“Just when I thought I was out… they pull me back in” I tried to resist asking “what does “Nominal GDP targeting even mean.” I managed, but now Krugman is burying the hatchet and I am digging it up. So what is the proposal ? That the Fed have a target for 2012 nominal GDP […]
William Keller who until recently was executive editor of The New York Times asserts that Venezuela is a neighbor of Peru. A screenshot and a geography lesson are after the jump. I am following Glenn Greenwald, via Brad DeLong and was scooped on breaking geography news by Tim Dickonson and DeLong commenter GvaGuy The explanation […]
Your intrepid if somewhat tardy correspondent confirms the number one story at www.washingtonpost.com. The OWS demonstration in Rome provided cover for people who like to smash and burn things (the black block). This is the line of Rome’s right wing mayor and the right wing minister of the interior. Being late, as usual, I missed […]
The Italian prime minister just won a vote of confidence in Parliament. It surprises almost no one who lives in Italy that investors weren’t pleased. The associated Press has a great quote The best signal that Italy could have sent to the markets would have been to boot Mr. Berlusconi out, but it has failed […]
Reuters posted (and has since updated) an article on alleged financial connections between George Soros and Occupy Wall Street (OWS). The article illustrates much of what is wrong with English language journalism. Felix Salmon wrote a devastating critique (just click the link and read it) Felix Salmon works for Reuters. To me the news is […]
Who are the 53% ? Erick Erickson claims that they are the 53% who pay positive income taxes which, he suggests, are the same people who disagree completely with the occupiers of Wall Street The Bloomberg poll says they are the fraction of self identified Republicans who support raising taxes on family income over $250000 […]
The Washington Post had two articles on their latest poll. The first focused on the Presidential horse race. The second noted that US adults disapprove of congress and then went on to discuss other results. At the very end of the the second article this follows: Obama’s proposal to raise taxes on millionaires to help […]
In this excellent post, John Quiggin somewhat understates his claim The key passage “the same fundamental confusion I pointed out last time, trying to claim that rationality assumptions are both important and unfalsifiable.” and later at greater length “Williamson wants to have his cake and eat it. Most of the time he wants to help […]
Brad DeLong and Matthew Yglesias report that operation Twist worked, because 30 year bond yields have declined since it was announced. Brad “30y Treasury yield down 13 bps, 2y yield up 5bps. Exactly what you would expect with announcement of twist operation.” So Brad why were you so sure that the 30y yield would not […]
Elaine Kamarck wrote an article in The Washington Monthly’s blog “Ten Miles Square” entitled “NO Time to Go Wobbly on Welfare Reform” Briefly for those who have not clicked the link, the article stresses that TANF (aka welfare) is a very small component of the social welfare safety net (as was AFDC before welfare reform). […]