I’m no economist. I have same ability to predict the future as economists (i.e. none) but I am disqualified as an economist because I know that I can’t predict the future. Also I don’t trust the Laffer curve. It seems to me to be a bit like the Bible – quoted by both sides of [...]
Entries Tagged as 'Economics'
The Irish economic miracle
November 16th, 2010 · 3 Comments · Politics
Two little quotes from the news. First, an article in the Times, written in 2006 by George Osborne. It starts: A generation ago, the very idea that a British politician would go to Ireland to see how to run an economy would have been laughable. The Irish Republic was seen as Britain’s poor and troubled [...]
Union Atlantic
August 24th, 2010 · No Comments · Life
I recently finished reading Union Atlantic, a debut novel by Adam Haslett – another book from Amazon’s Vine programme. I was a bit underwhelmed by it.
As recommended by economists
February 20th, 2010 · 6 Comments · Politics
I am starting to lose track of what all these economists are saying. First we have 20 of them writing to the Sunday Times to say that the Tory policies of spending cuts is the only way forward, then another 67 economists write to the FT to say that policy would be a disaster. I [...]
Tags: Economics
Less than super freakonomics
October 28th, 2009 · 3 Comments · Life
After getting past the mental stumbling block of Snark I whipped through Superfreakonomics in no time at all. This was another book I received through Amazon’s Vine programme free in return for a review. I had read the authors’ first book, Freakonomics, and greatly enjoyed it, so I was looking forward to this one. Unfortunately [...]
Those who do not learn from history…
July 18th, 2009 · No Comments · Life
The West Sussex County Times carries a column in its property porn section which is sponsored (and written) by a local mortgage company. Sometimes I look at it, although normally I don’t. This week I did and was left slack-jawed by the end of it.
Predictable
April 12th, 2009 · No Comments · Life
I had forgotten that I had read all about the book Predictably Irrational. Indeed I had forgotten that it was on my Amazon wishlist, and even forgot that I wrote about it a year ago.   This week I bought it because it sounded interesting and as I started reading it something about it sounded familiar. [...]
The Black Swan
March 18th, 2009 · 1 Comment · Life
I have just finished reading The Black Swan by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, which has left me reeling a little bit. It is sort of about maths and economics but also about philosophy and science generally. I think that somebody recommended it to me in a comment on this site, but I can’t remember who that [...]
Told you so
March 16th, 2009 · No Comments · Politics
[Cross-posted from Common Endeavour] I am rarely in a position to say “told you so” but someone who is in a great position to utter those words is Naseem Nicholas Taleb. I am nearing the end of his book The Black Swan (published in 2007) and on page 225 he says: We have never lived [...]
Addicted To Chaos
October 15th, 2008 · 1 Comment · Life
There was a programme about chaos theory on BBC Four tonight – High Anxieties: The Mathematics Of Chaos – which was a great disappointment. I found it interesting, but really it did not say anything new to anybody who has read a couple of books on the subject, and I don’t think it would have [...]
Have you heard of the categorisation of political activists into...