Slips of the Tongue
I depart from Reflections about politics and economics to mention a couple of curiosi- ties of English style that intrigue me. The first curiosity is …
Signs of the Apocalypse
I watch C-SPAN while getting dressed in the morning. Callers address comments and questions to an official or expert in some field. The listener gets …
Executor of the Estate
The estate tax is unfair and counterproductive in several ways. Here I focus on only one of them. The Bush tax-cut laws made the estate …
Greek to Them
Arrangements are underway to rescue the Greek government from its crushing debt. Allowing a member of the European Union and euro area to fail, so …
How Not to Fix a Recession
Mass unemployment and long-term unemployment are tragedies. From all sides we hear the cry for “jobs, jobs, jobs.” Recovery from a business recession does create …
The Problem of Risk
I confess to receiving Social Security and Medicare and being a plausible candidate for a “death squad.” I might make excuses for myself, but why …
Leap of Faith
The proposed “public option” for health insurance has raised fears about how it might crowd out private insurance and so worsen the options open to …
Channeling Sir Gresham
The Swiss franc has recently been quoted on the foreign-exchange markets at within a cent or two of one U.S. dollar. In the heyday of …
Short-Run Society
Economists understand (or should) the distinction between what often is true or desirable in the short run and what is true or desirable in the …
Uchronia, or Alternative History
This article is a small example of its own topic. Except by chance, I wouldn’t now be writing it. Not finding what I wanted while …