Political has them here.
One thing that has surprised me is that libertarians don't have a deeper appreciation for Krugman's speaking truth to power. Maybe it's because they don't think of his "truth" as being "truth". It's probably as simple as that. But libertarians often worry about academics being co-opted by politicians, and Krugman is one that you could never worry about that happening to. I would have thought there'd be broader appreciation of that.
What we need now is a list of his Democratic Party zingers, because he's got a lot of good ones there as well (that's largely my point - no politician is safe from a Krugman Kritique).
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
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Honestly, there were two vaguely good ones: The one about Gordon Gekko and the one about Ron Paul. But even then, it wasn't that good. Paul Krugman definitely comes off as a jerk. But not a particularly witty one.
ReplyDeleteI don't consider speaking truth to power a virtue in itself. There are plenty of state-socialists out there (not counting Krugman in this category, to be clear) who are happy to criticize the political establishment for being corrupt, but also for not regulating business and international trade nearly heavy-handedly enough. The fact that I agree on the first proposition doesn't mean I should proudly join them in the anti-establishment caucus - not liking the prevailing regime doesn't translate into a broader skepticism of political authority.
ReplyDeleteI don't think Krugman is a sycophantic Washington insider (and I do agree with plenty of his criticisms of Republicans) - he's far more witty and tolerable than the Thomas Friedmans of the world who praise enlightened bipartisan politicians without reservation. What I don't like about his style is the one-dimensional political spectrum he views things in*. This is convenient for rhetorical purposes but leads to a conflation of most opposing ideas, from public choice concerns to "fair"(read: regressive) tax reform proposals, which makes it seem as if everyone from Bob Murphy to Eric Cantor were in an evil conservative alliance. I also have trouble with the way he views policy stances as some sort of a moral gauge, as if only Republican congresscritters were morally compromised by the time they reach office.
*Many if not most conservatives and libertarians do that too, and I hate it just as much.