Nothing is sacred : economic ideas for the new millennium / Robert J. Barro.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Barro, Robert J.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Economics--History--20th century.

Economics.

History.

Economists--History--20th century.

Economists.

United States--Economic policy--1993-2001.

United States.

Economic policy.

United States--Economic policy--2001-2009.

Physical Description:

xxi, 179 pages : illustrations ; 21 cm

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, Mass. : MIT Press, [2002]

Summary:

Since the 1970s, Robert Barro's academic research has significantly influenced macroeconomic theory. For more than a decade, his writing has also enlivened the pages of publications such as the Wall Street Journal and Business Week. In Nothing Is Sacred, Barro applies his well-honed free market arguments to a remarkably diverse range of issues. These include global problems such as growth and debt, as well as social issues such as the predictive value of SAT scores, drug legalization, the economics of beauty, and the relationship between abortion rights and crime reduction. The book opens with a series of essays on famous economists, past and present, and other prominent figures whose work has economic implications, including Joe DiMaggio and Bono. In the book's second part, Barro discusses the economics of social issues. In the third part, he considers democracy, growth, and international policy, and in the final part he examines fiscal policy, monetary policy, and the macroeconomy. Throughout, Barro shows that even the most widely held beliefs are not sacred truths. The application of sound economic analysis can shed new -- and often surprising -- light on them.

Contents:

1 Thoughts on Friends and Other Noteworthy Persons 1

Milton Friedman and His Memoirs 1

Adam Smith, Including Thoughts on Ken Galbraith and David Ricardo 6

George Stigler and the Chicago School of Economics 12

Gary Becker, the Great Economic Imperialist 17

Robert Mundell, the Father of International Macroeconomics 22

Bob Lucas and Rational Expectations 26

Larry Summers, the Economist as Treasury Secretary and Harvard President 32

Bono, the Rock Star as Amateur Economist 36

Domingo Cavallo

The Second Coming of the Argentine Savior? 44

Al Gore in the Balance 53

George W. Bush and Compassionate Conservatism 58

Joe DiMaggio 62

2 Economics of Social Issues 67

The Economics of Beauty 67

Abortion and Crime 73

Colombia and U.S. Drug Policy 77

SAT Scores and Meritocracy in Higher Education 81

Napster, Prozac, and Intellectual Property Rights 84

Microsoft and Antitrust Policy 88

Personal Accounts for Social Security: Not a Free Lunch 91

3 Economic Growth, Democracy, and Things International 95

Eastern Germany

A Lesson in Welfare Dependency 95

Inequality and Economic Growth 101

Democracy in the New Congo? 104

Chile's Presidential Election 108

Mexico's New Democracy 111

Dollarization in Russia? 114

Yankee Imperialism in Asia 118

Dollarization and the Grand Ecuadorean Experiment 122

My Brief Tenure at the World Economic Forum 126

What to Do with the International Monetary Fund? 129

4 Fiscal Policy, Monetary Policy, and the Macroeconomy 133

Budgets and Tax Cuts 133

September 11 and the War on Terror

What Does It Mean for the Economy? 137

Fiscal Profligacy at the American Economic Association 144

It's the Economy

Economic Evaluations of the U.S. Presidents 147

Serious and Nonserious Fiscal Reforms 150

Mr. Greenspan and U.S. Monetary Policy 154

And the Winner of the 2000 U.S. Presidential Election Was ... 158

Oil

The Good Guys and the Bad Guys 161

Exuberance and Pessimism in the U.S. Stock Market 165.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

0262025264

OCLC:

49320519