It has long been a standard claim of economics—iirc, Robert Lucas was the first to say it aloud, though it may have been Gary Becker*—that a man who marries his housekeeper lowers GDP. Apparently, Dubner and Levitt have taken this claim—along with their Rick James title**—to heart. Echidne has the details. A short sample: There […]
Brad DeLong does in less than a weekend. He is as enchanted as Robert was*: My personal favorite is a giant parasol 18,000 miles in diameter at L1 to absorb and then reradiate a chunk of sunlight in other bands. but notes the reality as well: But I have never been able to find anyone […]
This cannot be true, can it? Louisiana Justice of the Peace Denies Marriage License to Interracial Couple: According to [Keith Bardwell, a justice of the peace in Tangipahoa Parish], he won’t support interracial marriages because he doesn’t feel that black or white society will accept the children of the couple once they are born. I […]
Dr. Black had a link to foreclosures in Irvine, California. This one especially caught my eye: 5031 Alcorn Lane, Turtle RockAmount owed: $298,876.14Last sale: July 2001, $485,000Auction date & time: Nov. 5 at 10 a.m.Location: In front of the flagpoles at Placentia Civic Center, 401-411 E. Chapman Ave.Trustee sale #: JPM-580Information: 714-573-1965 [emphasis mine] I […]
The close: [W]hen the New York Times came and offered [Ross Douhat] a column, he did not turn it down saying “no, I clearly do not deserve this honour, others are far more qualified for it that me”. The NYT thinks Douhat’s important because people link to him. They neither realize—nor care—that you’re laughing at […]
No original content here, just two posts that make even more sense together: Mark Thoma proves he’s an economist (not just an econometrician) by reminding everyone of the Opportunity Cost of the Oughts from a long-term perspective*:((Rdan…Attribution of the quote is in error due to a format error at Mark’s…the original is from Joseph Stiglitz […]
As a rule, the Shiller Index uses the CPI as reported for All Urban Consumers (CPIAUCNS on Fred(r)). But the Index is only updated Quarterly, so monthly data is estimated. Which produces a very interesting difference over August, not to mention September expectations: The annualised inflation rate between June and August is 0.39%, which just […]
Two Views of The Late Great Johnny Ace: 69 Years after his birth, my eldest daughter’s favorite band is The Beatles (slightly ahead of the JoBros). The main reason, apparently, is this film. (I’m trying to show her the originals on which it is based, but the best of the set is temporarily unavailable).
From Constance Ash’s discussion of Capitalism: A Love Story: There are some scenes that that must have been shot around the period when enraged screwed-over people gathered at the New York Stock Exchange yelling, “Jump! Jump! Jump!” Moore has said in an interview, that while at the NYSE the NY cops came up to him […]
I recently mentioned D-Squared’s four-part review (evisceration?) of Freakonomics. I had forgotten he wasn’t finished. Part Five is now posted. And the conceit of the pieces—”that there is something terribly, horribly wrong with the state of modern economics”—that dates back to 2003(!) is all the more validated. John Quiggin should include all five parts as […]