Asymptosis: Always Approaching

Author: Asymptosis

  • Reagan, Bush, and McCain: Selling America First

    This 2003 article by Warren Buffet–explaining in his usual pithy manner how we’re frittering away our future well-being by borrowing abroad and selling off our assets–got me looking once again at our country’s long-term financial position in the world. And once again, I came across one of those profound inflection points at–you guessed it–1980. The…

  • Milton Friedman Caused The Great Depression

    Yes, yes, I know he was only 17 when the market crashed. But still. As Friedman pointed out quite accurately, inept (excessively tight) monetary policy caused the downturn to go much deeper and last much longer than it should have. Pretty much everyone will stipulate to that. And hence–here's his logical non sequitur–government and the…

  • How to Avoid Regulation: Smart Regulation

    Every economist agrees that regulation has the potential to stifle economic growth. But every economist also agrees that we need regulation to make markets efficient (and relatively stable). Given those two givens, free-market advocates should be jumping into the fray, proposing smart, targeted, easily manageable, surgical regulation, that obviates the need for heavy-handed, clunky, hard-to-manage…

  • Pro-Growth Republicans III: Yeah, Right.

    Following up on previous posts here, here, and here, yet some more debunking of this myth (Update: yet more here and here): Various have shot spitballs at this chart, but add it to all the others in previous posts–showing that over the long haul, Democrats deliver prosperity and Republicans don’t–and the notion that Republican policies…

  • Fareed Zakaria for President

    I just came across Fareed Zakaria's The Future of Freedom: Illiberal Democracy at Home and Abroad at my mother's house, read it, and came away wildly impressed. His basic thesis is that what we want is constitutional liberalism (classic sense of liberalism, as in Milton Friedman's usage, though not necessarily via his prescriptions)–not a priori,…

  • I’m Patriotic: I Pay Taxes

    Don Pedro says it better than anyone else I’ve heard, with this woulda-coulda-said-it response for Biden: “Governor Palin, if paying taxes is not considered patriotic in your neighborhood, who is going to pay for the body armor that will protect your son in Iraq? Who is going to pay for the bailout you endorsed? If…

  • McCain’s Big Stick

    Sad. What a missed setup: Senator McCain, I’m glad you mentioned that line from Teddy Roosevelt. Because that’s exactly the point. The reason we can’t address the problems in Afghanistan, the reason we can’t act in desperate moral situations like Darfur and Congo, is because, quite simply: The big stick is in use. And because of all the big…

  • Teddy Roosevelt on “the true conservative”

    From his “New Nationalism” speech. 1910. The true friend of property, the true conservative, is he who insists that property shall be the servant and not the master of the commonwealth; who insists that the creature of man’s making shall be the servant and not the master of the man who made it. The citizens…

  • Seeking “Conservative Polling”

    I am astounded–well actually, not really–that I'm now getting a bunch of visitors to my site who arrive after searching for some variation of "conservative polls." The frantic efforts at self-delusion out there really shouldn't surprise me, but they do. Related posts: Polling the Pollster Pollers: Obama Still Strong Everything Sez: “Obama Landslide.” What Gives?…

  • “Pro-Growth” Republicans. Debunked. Again. Some More.

    A while back I posted some comparative numbers for postwar economic indicators, Dems versus Pubs. Clear results for the clear-eyed. Brad Delong has even more. Just one here, for your delectation: How dare these people call themselves conservatives? Related posts: Conservative “Intellectual” “Ascendancy” Conservatives Love to Point Out that Personal Incentives Matter Pubs Don’t Cut…

  • The Problem Was Not Deregulating. The Problem Was Not Regulating.

    Most economists agree: deregulation is not what caused today’s problem. (The repeal of Glass-Steagal, for instance–the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act allowing commercial banks to act as investments banks, and vice-versa–wasn’t the cause. It might even be one of the reasons things aren’t worse than they are.) What’ they’re not saying: not regulating is what caused the problem.…

  • Hiding the Bailout

    Everyone has their two bits worth. Mine: Aside from the whole thing being incredibly vague and relying far too much on the Secretary's "discretion," this passage from the CBO's description is egregious. …the federal budget would not record the gross cash disbursements for purchases of troubled assets (or cash receipts for their eventual sale), but…

  • Ahh, for European Stability…

    If there’s one thing people would like more of these days, it’s stability. When the economy rockets up one year, then plummets or stagnates the next, it’s bad for everyone–especially those farther down the income scale, who have less recourse in face of national and global events that are completely beyond their control. This got…

  • Is There a Credit Crunch?

    Not on Kiva. This site lets you make direct micro-loans to small businesspeople across the world. The only problem, right now: there aren't enough loan requests to match all the willing lenders. You basically have to lurk, hitting refresh constantly, to make a loan before a new requested loan gets fully subscribed (like, within minutes).…

  • More on Equality and Growth

    I just came across this graph that I created a while ago, and never got around to posting. Trickle-down theorists would have you believe that inequality is necessary for growth and prosperity, or even that inequality causes growth. But in the decades after their theories took sway, growth declined. It came after therefore it was…

  • The Republican Alternative Rescue “Plan”

    I think Arnold Kling's commentary pretty much says it all: As I say in my AP stats class, "I appreciate that you raised your hand and tried to answer, but no. Anyone else?" Now which political party is it, exactly, that's supposed to know something about finance and economics? To make sensible, judicious, reasoned judgments…

  • Gaming McCain’s Game

    Some people think the McCain bailout/debate maneuvering has positioned him to trap Obama: McCain's way out? – First Read – msnbc.com. So what if McCain shows up and tonight and says, ""I'm sorry I couldn't sign on to this Washington-Wall Street plan that I worried was putting an even bigger burden on taxpayers than this…

  • The Palin “Bounce”

    It looks like this: No related posts.

  • Arch-Con National Review Abandons Palin

    Kathleen Parker, to be precise: It was fun while it lasted. Palin’s recent interviews with Charles Gibson, Sean Hannity, and now Katie Couric have all revealed an attractive, earnest, confident candidate. Who Is Clearly Out Of Her League. Related posts: Sullivan’s Surprised?? Why nominating Clinton would be a Very Bad Thing Everything Sez: “Obama Landslide.”…

  • Paulson/Dodd Plan: Mankiw Stipulates to the Merits

    Greg Mankiw posted the views of a surrogate (his "smart friend") to dis the Paulson/Dodd bailout compromise (buy assets, get warrants/equity as well). His friend addresses the plan on its merits. But when David Leonhardt replied , also addressing the plan's central issues, Mankiw changes tack, arguing that it will screw up the auction process:…

  • Bailout: Dems Have the Smart Solution (Again)

    Very quickly here because I have to run out the door, you'll have to google for your own links: Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd has proposed an alternative to Hank Paulson's "just trust me" blank-check bailout proposal. Simply put: If Treasury (that means you and me) buys $1 worth of trash assets from a…