out worse on tests of cognition, common sense and logical reasoning, not just touchy-feely compassion. - Calgacus Thu, 19 May 2011 10:30:23 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/kristofs-misplaced-praise-for-economists#comment-9038 Why snipe at the Gates Foundation? Cite something ? - ano Thu, 19 May 2011 05:43:56 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/kristofs-misplaced-praise-for-economists#comment-9037 That is part of the problem. Let's assume that the economists that Kristof mentions have done good work. Because of the ineptitude or the attitude of many economists, these kinds of results will likely not get the attention they deserve. The Kenya study on AIDS is interesting, but the logic of that kind of intervention has been discussed by Steven E. Landsburg in "More Sex is Safer Sex." And while de-worming kids will get them to attend school more often, the schools must exist in the first place for them to attend. In other words, they have found a specific instance of the idea that better health and better educational outcomes are intertwined. This is not just economics. It is also public health and epidemiology. They often have more of an impact on the health and well being of a population, but few Nobel Prizes are awarded for this. But it leaves larger structural issues in place. Will governments actually fund these kinds of programs? Will NGOs? Will governments allow NGOs to do this? What will the IMF do? What will local leaders do? - Jeff Z Thu, 19 May 2011 04:34:26 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/kristofs-misplaced-praise-for-economists#comment-9031 It might actually be better to ban the study of economics, instead concentrating on subjects like ecology that would promote a more expansive world view. Many years ago a study divided randomly selected students into two groups. One group took an anthropology class, the other an economics course. Before taking their classes students were tested on their views on social programs, values and the like. On being retested, it was found that students who took the economics class were less compassionate, more selfish, and less tolerant of others. The anthropology students were the opposite. - PeonInChief Thu, 19 May 2011 03:35:36 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/kristofs-misplaced-praise-for-economists#comment-9023 quote]He urges people who want to help the world's poor to study economics and points to useful results that economists have uncovered.[/quote] They [i]should[/i] study economics: namely, the writings of Henry George, who figured out the cause of poverty, and its solution, over 100 years ago. (Based on theoretical work by Ricardo.) Unfortunately, modern-day economists, even Dean, don't understand (or refuse to understand) the political economy of rent. - liberal Thu, 19 May 2011 02:16:36 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/kristofs-misplaced-praise-for-economists#comment-9022 Kristof's Role at the Times is to play the solo violin for the world's poor and opressed. He'll write up one sad story after another to put an op-ed face of humanity on the NYT. Sadly for us all it is a mask for Friedman and Brooks. The world's poor (or America's unemployed) don't need pity anyway. - Union Member Thu, 19 May 2011 02:08:02 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/kristofs-misplaced-praise-for-economists#comment-9020 "Over consumption of medicine and education", are you joking? Someone has been overdosing on something, but isn't the poor, and it isn't on education or medicine. Two questions: What are you smoking? Where can I get some? - Kate Thu, 19 May 2011 01:07:33 +0100 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/beat-the-press/kristofs-misplaced-praise-for-economists#comment-9016 Kristof understands that the moral hazard of underpricing essentials like medicine and education for the poor will just make them poorer as they undermine these resources by overconsuming them as free goods. The poor must have some skin in the game the same way everyone else does, especially investors, lenders and benefactors like Bill Gates who gallantly take the risk of improving the lot of the poor in developing countries. Economic education is nothing if not founded on the principles of no-free-lunch, no-free-medicine, no-free-education, etc. Even the poor must be rationed by price lest they be even worse off. - izzatzo Thu, 19 May 2011 00:26:34 +0100