Perhaps in matters less related to finance, more contemporary economists are becoming more data oriented. But riddle me this: How did nearly all economists become fans of a financial system ‘regulated’ by the (not federal with no reserves) Federal Reserve System? Because it’s so data driven?
By 1900 or so there seems to have been a pretty broad consensus that leaving the market to its own devices leads to the best outcomes. The problem with that is that such a conlusion doesnt leave economists or politicians with much to do.
Wasn't it Voltaire that said most of our problems arise because of man's inability to sit alone quietly?
Aside from any problems arising from man’s inability to sit quietly, there’s the question of how those squirming for action would all end up endorsing the same system. My guess is that when businesses are hiring quants, they are more motivated to purely follow the data and will hire more statisticians, logistics and computer experts while most of the “economists” are working in universities and government jobs where the culture and incentives are formed, normed and paid for by the champions of the federal reserve system.
After the 2016 election, Ethan Coen wrote a NYT op-ed complaining about Jill Stein voters and others who deprived Hillary of victory. So Ethan at least appears to be a mainstream Democrat.
Ethan certainly didn't pull any punches in that op-ed! lol
I've been reading "An Empire of Their Own" by Neal Gabler (based on your recommendation) and reading about LB Mayer has me appreciating Michael Lerner's performance in Barton Fink even more than I already did.
Steve, my guess would be that the Cold War, in full bloom in the 1950's, played the single biggest role in making Americans more politically Conservative during that time. Enjoyed the article.
Or maybe just the fact of a large part of the globe having just lived (barely) through a couple decades of utter cataclysm owing to various strange new ideologies to which only conservatism had been or could be immune, although mostly powerlessly so.
Whether Ren and Wang understand America I couldn't say, but they assuredly understand nothing of Preston Sturges. Sullivan's Travels is about as anti-progressive a movie as could be imagined. Its chief target is the rich Hollywood liberal who decides to play poor. Wiser characters try to set him straight at every turn, to no avail. The mogul: "What do you know about trouble?" The girl: "Nothing like a deep-dish movie to drive people out into the open." The butler: "Poverty is to be avoided, even for purposes of study. It is to be shunned." Finally he has to learn the hard way to keep out of what is none of his business.
Probably no major director had more respect for enterprise than Sturges, and there are more sympathetic rich characters in his oeuvre than one could find in a year's worth of American movies nowadays. He also voted Republican.
Perhaps in matters less related to finance, more contemporary economists are becoming more data oriented. But riddle me this: How did nearly all economists become fans of a financial system ‘regulated’ by the (not federal with no reserves) Federal Reserve System? Because it’s so data driven?
By 1900 or so there seems to have been a pretty broad consensus that leaving the market to its own devices leads to the best outcomes. The problem with that is that such a conlusion doesnt leave economists or politicians with much to do.
Wasn't it Voltaire that said most of our problems arise because of man's inability to sit alone quietly?
Aside from any problems arising from man’s inability to sit quietly, there’s the question of how those squirming for action would all end up endorsing the same system. My guess is that when businesses are hiring quants, they are more motivated to purely follow the data and will hire more statisticians, logistics and computer experts while most of the “economists” are working in universities and government jobs where the culture and incentives are formed, normed and paid for by the champions of the federal reserve system.
The Coens seem temperamentally conservative but they probably vote Democrat.
After the 2016 election, Ethan Coen wrote a NYT op-ed complaining about Jill Stein voters and others who deprived Hillary of victory. So Ethan at least appears to be a mainstream Democrat.
https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/13/opinion/sunday/2016-election-thank-you-notes.html
I hadn't seen that before. Their films seem to kind of mock everybody so I would have thought civil libertarians who vote Democrat.
The Coens are very high IQ, so they probably especially didn't like Trump taking the GOP dumber.
Ethan certainly didn't pull any punches in that op-ed! lol
I've been reading "An Empire of Their Own" by Neal Gabler (based on your recommendation) and reading about LB Mayer has me appreciating Michael Lerner's performance in Barton Fink even more than I already did.
Bush and McCain weren't dumb enough?
Great article, I may have to subscribe to Taki.
Steve, my guess would be that the Cold War, in full bloom in the 1950's, played the single biggest role in making Americans more politically Conservative during that time. Enjoyed the article.
Or maybe just the fact of a large part of the globe having just lived (barely) through a couple decades of utter cataclysm owing to various strange new ideologies to which only conservatism had been or could be immune, although mostly powerlessly so.
Laughs in the Austrian method.
Whether Ren and Wang understand America I couldn't say, but they assuredly understand nothing of Preston Sturges. Sullivan's Travels is about as anti-progressive a movie as could be imagined. Its chief target is the rich Hollywood liberal who decides to play poor. Wiser characters try to set him straight at every turn, to no avail. The mogul: "What do you know about trouble?" The girl: "Nothing like a deep-dish movie to drive people out into the open." The butler: "Poverty is to be avoided, even for purposes of study. It is to be shunned." Finally he has to learn the hard way to keep out of what is none of his business.
Probably no major director had more respect for enterprise than Sturges, and there are more sympathetic rich characters in his oeuvre than one could find in a year's worth of American movies nowadays. He also voted Republican.