Interesting blog bits

1. John Taylor on Policy Failure and the Great Recession

   "The debate about the causes of the financial crisis and the great recession will continue for many years, and the facts and analysis that Robert Hetzel put forth in his new book The Great Recession: Market Failure or Policy Failure? should now be part of that debate. As I said in my comments for Cambridge University Press, “Hetzel applies his experience as a central banker and his expertise as a monetary economist to make a compelling case for rules rather than discretion, showing that 'monetary disorder' rather than a fundamental 'market disorder' is the cause of poor macroeconomic performance. At the same time, he acknowledges and discusses disagreements among those who argue for rules rather than discretion.”"

2. Art Carden on It's the Final Crisis of Capitalism, Charlie Brown!

   By most standards, the performance of the world economy over the last few years has been anemic. “Is Capitalism in Crisis?” is a question that makes great grist for the mill of serious people with furrowed brows who go on talk shows, but there’s a yawning gap between what we’re experiencing and a “crisis of capitalism.” Even though “worst ___________ since the Great Depression” has made the rounds a few times, the sheer economic cataclysm we would have to suffer in order for average people to return to the standards of living of the 1970s—to say nothing of the Great Depression—would be many times more severe than the Great Recession.

3. Tyler Cowen on What Export-Oriented America Means

   As is well known, America was the world’s leading exporter virtually every year during the latter half of the 20th century, losing that title to Germany only in 2003, and later falling behind China. New circumstances thus prompt the question: Might we someday regain that honor? If so, how will this shape American foreign policy, jobs, education, politics and poverty?

4. Bryan Caplan give an Introduction to Microethics

   When they teach their subject, economists almost always start with microeconomics. Why? Because it's easier to reach clear-cut answers when you start small. Once you know what you're talking about, you can build on it. When economists can't give their macroeconomics strong microfoundations, they worry. Those who skip straight to macro have a serious risk of ending up with a bunch of half-baked floating abstractions. What about ethics?

5. Chidem Kurdas asks Big Bank Breakup or Tea Party?

   The Dallas Fed’s director of research Harvey Rosenblum argues that the new Dodd-Frank regulations are insufficient to deal with the threat posed by too-big-to-fail banks and therefore these need to be broken into smaller entities.

6. Eric Crampton wants you to Overcome your Repugnance

   John McCall is one of those anointed to decide whether things are ethical; the National Ethics Advisory Council, on which he sits, advises the Minister of Health on the ethical implications of things. And he doesn't like organ markets.

7. Welly Gnome on Easter Trading Laws

   Let’s just get this over and done with – repeal the Easter Trading Laws because they inconvenience the majority of society and the fines imposed on naughty retailers who operate their business as they see fit don’t pass muster relative to the cost of enforcement.