tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1740670447258719504.post1703645422273241225..comments2024-03-27T03:00:27.024-04:00Comments on Facts & other stubborn things: What exactly do Selgin, Lastrapes, and White expect me to think about this?Evanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12259004160963531720noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1740670447258719504.post-54465528943450733452011-10-28T10:59:00.618-04:002011-10-28T10:59:00.618-04:00The problem is...that things change over time that...<i>The problem is...that things change over time that have nothing to do with the Fed, and those changes are being picked up and attributed to the Fed...</i><br /><br />I'm not an economist, but I have noticed this sort of logic among free-banking, libertarian, Austrian Econ types for some time. I think that they have a prejudged position on things - the state, the market, etc. - and they go looking for facts to back it up. Their arguments seem plausible until you follow the thread for a while.<br /><br />You could easily substitute 'language' for 'central banking' in their arguments. Sure, if humans had never developed language we would not have these economic problems...no inflation, depression, bank runs, etc. Like those who long for the prelapsarian paradise in Eden (before Man had knowledge) these people seem to me to be utopians, and completely ahistorical in their outlooks, despite their 'comparisons' across time of the economy.Lichanoshttp://www.iamyouasheisme.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1740670447258719504.post-40908816745399590332010-11-18T17:10:59.612-05:002010-11-18T17:10:59.612-05:00Drat! I could have sworn they were hanging on my ...Drat! I could have sworn they were hanging on my every word :)Danielhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17192667997950934790noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1740670447258719504.post-83002890533995570082010-11-18T10:38:02.077-05:002010-11-18T10:38:02.077-05:00"Each historical episode really needs a full-..."Each historical episode really needs a full-length paper alone, otherwise they're just preaching to the choir. The whole paper feels like the summary and conclusion of something much longer (like Selgin and White's life's work!)"<br /><br />^This. In short, I don't think they care about what you think Daniel. ;)Jonathan M.F. Catalánhttp://www.economicthought.net/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1740670447258719504.post-18560317665908335872010-11-18T09:55:18.267-05:002010-11-18T09:55:18.267-05:00Reluctantly, yes.
Even though I agree with the co...Reluctantly, yes.<br /><br />Even though I agree with the conclusion of the paper, I wasn't much impressed by the actual content. I was kind of disappointed. The "tests" were often woefully inadequate from a methodological perspective. The authors occasionally recognise this, and then plough on anyway. Each historical episode really needs a full-length paper alone, otherwise they're just preaching to the choir. The whole paper feels like the summary and conclusion of something much longer (like Selgin and White's life's work!)<br /><br />Also, even the abstract feels a bit disingenuous:<br /><br />"As the one-hundredth anniversary of the 1913 Federal Reserve Act approaches, we assess whether the nation‘s experiment with the Federal Reserve has been a success or a failure. Drawing on a wide range of recent empirical research, we find the following ... We<br />conclude that the need for a systematic exploration of alternatives to the<br />established monetary system is as pressing today as it was a century ago."<br /><br />I mean, come on! I don't know much about Lastrapes, but Selgin and White are ardent opponents of central banking. They write as though when beginning research for this paper they didn't already know what the conclusion would be. Perhaps that's just proper form in a paper like this, but it seems ridiculous when you have read what these scholars have written elsewhere.<br /><br />Having said all that, I <i>do</i> like the paper, I am just better at making critical comments than praising comments :PLee Kellynoreply@blogger.com