Issue 63: June 12, 2008

In this issue:

Call for Papers

Essays in Political Economy (EPE)

Essays in Political Economy is a new Journal which the International Institute of Political Economy ( www.iipec.com ) is launching this autumn. Rooted in the tradition of the classical thinkers - Smith, Ricardo and Marx - the Essays in Political Economy (EPE) aims to be a medium to discuss and share critical thinking in economics but with a multidisciplinary perspective encompassing all social sciences. It is dedicated to publishing highest quality research in any field of economics, specially in political economy, without prejudice to the methodology or to the analytical techniques used.

The EPE will aim to develop a forum for professors, researchers and students to discuss current issues in political economy and the editors encourage submissions in all fields of heterodox economics in order to provide practical contributions to the literature, and to further the influence of economics in the world of practical affairs.

The Essays in Political Economy (EPE) is an heterodox journal that welcomes submissions from academics, practitioners and students of all levels seeking to broaden and strengthen the foundational structure of the study of economic systems. The EPE sees itself primarily as a journal of opinion-based, interdisciplinary political economy.

Submissions can be in the form of but not limited to, scholarly articles, book reviews, guest editorials, and announcements. In preparing your submissions, we ask that you keep the following procedures and editorial practices in mind, and please do not hesitate to contact the EPE Editorial Board ( journal@iipec.com ) for clarifications or with any questions as they may arise. Click here for submission procedures.

"Pluralism in Economics Education"

The International Review of Economics Education (IREE) is publishing a special issue on "pluralism in economics education: issues in teaching and learning". The special issue is to appear in November 2009 and the guest editor will be Dr Andy Denis of City University London. Meanwhile IREE and the Association for Heterodox Economics (AHE) are holding a one-day workshop in October 2008 at City University London on "Pluralism in economics: rethinking the teaching of economics". The calls for papers for the journal and the workshop can be seen at http://tinyurl.com/2v4qyv  and http://tinyurl.com/2s5ab7. 

The deadlines for submission are:
- for the IREE/AHE workshop: abstracts by Friday, 6 June 2008; and
- for the IREE special issue: full papers by Friday, 28 November 2008. Abstracts and papers should be sent by email to a.denis@city.ac.uk.

Bilbao Conference 2008

Call for papers

The deadline to submit papers and proposals of sessions to the 5th International Conference Developments in Economic Theory and Policy (Bilbao, Spain, July 10-11, 2008) has been extended to June 10, 2008.

For more information, you can visit the website of the conference ( www.conferencedevelopments.com ) or email to Jesus Ferreiro ( jesus.ferreiro@ehu.es )

Revue de la régulation: Capitalisme, Institutions, Pouvoirs

http://regulation.revues.org 

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS THEMATIC ISSUE ON :
The Measuring of Institutions

Over the past decade, economic analysis has accorded growing importance to the institutionalist approach in the understanding of micro- or macroeconomic phenomena. Indeed, from Aoki and Durkheim to North, Commons or Hall and Soskice, the literature draws on a wide variety of theoretical frameworks in order to define institutions and characterise how they function within social systems, depending on the paradigms and methodologies used. But beyond this multiplicity of concepts and theoretical choices, critical analysis increasingly calls for a clarification of the empirical methods which would serve to describe these institutions and their dynamics (emergence, decline, adaptations, interconnections, etc.).
To this end, the Revue de la régulation (Capitalisme, Institutions, Pouvoirs) would like to devote a thematic issue to the question of how real institutions can be translated into empirical data aimed at grasping their characteristics and furthering applied research.
Measuring the quality and effects of regulation by means of indicators is a current practice in the field of labour economics. The measuring of certain institutions, whether political (democracy, administrative organisation, etc.) or legal (in areas such as legal or constitutional monitoring of the state, the courts, the independence of the judicial system) has recently been developed in macro-economics (Barro) or in the framework of New Comparative Economics (Djankov, La Porta, Lopez-de-Silanes, Shleifer). And other noteworthy questions about institutional conditions have been raised in development economics (from Rodrik to the New Political Economy) or by the variety-of-capitalisms approach.
This scientific context justifies a review of achievements to date concerning the methods and practices of measuring institutions. But the editorial committee is also interested in proposals for articles suggesting what institutionalist- or regulationist-inspired research can contribute as alternative constructions of institutional variables or tools for quantitative analysis (statistics, factor analysis, econometrics).
Submissions might, for example, address (but please note that there are no restrictions on empirical fields or topics):
- available databases and their uses;
- the influence of theoretical choices or technical constraints of modelling on the development of techniques for the measuring of institutions;
- what regulation indicators actually measure?
- the scope and limits of the measuring of institutions for purposes of international comparative analysis.

Proposals (300 words maximum) should be submitted before 30 June 2008 to the issue coordinators by e-mail ( regulation@revues.org ). The issue is scheduled for publication in 2009.

Coordinators :
Thierry KIRAT (thierry.kirat@dauphine.fr  – IRISES-CNRS (UMR 7170), Université de Paris-Dauphine)
Jean-Pierre CHANTEAU (jean-pierre.chanteau@upmf-grenoble.fr  – LEPII-CNRS (UMR 5252), Université Grenoble-

Revue de la régulation: Capitalisme, Institutions, Pouvoirs

http://regulation.revues.org

APPEL À CONTRIBUTIONS SUR LE THÈME
La mesure des institutions

Depuis une dizaine d’années, l’analyse économique attribue une place croissante à la problématique institutionnaliste dans la compréhension des phénomènes micro- ou macro-économiques. Certes, la littérature mobilise une grande variété de cadres théoriques (de Durkheim à Aoki en passant par North, Commons ou Hall et Soskice) pour définir les institutions et caractériser les systèmes institutionnels, selon les choix paradigmatiques ou méthodologiques des auteurs. De très nombreux travaux et publications ont été consacrés à la théorisation des institutions en économie, qui illustrent la pluralité des concepts et des choix théoriques. Il semble que les progrès de l’analyse économique des institutions appellent de plus en plus une clarification des méthodes empiriques qui permettraient de les décrire et de comprendre leurs dynamiques (genèse, déclin, agencements, etc.).
La question de la transformation des institutions réelles en données empiriques ayant vocation à capturer les caractéristiques de ces institutions et à alimenter le travail d’analyse appliquée constitue précisément l’objet du dossier thématique que la Revue de la régulation (Capitalisme, Institutions, Pouvoirs) souhaite consacrer à ce thème.
Ainsi, la mesure de la qualité et des effets de la réglementation par le biais d’indicateurs est une pratique courante dans le champ de l’économie du travail. Des développements récents de la mesure de certaines institutions politiques (démocratie, organisation administrative…) ou juridiques (dans des domaines tels que le contrôle judiciaire ou constitutionnel de l’Etat, les tribunaux, l’indépendance de la justice) ont été réalisés en analyse macroéconomique (Barro) ou dans le cadre de la Nouvelle Économie Comparative (Djankov, La Porta, Lopez-de-Silanes, Shleifer). De même, les questions ouvertes sur les conditions institutionnelles en économie du développement (de Rodrik à la Nouvelle Économie Politique) ou par la théorie de la variété des capitalismes méritent d’être signalés.
Ce contexte scientifique justifie un bilan d’étape critique des méthodes et des pratiques de mesure des institutions. Cependant, le comité de direction sera aussi attentif aux propositions d’articles présentant ce que les travaux de sensibilité institutionnaliste ou régulationniste peuvent apporter comme constructions alternatives de variables institutionnelles et comme outils d’analyse quantitative (statistique, analyses factorielles, économétrie).
À titre indicatif, le comité attend notamment des contributions sur :
- les bases de données disponibles et leurs usages ;
- l’influence des choix théoriques ou des contraintes techniques de la modélisation sur la construction des techniques de mesure des institutions ;
- que mesurent les indicateurs consacrés à la réglementation ?
- la portée et les limites de la mesure des institutions pour l’analyse comparative internationaliste.
NB : Les champs empiriques ou les thèmes ne font l’objet d’aucune restriction.
Les propositions de contributions (2 000 signes maximum) sont à adresser avant le 30 juin 2008 (publication prévue en 2009) à l’adresse suivante : regulation@revues.org.

Coordination :
Thierry KIRAT (thierry.kirat@dauphine.fr  – IRISES-CNRS (UMR 7170), Université de Paris-Dauphine)
Jean-Pierre CHANTEAU (jean-pierre.chanteau@upmf-grenoble.fr  – LEPII-CNRS (UMR 5252), Université Grenoble-2)

Association for Institutional Thought [AFIT]

2009 CALL FOR PAPERS

The annual meeting and 30th anniversary of AFIT will be held
April 15-18, 2009
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Hyatt Regency, Downtown
In conjunction with the Western Social Science Association (WSSA) 51st Annual Conference

Theme for the 2009 Conference: Economics When People Matter

Institutionalism distinguishes itself from mainstream economics through its emphasis on people and the role that culture and institutions play in bettering the human condition. As the advancement of human welfare and its distributive implications are seen as an objective of economic inquiry by Institutionalists, this year’s AFIT theme focuses on what economics – the questions asked, the modes of analysis employed, and the policies advocated – looks like when “people matter.” Papers and panels that explore such topics as Fiscal and Monetary Policy When People Matter; Labor Economics When People Matter; Distribution When People Matter, Welfare Reform When People Matter, Resolving the Home Loan Crisis When People Matter, Environmental Economics When People Matter, etc. are encouraged. Click here for detailed information. The Association for Institutional Thought’s (AFIT) annual meeting will be held April 15-18 in Albuquerque New Mexico. For those unfamiliar with AFIT, the annual meeting provides a relaxed atmosphere to interact with colleagues, share research, and pursue new ideas. This collegial environment affords an excellent opportunity for those interested in, but less familiar with, Institutional economics to learn more. Likewise, graduate students can share their work and receive critical and thoughtful feedback from established scholars.
Albuquerque is a delightful city, and for those of us from northern climates, affords an early opportunity to experience spring. While the collegiality, warm weather, and delicious cuisine are reason enough to attend the conference, this year’s meeting offers an additional incentive: it will be AFIT’s 30th anniversary! Appropriately, we will be hearing from some of our founding members; about their long term experiences with AFIT, the legacy of Institutional economics, and the viability of its intellectual traditions as we move forward as an association.

Special Issue of the IJSE on "Radical Economics"

There are two obvious senses of "radical" economics. Literally, the term implies searching for the roots of the subject and then attempting to create a new viewpoint from there. More ordinarily, perhaps, the term suggests a basic break with the orthodoxy of a given moment. For the purposes of this special issue, we are looking for papers, about economists and theories that are radical in both these senses.

Some names come to mind at once: Proudhon and Marx, for instance. Proudhon remains interesting not least because he proposed an alternative to a money economy; something which might be possible given current powers of information storage and transfer and means of communication, which allow people to negotiate (at least in large groups) about what they want and what they are willing to do for it. The combination of state capitalism and political authoritarianism that came to be called Marxism-Leninism never had much to do with what Marx actually wrote. As a concept, it is now virtually dead. However, problems posed by the Marxists live on. The tendency to ever larger groupings of economic power and the persistence of "colonial economies", in which people produce for profitability of the developed world rather than for the purposes of consumption (whilst consuming what other countries send to them), are good examples. So ‘Marxism today’ and ‘Proudhon today’ are possible topics.

Other names may be arguable and we are happy to look at such arguments.

- Were Léon Walras (often compared to the Fabian socialists) and his (surprising) admirer Josef Schumpeter (who spoke of "creative destruction") radical economists?
- Was John Kenneth Galbraith a radical?
- Is perhaps John Maynard Keynes now to be considered a radical and not the centre of orthodoxy? (In our terms, von Hayek, once a radical, now seems near the centre of orthodoxy, so where does that leave Keynes)

Henry George has been appropriated for another special issue, but Gandhi may not have been exhausted by our special issue on India.
Authors are free to make their own suggestions and also to write about just what radical economics might consist of in our times and about its prospects.

The submission deadline for this special issue is 31 July 2008 but earlier submissions are welcomed. Manuscripts should be sent electronically by e-mail (in Word file format) to:

The Publisher
Adam Smith
E-mail: asmith@emeraldinsight.com 

All papers will be reviewed in accordance with IJSEs normal review processes. Authors are asked to follow the International Journal of Social Economics’ standard formatting requirements which can be viewed at: www.emeraldinsight.com/ijse.htm.

Authors wishing to discuss their papers prior to submission should contact the Editor, Professor Armour ( leslie.armour@collegedominicain.ca ).

10th Path to Full Employment Conference

December 4-5, 2008

Theme: Labour underutilisation, skill shortages, and social inclusion Three sides of the same coin

The Centre of Full Employment and Equity (CofFEE) will be staging the 10th Path to Full Employment Conference combined with the 15th edition of the National Unemployment Conference at the University of Newcastle on Thursday, December 4 and Friday, December 5, 2008. Click here for the flyer.

This is also CofFEE's 10th Anniversary and so a special event is planned for the Conference.

The Home Page for the Conference is at http://e1.newcastle.edu.au/coffee/conferences/2008/index.cfm 

We are calling for papers for the open sessions which broadly address the major theme of the conference.
Papers are particularly welcome in the following research and policy areas:

- What is full employment? How is it defined and measured? How close are we to achieving full employment? What are the challenges that remain?
- The increasing problem of underemployment and marginal workers.
- The increased precariousness of work.
- How can the new Federal Government's social inclusion agenda be designed and implemented.
- The skills shortage debate - what is the extent of the problem and what are the solutions? Who should be responsible for skills development?
- The challenge of the VET system - is a competitive VET market the best way to develop skills?
- Employment guarantees - why are several countries now turning to Job Guarantee-type policies to combat poverty and unemployment? What are the lessons for Australia?
- Why do disparities in regional labour markets persist? What is the extent of the problem and its solutions? Spatial patterns of work and housing.
- Long term, youth, disabled and indigenous unemployment
- Welfare to work issues;

Special workshops:
We plan to hold two special workshops during the Conference and researchers and policy makers are invited to submit papers and/or proposals if they wish to present at these workshops.

Workshop 1: Creating effective employment solutions for Australian regions.
Workshop 2: Enhancing employment opportunities for the mentally disabled.

Deadline for abstracts:
Detailed paper submission guidelines including dates can be found on the Conference WWW site. The relevant dates for abstract submission are as follows:

1. Presenters may elect to have their paper considered for the refereed or the non-refereed stream. Refereed papers will be included in a printed volume of conference proceedings (which will constitute a referred conference paper under Australian government rules).

2. Abstracts for the refereed stream should be submitted by September 1, 2008.

3. Abstracts for the non-refereed stream should be submitted by September 29, 2008.

Appel à articles pour la RFSE : la responsabilité sociale des entreprises

« La plupart des définitions de la responsabilité sociale des entreprises décrivent ce concept comme l'intégration volontaire des préoccupations sociales et écologiques des entreprises à leurs activités commerciales et leurs relations avec leurs parties prenantes ». (Livre vert de la Commission européenne, Promouvoir un cadre européen pour la responsabilité sociale des entreprises, 2001, p.7)

Le livre vert de la Commission européenne arrête non seulement une définition commune de la RSE (Responsabilité Sociale et environnementale des Entreprises), mais signifie également la reconnaissance, par la Commission, du potentiel régulatoire de ce mouvement « volontaire » des entreprises. Du point de vue de la régulation de nos sociétés occidentales, et européennes, c'est une rupture assez nette relativement au mode précédent de régulation économique et sociale connue dans la littérature sous l'expression « compromis social fordiste ». Il s'agit en effet de requalifier les entreprises comme acteurs responsables de la régulation des rapports sociaux et environnementaux, autrefois gérés non pas par les entreprises mais par les macro acteurs du rapport salarial : État et partenaires sociaux. C'est à la profondeur de ce tournant institutionnel et à la pérennité de la forme de régulation « micro fondée » que représente la RSE que nous souhaitons consacrer le futur dossier de la RFSE.

Cette question se prête en effet un traitement interdisciplinaire que valorise la revue : la question de la régulation des rapports sociaux et du rapport à l'environnement, au sein et grâce aux entreprises, implique en effet un regard empruntant aux différentes sciences sociales. Chaque discipline propose en effet un traitement spécifique, complémentaire des autres approches, permettant de mettre en avant les enjeux en termes de : régulation macroéconomique et macro-sociale (enjeux socio-économiques), modification de la législation et de la réglementation nationale et internationale (sciences juridiques), modification de la gestion et des frontières de l'entreprise (sciences de gestion), rapports de forces politiques (sciences politiques) et distinction du neuf (la RSE) de l'ancien (le paternalisme) propre aux sciences historiques.


Cette interdisciplinarité trouve sa source dans l'objet « RSE » qui rapproche de fait les problématiques autrefois distinguées de la performance privée de l'entreprise, de son encastrement (et de son influence sur l'environnement) social et juridique et des performances en termes de bien-être collectif. Mais elle se nourrit aussi de l'approche méthodologique particulière que nous souhaitons valoriser et qui consiste à interroger la RSE sous l'angle de la transition institutionnelle qu'elle représente, puisqu'elle émerge du plan microéconomique sur la base de l'affaiblissement des anciennes structures régulatrices que formaient l'État social et les divers dispositifs juridiques encadrant strictement l'activité de l'entreprise et son rapport au travail. La notion de transition institutionnelle, de dynamique ou d'émergence de nouvelles règles collectives est en effet au coeur du questionnement des sciences sociales contemporaines. Cette notion pose trois questions saillantes de nature épistémologique : comment se représenter l'acteur économique ? Quelle représentation se faire de l'institution (et de son rapport à l'action individuelle ou collective) ? Comment prendre en compte le temps de l'institution dansson épaisseur historique ? (par opposition au temps instantané du marché « standard » des économistes).
Notre appel à article vise donc, de par son objet et sa méthodologie institutionnaliste, à interroger le coeur des sciences sociales à partir d'un repérage empirique solide des processus RSE.

Les propositions d'articles sont à envoyer avant le 1er septembre 2008, selon les strictes consignes éditoriales précisées sur le site de la revue.
http://rfse.univ-lille1.fr/consignes/consignes.htm  rf-socioeconomie@univ-lille1.fr


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Conferences, Seminars and Lectures

Franco - German Conference: Frankreich - ein Vorbild für Deutschland?

Call for participants

19-20 June 2008
Berlin, Neue Mälzerei

The conference addresses economic policy issues in France and Germany that may provide some lessons for each other. It is jointly organized by IMK in the HBS and OFCE. Speakers are among others Reinhard Bütikofer, Peter Bofinger, Robert Boyer, Jean-Louis Levet and Jean-Paul Fitoussi. Conference language is English (no translation).

Programme and registration: http://www.boeckler.de/33_90439.html

Buddhism in the Age of Consumerism

2nd International conference of the Buddhist Economics Research Platform – Theory and Practice
On December 1-3, 2008 there is a conference "Buddhism in the Age of Consumerism" being held at Mahidol University, Salaya Campus, Thailand. On December 5-7, 2008 the 2nd International conference of the Buddhist Economics Research Platform will be held at Ubon Ratchathani University, Warin Chamrab, Ubon Ratchathani Thailand. For more information: http://buddhist-economics.info.

Finance and Farming - Sectors within or boundaries of economic life?

6.30 - 8.00 PM Thursday May 22nd, London School of Economics,S306, The session will begin with a focusing contribution as the basis for a free ranging discussion by the participants.

Convenors: Dr. Christopher Houghton Budd, Arthur Edwards - contact mail@cfae.biz Sponsored by the Centre for Associative Economics (cfae.biz) Attendance charge: £5 (Students free) LSE, Room S306, 3rd Floor, St. Clement’s, Houghton Street, London WC2A 2AE http://www.lse.ac.uk/resources/mapsAndDirections/findingYourWayAroundLSE.htm

Seminar Series: Rudolf Steiner - Economist of Tomorrow Known mainly in this country for his work in education, Rudolf Steiner also made an important contribution to modern economics. In these seminars some of Steiner's key thoughts will be explored against the background of today's events.

June 19th
Pluralist and Practical - How should economics be taught?

Seminar in the History of Economic Theory

A group of scholars at Clare Hall is organizing a Seminar in the history of economic theory. Its field of interests will draw from pre-Enlightenment and Enlightenment ideas, classical political economy, the Cambridge tradition in political economy, issues in the epistemology of economics and economic philosophy, and the policy implications of economic theories. The Seminar will meet regularly in each term at Clare Hall, on Mondays at 8.15 pm, with a presentation of around 30 minutes followed by discussion. The meetings are directed to scholars at all levels, including graduate and research students for whom the history of economic ideas is of interest.
The first meeting is on Monday 19th May 2008 in the meeting room at Clare Hall.
Geoff Harcourt (Emeritus Reader in History of Economic Theory, University of Cambridge, Emeritus Fellow of Jesus College and Life Member of Clare Hall) will speak on
`After Joan Robinson's The Accumulation of Capital'.
Further details can be found on the Clare Hall website: http://www.clarehall.cam.ac.uk/  

IFS Annual Lecture by Vincent Cable MP

Economic policy lessons from the disappearing decade of stability

Date: 07 July 2008 18:00 to 19:30 (registration from 5.30 - please arrive as early as you can as security measures may delay registration)
Venue: Bloomberg LP, London

http://www.ifs.org.uk/events.php?event_id=348

The fruits of a decade (now almost 15 years) of steady growth, low inflation and ever expanding employment are now threatened by the consequences of severe asset inflation (and, potentially, deflation) and financial instability and imported inflation. Is this just temporary bad luck? Or are there serious flaws in the economic policy framework which future governments will have to address?

11th Summer Institute

11th Summer Institute on Economic History, Philosophy and History of Economic Thought: Decision Theory : History and Methodology

Paris and Surroundings, Saint-Denis
From Monday the 1st to Friday the 5th September 2008.
Organized by PHARE (Pôle d'Histoire de l'Analyse et des Représentations Economiques, Université Paris I Panthéon-Sorbonne), LED (Laboratoire d'Economie Dyonisien, Université Paris VIII Saint-Denis) and supported byAssociation Charles Gide pour l'Étude de la Pensée Économique
Click here for detailed information.

2008 DARE Graduate School

Overview
The annual DARE Graduate School in Economic Governance, Development and Public Policy will be held at the Åbo Akademi University, Department of Economics and Statistics, Turku, Finland. It will take place from 15th - 21st September 2008.
The School is co-ordinated and organised by DARE (Democratic Communities in Academic Research on Economic Development) (www.dareschools.net), a community of international faculty focused on enhancing theoretical and policy understanding around democratic economic development. The School has a ten year history, having evolved from the L’institute-Ferrara Graduate School, which took place in Ferrara, Italy from 1998 to 2005. Its location now moves each year to be hosted by alumni of previous schools. In 2006 it was held in Bath, UK, and in 2007 in Reus, Spain. Click here for detailed information.

Galbraith Conference

We are planning a conference to discuss the historical impact of the life, work and influence of J.K. Galbraith, to be held in Cardiff University in September 2008.

This conference aims to explore and analyse Galbraith's contribution from the perspective of the historian. The focus will not be so much on an assessment of Galbraith as an economist but on questions about his role in influencing the development of economics over time, about why his perspective generated (and still generates) controversy, about the philosophies and traditions it draws upon, about his part in the Keynesian revolution and the development of a post-Keynesian analysis, about the value of his work in assisting our understanding of advanced capitalist societies in the second half of the twentieth century, and about his relationship with Liberalism and the Left in the USA and the UK.

Our intention is to explore these issues by bringing together contributions from a group of leading contemporary historians, as well as economists, political scientists ands sociologists who have worked in areas of study influenced by Galbraith's research and publications. The value of the project has been recognised by Past and Present: its editorial board has agreed to associate this distinguished journal with the conference. The full programme can be found at

http://www.cardiff.ac.uk/hisar/newsandevents/history/galbraith-conference.html

Speakers: Anthony Badger (Cambridge), Roger Backhouse (Birmingham), Michael Dietrich (Sheffield), James Foreman-Peck (Cardiff), Giuseppe Fontana (Leeds), Matthew Hilton (Birmingham), Roger Middleton (Bristol), Richard Parker (Harvard), Noel Thompson (Swansea). The conference will conclude with a discussion led by Alan Milward (LSE and EUI) and Jim Tomlinson (Dundee).

The History of Economics Society

The HES will have 4 sessions at the 2009 ASSA meetings in San Francisco. We received a number of excellent session proposals, as well as individual papers. We selected these 4 sessions in an attempt to balance periods and approaches, as well as newcomers to the association and well-known members. Thanks to everyone who offered a paper:

SESSION TITLE: Theory of Moral Sentiments After 250 Years
Chair: Sandra Peart, University of Richmond
Deirdre McCloskey, University of Illinois, Adam Smith Shows Bourgeois Theory at Its Amiable Best
Vernon Smith, Chapman University, The Wealth in Adam Smith's First and Last Book
Sandra Peart, University of Richmond and David Levy, George Mason University, The Loss of Sympathy

DISCUSSANTS: Benjamin Friedman, Harvard University; George Loewenstein, Carnegie Mellon University; Jonathan Wight, University of Richmond

2. SESSION TITLE: The Real Debate of the 1950's: Marshallian versus General Equilibrium Approaches
Chair: E. Roy Weintraub, Duke University
H. Spencer Banzhaf, Georgia State University Applied welfare economics at mid-century
Marcel Boumans, University of Amsterdam, Looking under the hood: Leontief versus statistical econometricians
Eric Schliesser, Leiden University, Monopoly and Methodology at 'Chicago': Nutter and Stigler

SESSION DISCUSSANT:
E. Roy Weintraub, Duke University

3. SESSION TITLE: The Role of Oral History in the Study of Economics
Chair:Maria Pia Paganelli, Yeshiva University
Craig Freedman, Macquarie University (AU): South Side Blues: An Oral History of the Chicago School

Tiago Mata, Technical University of Lisbon: Not biography: how to make the most of oral history of elites

John Lodewijks, University of Western Sydney: Economists from the Antipodes: What can oral history tell us?

DISCUSSANTS:
E. Roy Weintraub, Duke University
Paul Oslington, University of Notre Dame (Australia)
4. SESSION TITLE: Growth Theory in Historical Perspective
CHAIR: Robert W. Dimand, Brock University
Kevin D. Hoover, Duke University: Was Harrod Right?

Harald Hagemann, Universitat Hohenheim-Stuttgart: Solow's 1956 Contribution in the Context of Early Growth Models

Robert W. Dimand, Brock University and Barbara Spencer, University of British Columbia: Trevor Swan and the Neoclassical Growth Model

Steven Durlauf, University of Wisconsin: The Rise and Fall of Cross-Country Regressions

DISCUSSANTS:
Robert W. Dimand, Brock University; Steven Durlauf, University of Wisconsin; Kevin D. Hoover, Duke University; Harald Hagemann, Universitat Hohenheim-Stuttgart

Looking For Lukács

A symposium in the School of Social Science, Media and Cultural Studies University of East London June 25th 2008 1:00pm - 5:00pm Room EB.G.11

In an era when the hegemony of capitalism within Western culture appears to be almost unchallengeable, can we afford to ignore one of the greatest critics of capitalism's fundamental cultural processes? A range of recent and current work to be presented here has taken up the challenge of Györky Lukács, arguably the father of 'Western Marxism'.

Speakers and Titles

Andrew Hemingway - Totality vs. Reification: The Significance of Romantic Anti-Capitalism in History and Class Consciousness Andrew Hemingway is Professor in History of Art at University College London. His publications include Artists on the Left: American Artists and the Communist Movement, 1926-1956/ (2002) and the edited volume Marxism and the History of Art: From William Morris to the New Left (2006).

Tim Hall - Materialism and Metaphysics: Lukács & Adorno Tim Hall is senior lecturer in International Politics at the University of East London where he teaches courses on the history of political thought and contemporary political philosophy. He is the co-author of Theories of the Modern State: theories & ideologies (Edinburgh University Press, 2007) with Erika Cudworth and John McGovern and has written various articles and reviews on Critical Social Theory. He is currently working on a book on Adorno and Hegelian Marxism.

Timothy Bewes - How to Escape from Literature: Lukács, Cinema, and the Theory of the Novel Timothy Bewes is Associate Professor at Brown University. He is the author of Cynicism and Postmodernity (1997) and Reification, or the Anxiety of Late Capitalism (2002), both published by Verso, and is currently working on a book called The Event of Shame: Literature after Colonialism.

Andy Fisher - Allan Sekula's 'Novelistic Fantasy': Lukács, Aesthetic Totality and the Literary Problematisation of Photographic Form.
Andy Fisher is an artist and Lecturer in Visual Cultures at Goldsmiths College. Most recent publication, 'Beyond Barthes: Rethinking the Phenomenology of Photography', Radical Philosophy, No. 148, March / April, 2008. Coeditor of 'Photography and Literature in the Twentieth Century', eds. David Cunningham, Andrew Fisher and SasMays, Cambridge: Cambridge Scholars Press, 2005.

Stewart Martin - The art of capital in Lukács Stewart Martin is a member of the editorial collective, and reviews editor, of Radical Philosophy, and teaches philosophy and art at Middlesex University.

Attendance is free and open to all. To register email Jeremy Gilbert:
J.Gilbert@uel.ac.uk

For transport info see http://www.uel.ac.uk/ssmcs/about/location.htm

Automobility: A Conference on the 100th Anniversary of the Model T

Automobility: A Conference on the 100th Anniversary of the Model T on November 6-7, 2008 at the Hagley Museum and Library in Wilmington, Delaware focuses on the impact of motor vehicles in America since 1908.

History of American Capitalism

Grad Student Conference
The History of Capitalism in the United States is a graduate student conference at Harvard University on November 6-8, 2008.

Circulations: Economies, Currencies, Movements in American Studies

The New York Metro American Studies Association and the Columbia Journal of American Studies welcome papers on any historical period for Circulations: Economies, Currencies, Movements in American Studies on November 8, 2008. Presentations that circulate across historical and disciplinary borders are particularly encouraged.

The Representation of Working People in Britain and France

The Representation of Working People in Britain and France at the Université de Rouen from November 13 to 15, 2008 constitutes a reconsideration of representations of workers and the meaning and experience of labor, and the ways in which the socio-political relations of work were mediated from the medieval period to the 20th century.

Character & Trajectory of the Indian Economic Formation in an Era of Globalization

The opening keynote for The Character and Trajectory of the Indian Economic Formation in an Era of Globalisation on November 26 to 28, 2008 at the University of Delhi will be given by Professor K.M. Shrimali, on the mode of production as a concept in Indian historiography.

The impact of global competition on Australian Manufacturing prices: 1983-2007

Neville Norman (University of Melbourne) and Ken Coutts ( Cambridge University) [part of Coutts, Godley, and Nordhaus]
Wed, 18 Jun
Time: 12:00-13:00
Room: ASB107

This study examines to what extent increased international competition in the supply of manufactured products to Australian domestic markets has caused producers to set prices that match the movement in competing imported prices. We assemble data on Australian producer prices with matched cost data and the price of competing manufactured imports for aggregate manufacturing and a number of sub-sectors. The study follows a similar approach taken by the authors to analyse foreign and domestic competition for the UK manufacturing sector and a variety of sub-sectors in the period 1970-2000. We present interim results for Australian aggregate manufacturing are remarkably similar to the earlier UK study and indicate that while imported prices have an influence on domestic price setting, domestic unit cost movements dominate.  

Pluralist and Practical - How should economics be taught?

June 19th LSE
Seminar Session:

June 19th
Pluralist and Practical - How should economics be taught?
6.30 - 8.00 PM - London School of Economics,S306,

The session will begin with a focusing contribution as the basis for a free ranging discussion by the participants.
Convenors: Dr. Christopher Houghton Budd, Arthur Edwards - contact mail@cfae.biz (tel - 01227 738207)
Sponsored by the Centre for Associative Economics (cfae.biz) Attendance charge: £5 (Students free) LSE, Room S306, 3rd Floor, St. Clement's, Houghton Street, London WC2A 2AE http://www.lse.ac.uk/resources/mapsAndDirections/findingYourWayAroundLSE.htm

Seminar Series: Rudolf Steiner - Economist of Tomorrow Known mainly in this country for his work in education, Rudolf Steiner also made an important contribution to modern economics. In these seminars some of Steiner's key thoughts will be explored against the background of today's events. 

Reproductions: Social Class in Theory and Practice with Bourdieu and Gramsci

A DAY OF WORKSHOPS - CALL FOR PARTICIPANTS

ALL SPEAKERS HAVE BEEN CONFIRMED

Saturday June 21st 2008 at the University of Warwick

Keynote Speakers:
Prof. Andreas Bieler (Nottingham)
Prof. Lisa Adkins (Goldsmiths)
Prof. Michael Grenfell (Southampton)

Andreas Bieler is Professor of Political Economy and Fellow of the Centre for the Study of Social and Global Justice at the University of Nottingham. He has published widely in the area of International Relations/International Political Economy and the analysis of European integration from a neo-Gramscian perspective. He is author of Globalisation and Enlargement of the European Union (Routledge, 2000) as well as The Struggle for a Social Europe: Trade unions and EMU in times of global restructuring (Manchester University Press, 2006).

Lisa Adkins is Professor of Sociology at Goldmiths, University of London.
Her contributions to Sociology fall into three main areas: the sociology of post-industrial economies, social and cultural theory and the sociology of gender and sexuality. Running across these themes is an interest in the contemporary social theory of Bourdieu particularly in regard to how Bourdieu's social theory may be of use to and is transformed by engagements with feminist theory. Her publications include Feminism After Bourdieu (edited with Bev Skeggs) and Revisions: Gender and Sexuality in Late Modernity.

Michael Grenfell is Professor of Education at the School of Education in the Faculty of Law, Arts and Social Sciences at the University of Southampton, UK. He is an international researcher who has published extensively on culture, language and education and is a recognized authority on the work of Pierre Bourdieu. He is author of Bourdieu and Education (1998) and Pierre Bourdieu: Agent Provocateur (2004); Art Rules, Pierre Bourdieu and the Visual Arts (2007) and Bourdieu: Education and Training (2007).

This innovative day of workshops for PhD students aims to stimulate interdisciplinary exchange on the theoretical frameworks used to investigate social class and its cultural and political manifestations in the disciplines of the organisers: Sociology, Politics and International Studies (PAIS) and Literature studies.

While these disciplines are not worlds apart, their separate theoretical tools have taken their analysis down different though not always divergent paths. The workshop will showcase and challenge two of the most promising general theories of social class and culture, with the purpose of generating useful connections and intellectual exchange.

The workshop will bring together researchers and specialists thinking about the reproduction of social and political cultures in a variety of settings. Truly interdisciplinary in approach, it aims to break down institutional barriers by forging interpersonal relations, and searching for commonality between fields and approaches which are normally considered incompatible: namely, Bourdieusian and neo-Gramscian theories.

The format of the day will depart from traditional conferences. There will be four parallel streams in the morning and afternoon. Two papers will be given in each session, and will then form the basis of a workshop facilitated by trained and experienced PhD students. The aim of the workshop is to provide a stimulating, challenging and supportive environment in which to share ideas. The cost of the day will be £10 per delegate which includes refreshments, a buffet lunch and a wine reception. Some funds for expenses will be available for PhD students who are not supported by a funding body.

To register, please visit
http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/cross_fac/ias/resultsphdfunding2007/reproductions/

For more information, e-mail
ias.reproductions@warwick.ac.uk

Life despite Capitalism

Building Radical Economies
Escanda International Gathering
4 - 9 September 2008

In September 2008, the Escanda collective along with others will be hosting a five day radical economics gathering. As well as analysing the failures of the current economic system and the means of production and circulation we will learn from the possibilities and experiences of those working in the here and now, despite capitalism, to build autonomous economies from a basis of sustainability, self organisation, solidarity, respect and justice and the struggle for a better world.

The gathering will provide a space for networking and will combine workshops that focus both on the theory of radical economics and the practice – working towards creating and building radical economies within and between our own movements and collectives.

Why?

Within the movement we discuss politics - what is wrong with the system and how we build our own networks, we discuss ecology - climate change and how we develop more ecological ways of doing things, relations - how to avoid hierarchies and power relations amongst ourselves, consumerism, culture, direct action, health, education... but what about economics?

Over the last 5 years the Escanda collective and friends have organised a number of different meetings and seminars. Ranging from gender issues, popular education, renewable energies and social change, to a radical women's gathering. This year, we want to go to the belly of the beast and provide the space for skill sharing, learning, discussion and debate around economics. For many of us it remains a taboo word, or something we have not quite got our heads around, all of us have critiques, ideas and questions about the global economy and all of us, despite capitalism, are doing things ourselves to provide for and control our lives. In the seminar we hope to combine these different elements to develop our own individual understanding, radicalise and deepen our critiques, explore radical and alternative economies and join up with or form new networks of autonomous production and circulation.

What?

Whilst we have an idea about what we would like to see in the seminar, we are also very interested to hear from other groups and collectives who have been working around these issues in developing the content and programme of the seminar together. We have come up with these questions but we welcome any feedback, ideas and suggestions you might have.
– What issues and themes would you like to see represented?
– Can you offer a workshop?
– Can you think of any groups or individuals that would be useful to invite?
– What networks and groups are you involved in and (briefly) what do they do?
– What do you understand by the word 'economy'?
So far we thought we would like to look at some of the topics below:

• Looking at the mechanics of the market, global economics, money, exchange, value and wage labour. Including looking at all the things we do that are not'valued' such as domestic work or social work.
• A questionnaire and discussions amongst ourselves about ways in which we already manage our needs without money - e.g. in our families, social centres, shared flats and international networks.
• Learning about and examining existing models such as Solidarity Economics, Participatory Economics, the concept of the Commons, Anarcho-syndicalism etc.
• Learning about and examining real examples such as our own communities and social centres, the Zapatistas, Argentina from 2001, Spain during the civil war, etc.
• A networking point for those producing or circulating in non- capitalist ways.
• Working towards establishing our own production and circulation networks between groups and collectives.
• How do these model and examples link into our current real struggles? How do we hold on to what we have wrestled out of the capitalist sphere AND make them part of a bigger revolutionary process of going beyond capitalism altogether?
• Are these “radical economies” real and sustenible alternatives or they can only exist like parasites of the capitalist system?

Where?

The seminar will be held from the 4th-9th of September 2008 in Escanda. Escanda is a collective in the North of Spain - a space for interaction and cooperation between groups of people, networks and movements. Escanda aims to practice and experiment how to live together, without exchange relations and with horizontal structures. The common thread is non-hierarchical, anti-capitalist grassroots movements, with an emphasis on the environment. We subscribe to the PGA Hallmarks and work within this framework. As such Escanda organises meetings, seminars, courses, trainings, skill sharing events and provides space for projects on a wide variety of different issues.

For more information please contact lifedespitecapitalismo@googlemail.com  or www.escanda.org

SOAS Seminar

We cordially invite you to listen to leading anti-corruption U.S. lawyer Jack Blum speaking, and answering questions, on "Credit Crunch and the Mortgage Industry: A long and sordid history. "How many times must the fraud repeat before governments act?"

Jack Blum has 40 years’ experience in investigating mortgage fraud. He uncovered the BCCI scandal and brought down seven governments in the Lockheed fighter jet scandal in the sixties. An expert on money laundering and global tax fraud, his former positions include: Special Counsel to the US Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee, consultant to the UN Centre on Transnational Corporations, chair of the experts group on international asset recovery convened by the UN Centre for Drug Control and Crime Prevention, General Counsel of Americans for Democratic Action.

Weds 25th June 5.30-7.00 pm
Khalili Lecture Theatre SOAS Russell Sq
www.soas.ac.uk 

There is no need to register, but if you could tell us if you are coming – by replying to kh22@soas.ac.uk – it would be helpful and appreciated. We shall be audio recording this event and providing a transcript on our website.
 
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Job Postings for Heterodox Economists

Ruskin College

Tutor in Radical Economics and Social Sciences

Salary: Pro-rata to £28,290 - £41,545
Location: Oxford

We seek a Tutor in Radical Economics and Social Sciences to teach, develop and co-ordinate courses in the Economics of Globalisation/Green Economics/Social Economics and Radical Political Economics for Trade Union Studies, on our degrees in Social Science and Trade Union Studies. The candidate will be a well qualified and experienced scholarly enabler of adult learning.

For an application pack email: vjohansen@ruskin.ac.uk
Further information contact Wolfgang Deicke at: wdeicke@ruskin.ac.uk  or Dr Hilda Kean at: hkean@ruskin.ac.uk
Closing date: 23rd June 2008.



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Heterodox Conference Papers and Reports and Articles

The Research Network Macroeconomics and Macroeconomic Policies

The Research Network Macroeconomics and Macroeconomic Policies has finished its new research programme.

Since 1997, the research network has served as a forum for analysis and discussion of macroeconomic issues. The network aims at a revival and development of macroeconomic theory, which has been neglected during the dominance of Neoclassical Economics, Monetarism, New Classical theory and supply-side economics.

The English version of the new research programme is now available.

Download (English): http://www.boeckler.de/pdf/imk_rnm_programme_pdf
Download (German): http://www.boeckler.de/pdf/imk_pj_fmm_programm_aktuell.pdf

Eckhard Hein: Shareholder value orientation, distribution and growth - short- and medium-run effects in a Kaleckian model, Department of Economics Working Paper No. 120, 2008, Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration: http://www.wu-wien.ac.at/inst/vw1/papers/wu-wp120.pdf

Eckhard Hein, Achim Truger: Fiscal policy in the macroeconomic policy mix: A critique of the New Consensus Model and a comparison of macroeconomic policies in France, Germany, the UK and Sweden from a Post-Keynesian perspective, IMK Working Paper, 3/2008, Düsseldorf: Macroeconomic Policy Institute, Hans Boeckler Foundation: http://www.boeckler.de/pdf/p_imk_wp_03_2008.pdf

Levy News

Digital Newsletter of The Levy Economics Institute of Bard College
May 23, 2008

BOOK SERIES: NEW EDITIONS

Stabilizing an Unstable Economy
HYMAN P. MINSKY. Introduction by Dimitri B. Papadimitriou and L. Randall Wray
McGraw-Hill, 2008
www.levy.org/vdoc.aspx?docid=1067
The late American economist and Distinguished Scholar Hyman P. Minsky first wrote about the inherent instability of financial markets in the late 1950s, and his work remains relevant today—particularly in regard to the recent meltdown of the mortgage-backed securities market. This book, originally published in 1986, is Minsky’s seminal work, and it has been reissued so that it may be broadly available to a new generation of economists, analysts, and investors. Topics covered include the effect of speculative finance on investment and asset prices; booms and busts as unavoidable results of high-risk lending practices; and the need for increased Federal Reserve oversight of banks.


John Maynard Keynes
HYMAN P. MINSKY. Introduction by Dimitri B. Papadimitriou and L. Randall Wray
McGraw-Hill, 2008
www.levy.org/vdoc.aspx?docid=1068
This reissue of Minsky’s classic book offers a timely reconsideration of the work of economics icon John Maynard Keynes. In it, Minsky argues that what most economists consider Keynesian economics is at odds with the major points of Keynes’s General Theory. Like Keynes, Minsky refuses to ignore pervasive uncertainty. Once uncertainty is given center stage, they observe, recurring financial crises are all but inescapable.

NEW WORKING PAPERS

Changes in the U.S. Financial System and the Subprime Crisis
JAN KREGEL
Working Paper No. 530
www.levy.org/pubs/wp_530.pdf
Senior Scholar Jan Kregel, University of Missouri–Kansas City, traces the evolution of housing finance in the United States, outlines the reasons for the current crisis in real estate lending, and examines the impact of the crisis on the global financial system.

The International Monetary (Non-)Order and the “Global Capital Flows Paradox”
JÖRG BIBOW
Working Paper No. 531
www.levy.org/pubs/wp_531.pdf

The global capital flows paradox is that capital flows have changed direction (from poor to rich countries) because of surging foreign reserve accumulation. Research Associate Jörg Bibow, Skidmore College, hypothesizes that the root cause is systemic deficiencies in the international monetary and financial order. The position of the United States as the issuer of the world’s premiere reserve currency, combined with its supremacy in global finance, explains the conundrum of a positive investment income balance despite a negative international investment position.

Old Wine in a New Bottle: Subprime Mortgage Crisis—Causes and Consequences
MICHAEL MAH-HUI LIM
Working Paper No. 532
www.levy.org/pubs/wp_532.pdf
The author explains how the U.S. subprime mortgage crisis has led to a generalized credit crisis that ultimately affects the real economy. Recent financial innovations and strategies have heightened, not reduced, systemic risks and financial instability. In spite of attempts to improve liquidity in the money market system, the problem may have escalated to one of insolvency.

The Discrete Charm of the Washington Consensus
JAN KREGEL
Working Paper No. 533
www.levy.org/pubs/wp_533.pdf
Kregel assesses the performance of domestic demand management and industrialization in Latin America, and the validity of Washington Consensus policies. He suggests reform of the international financial architecture in line with the integrated policy framework represented in the Havana Charter (which blended the aims of full employment and domestic industrialization for developing countries) and Keynes’s clearing union proposal (to counter the negative impact of free capital flows and the debt problems of developing countries).

Argentina: A Case Study on the Plan Jefes y Jefas de Hogar Desocupados, or the Employment Road to Economic Recovery
DANIEL KOSTZER
Working Paper No. 534
www.levy.org/pubs/wp_534.pdf
The author explores how Argentina pursued a strategy of employment generation, with the state participating as employer of last resort, and recovered from one of the worst social and economic crises in history.

Statistical Matching Using Propensity Scores: Theory and Application to the Levy Institute Measure of Economic Well-Being
HYUNSUB KUM and THOMAS MASTERSON
Working Paper No. 535
www.levy.org/pubs/wp_535.pdf
This paper summarizes the background, type, logic, and working procedure of the statistical matching used in the Levy Institute Measure of Economic Well-Being (LIMEW) project to combine data sets and produce the synthetic data set with which the LIMEW is constructed.

Grupo Lujan

La revista Circus del Grupo Lujan, hace entrega de los videos de las exposiciones completas de los conferencistas de la mesa redonda: "Argentina:
Inflación, crecimiento, conflicto agropecuario", realizada el 28 de mayo de 2008, en la sede capital de la Universidad Nacional de Lujan.

Estàn separadas por expositor en orden de exposición y luego los comentarios finales y respuestas.

Javier Rodríguez (CENDA)

1- Presentación y algunos elementos de análisis http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOLPXv9GqcQ 
2-Instancias del conflicto con el agro: “no hubo una política explicita de desarrollo de la ganadería”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gI_rau72B4Y
3-Inflación en el modelo: “a partir del 2005 se observa una inflación que de alguna manera es distinta”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mqzmt7Qu1CY
4-Conclusiones: “una política de desarrollo industrial y expansión de la oferta es antiinflacionario”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7PALhL2wG4

Jorge Schvartzer (CESPA)

1-Examen de la industria argentina los últimos años:
“el sector mas dinámico en la convertibilidad era el sector financiero”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_f2VsalcKf4
2-Comparaciones con el pasado: “el crecimiento de las exportaciones industriales…es casi equivalente al saldo positivo de la balanza comercial”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1DxC8yIejs
3-Inflación y causas: “tenemos una inflación retardada, agravada por la suba brutal de los precios de las materias primas”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XACgycd27MQ
4- Conflicto y redistribución del ingreso: “la gota que rebasó el vaso”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4aiY01H04XU

Eduardo Curia (CASE)

1-Situación coyuntural: “está bastante embromada”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqqZSHApVmE
2-Inflación: Superávit “fiscal machazo” y la puja distributiva http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxFM_jYlHbE
3-Conflicto: “y parió la abuela”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRxaKqse_wM
4-“Existe un problema de tipo de cambio”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcwtxSC4yuA

Comentarios finales y respuestas:

Sobre grandes exportadoras, Clase obrera, Institucionales y péndulo argentino de Marcelo Diamand.

1-Javier Rodríguez
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAke7V9C5Zo
“Se cuestiona la forma que tiene el poder en momentos de crisis”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrooNQIMwVU
2-Jorge Schvartzer : “el problema institucional es de la derecha, que no puede controlar al gobierno”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2j7AvwN-VNU
3- Eduardo Curia: “el péndulo nos puede dejar un modelo excluyente, que yo llamo soja, shopping y timba financiera”

“cuando uno les da plata a los pobres, hablan de populismo, cuando se compra a la clase media con endeudamiento, lo llaman ortodoxia…¡eso es populismo de derecha!”.
Schvartzer.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lqYG6YlUr8

"El desacuerdo entre los sueños y la realidad no produce daño alguno,siempre que la persona que sueña crea seriamente en su sueño, se fije atentamente en la vida, compare sus observaciones con sus castillos en el aire y , en general, trabaje escrupulosamente en la realización de sus fantasías." www.geocities.com/grupo.lujan

New Reports on The Costs of Climate Change

Researchers at GDAE and SEI-US* have just released two major studies on the costs of climate change.
Click here for detailed information.

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Heterodox Journals and Newsletters

L'ADEK

L'ADEK vous présente une nouvelle revue: la REVUE FRANCAISE DE SOCIO ECONOMIE.

Si elle est tournée sur les institutions, elle est largement ouverte aux courants hétérodoxes. L'école de la régulation y est représenté ainsi que les l'école des conventions. Toutefois les post keynésiens sont les bienvenus et peuvent proposer des papiers. D'ailleurs le Clersé de Lille 1 fait partie des centres fondateurs, et des membres de l'ADEK sont présent dans le comité éditorial.

Je joints un document qui présente la revue plus longuement ainsi qu'une présentation.

Demandez à vos bibliothèques respectives de s'y abonner. Si vous voulez que des revues hétérodoxes existent, il faut absolument les faire vivre. Et c'est tout de même plus intéressant que la revue économique.

Vous pouvez joindre pour des précisions:
Richard Sobel
Maître de Conférences en Economie
Clersé (UMR 8019 CNRS)
Bureau 109 - Bâtiment SH2
Faculté des Sciences Economiques et Sociales Université des Sciences et technologies de Lille (LILLE 1)
59655 Villeneuve d'Ascq
03 20 43 45 90

Circus: Revista Argentina de Teoria Economica

El pensamiento económico heterodoxo del siglo XX
Entrevista con G. C. Harcourt... 6

Crisis de Estados Unidos
Randall Wray - Lecciones del hundimiento de las subprime. 22
Franklin Serrano - El déficit de cuenta corriente de EEUU bajo el patrón dólar flotante.. 46

Argentina: política económica y teoría heterodoxa Entrevista con Eduardo Curia.... 54

Efectos de la teoría sobre la política económica
Fabio Petri - Implicaciones para la política económica de recientes avances en la teoría del capital y de la distribución.. 72

Debates en el enfoque clásico del excedente
Alejandro Fiorito - Los rendimientos a escala y el debate del método clásico (una nota introductoria).. 107
Fabio Ravagnani - Cantidades Producidas y retornos en la teoría de precios normales en Sraffa: evidencia textual y puntos analíticos.. 113

Keynes & Kalecki
Santarcangelo & Fal - Depresión y desempleo en Kalecki y Keynes Un análisis comparativo......... 128

Reseña: Capital, Salaires et crises: une approche classique, Christian Bidard y Edith Klimovsky, 227 p., París: Dunod, 2006. ISBN: 978-2-10-005823-5.
Por Pablo Bortz... 142

Reseña: Growth, Distribution and Innovations, Amit Bhaduri. ( New York : 2007. Routledge, pp. 1-71). Por Gustavo Murga... 146

http://www.geocities.com/alejandrofiorito/circus_2.html 

The European Journal of the History of Economic Thought

Volume 15 Issue 2 is now available online at informaworld ( http://www.informaworld.com ).

This new issue contains the following articles:

British monetary orthodoxy in the 1870s: A victory for the Currency Principle, Pages 181 - 209
Authors: Sylvie Diatkine; Jérôme de Boyer

Thoreau's economic philosophy, Pages 211 - 246
Author: Christian Becker

The industry supply curve: Two different traditions, Pages 247 - 274
Authors: Arrigo Opocher; Ian Steedman

Keynes's degree of competition, Pages 275 - 291
Author: M. G. Hayes

The Italian theories of progressive taxation, Pages 293 - 315
Author: Domenicantonio Fausto

On the origins of the concept of natural monopoly: Economies of scale and competition, Pages 317 - 353
Author: Manuela Mosca

Challenge

Volume 51 Number 3 / May - June 2008 of Challenge is now available at http://mesharpe.metapress.com. 

This issue contains:
Letter from the Editor
Jeff Madrick

Americans Worry: How They View Their Lives in an Economic Downturn
Robert Blendon, John Benson

What We're In For: Projected Economic Impact of the Next Recession
John Schmitt, Dean Baker

Securitization, Liquidity, and Market Failure
Paul Davidson

The Great Divergence: Real-Wage Growth of All Workers Versus Finance Workers
Andrew Sum, Paulo Tobar, Joseph McLaughlin, Sheila Palma

Lessons from Behavioral Economics
Robert Frank

Losing Faith in the Dollar: Can It Remain the World's Dominant Reserve Currency?
Robert Carbaugh, David Hedrick

Racism and Polite Conversation
Mike Sharpe

Un panorama de la socio-économie française

Dans ce premier numéro « Panorama », la toute nouvelle Revue Française de Socio-Économie se propose de donner le « la » de sa politique éditoriale : développer une connaissance économique qui, sans rien perdre en rigueur scientifique, se nourrit de la collaboration disciplinaire et qui, sans réductionnisme ni ésotérisme, vise à la compréhension effective des économies modernes dans toutes leurs dimensions sociales.

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Heterodox Books and Book Series

General Theory Online

The online version of the General Theory is available at http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/k/keynes/john_maynard/k44g/index.html 

Institutional Economics and Psychoanalysis

INSTITUTIONAL ECONOMICS AND PSYCHOANALYSIS: HOW CAN THEY COLLABORATE FOR A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF INDIVIDUAL-SOCIETY DYNAMICS?

by Arturo Hermann
Published by UNI Service, Trento, Italy, December 2007,
link www.uni-service.it/

The idea of carrying out this work stems from the observation that although institutional economics deals with the study of human actions and motivations in their historical evolution, there has been in many cases a lack of scientific collaboration with other fields of social and psychological sciences; in this regard, psychoanalysis is a case in point.
In light of these problems, our work can be synthesized as follows: institutional economics, especially through Veblen's and Commons's contributions, has highlighted a number of aspects that provide a better understanding of the inner nature of social and economic relations. This has been realized through the elaboration of concepts which characterize, in their continual refining, the core of institutional economics: these include ceremonial/instrumental behaviour dichotomy, instincts, culture, evolution, habits, path-dependency, tacit knowledge, technology, collective action, going concerns, working rules and social valuing.
In this regard, a systematic collaboration between institutional economics and psychoanalysis can help us to analyze the following interrelated issues:
¨ The evolutionary and conflicting nature of habits, routines, organizations, institutions and social valuing.
¨ The evolutionary and conflicting nature of individual and collective decision-making processes.
¨ The analysis of structural problems, in particular in developing countries, and the role of institutions and policies in economic and social reforms.
This collaboration can greatly benefit from contributions provided by other disciplines as well. In this respect, the fact that institutional economics shares significant elements with important strands of social sciences and with pragmatist and cognitive psychology constitutes an enriching element that can contribute to a more fruitful collaboration between all these theories and psychoanalysis.

Beyond the World Bank Agenda: An Institutional Approach to Development

By
Howard Stein
Professor
Center for Afroamerican and African Studies
University of Michigan
howstein@umich.edu

The development strategies of the international financial institutions over the past few decades have been a profound failure. The crisis in many developing countries reflects a crisis in the economic theory that has driven the policies that the World Bank has imposed on those countries since 1980. The volume examines the evolution of economic policy in the World Bank focusing on how economists became hegemonic in the Bank, how economic policy evolved over time and how the shifting policy strategies reflected the changing nature of the Bank’s theoretical understanding of economic development and underdevelopment. It is argued that part of the problem with Bank policies, as economists increasingly dominated the policy branch of the agency, was the ever-narrowing of the economics profession and its growing a-institutionalism. Yet, transforming institutions is at the central core of development. When the Bank began to use institutional theory it problematically drew on the neo-classical or new institutional economic variant (NIE) and used it to buttress rather than to rethink the same orthodox agenda. The book generates an alternative approach building on the work of Gunnar Myrdal the last economist to systematically apply original institutional economic theory (OIE) to development. It also draws on 40 years of new research in organizational theory, sociology, social psychology and institutional and behavioral economics. The volume provides chapter length criticisms of the theory under the Bank’s policy strategies in three important sectors, finance, state formation and health care and generates alternative strategies based on an OIE approach. Most of the empirical work in the volume is from data from sub-Saharan Africa. However, examples from Asia, Latin America and the transitional countries of East and Central Europe are also incorporated into the book.

Published by University of Chicago Press, July 2008
http://www.press.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/hfs.cgi/00/269209.ctl

Cloth $45.00-- ISBN: 978-0-226-77167-0

Endorsements

William M. Dugger : "This book is dynamite. It blows to pieces the World Bank and the bogus economics it sold to the poor countries of the world. Professor Stein's indictment of the World Bank pulls no punches, meticulously documenting the gross incompetence and dishonesty behind the World Bank's failure to reduce world poverty. Stein's mastery of economic theory is unmatched, as is his knowledge of world poverty, particularly in Africa. You must read his book."-William M. Dugger, University of Tulsa

Philip Arestis : "Beyond the World Bank Agenda will certainly make an important and novel contribution to the literature. Howard Stein puts forward an institutional approach to development, very different and more akin to the real world than the prevailing view. Commendable."-Philip Arestis, Cambridge Center for Economic and Public Policy, Department of Land Economy, University of Cambridge

Jomo Kwame Sundaram : "Stein offers a critical review of the World Bank's economic development policy agenda and its theoretical foundations-particularly on state formation, financial development and health policies. His institutionalist perspective points to pragmatic policy alternatives to such increasingly discredited Washington Consensus policies. This book is long overdue."-Jomo Kwame Sundaram, UN Assistant Secretary General for Economic Development

John Weeks : "Every year books, about the World Bank are published. Few make an impact beyond the moment, if at all. This book does more than make an impact: it sets the standard. Its power lies in 1) its historical analysis to place World Bank practice in context, and 2) a sophisticated yet accessible treatment of the economic analysis underlying World Bank practice, and 3) why that economic analysis is fatally flawed. And, most importantly, it indicates the way forward."-John Weeks, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London

Economics for Everyone

PEF member Jim Stanford has just finished a new book that should be of interest to many of our members. It’s called “Economics for Everyone,” and is meant to be an accessible, non-technical, but critical “primer” in economics for trade unionists and social change activists. The book is co-published in Canada by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives and Fernwood Press. Internationally it is published by Pluto Press.

Here is a website describing the book and the various on-line resources and curriculum that will be available to support organizations undertaking popular economics training with the book. There is also a link for on-line ordering:

http://www.economicsforeveryone.ca
Jim will be traveling to several cities in coming months to discuss the book and conduct workshops. Here are the first two “launch” events: each will feature a presentation by Jim and a reception.

Toronto: Thursday June 12, 5-7 pm
Conference Room B&C (Mezzanine Level), Sheraton Centre Hotel (123 Queen St. W.)
Ottawa: Monday June 23, 5-7 pm
Le Salon, National Arts Centre (53 Elgin St.)

Great Thinkers in Economics: John Maynard Keynes

In October 2007 as part of their "Great Thinkers In Economics" series Palgrave/Macmillan published my book, JOHN MAYNARD KEYNES, by Paul Davidson (Palgrave/Macmillan, London and New York, 2007) ISBN# 978-1-4039-9623-7.
The publisher has informed me that the book is selling better than expected and in the Spring of 2008 it went into a second printing. I told the publisher that some economics professors had told me they might adopt the book as a text or at least a supplementary text for their class –except that the cost of the hard copy book was too expensive and no inexpensive paper back was available. Accordingly I requested that the publisher produce a paper back edition this summer. Palgrave informed me that as long as the hard copy was selling so well they did not want to undercut it with an inexpensive paper back. NEVERTHELESS THE PALGRAVE EDITOR MADE THE FOLLOWING OFFER:
"IN TERMS OF COURSE ADOPTION, IF YOU HAVE BEEN CONTACTED BY COURSE CONVENERS WHO WISH TO ADOPT THE TEXT IN THEIR COURSE PLEASE PASS THEIR DETAILS ON TO ME. WE WILL BE HAPPY TO OFFER THEM A DISCOUNT OF UP TO 50% OR MORE (DEPENDING ON THE SIZE OF THE CLASS), THIS SHOULD ENSURE THAT THE PUBLICATION IS AFFORDABLE FOR THE STUDENTS."
Accordingly, if you or any colleague would be interested in adopting my JOHN MAYNARD KEYNES book in a course, then please email me indicating your intention, course name, institution, contact address, etc, and I will forward this information to the Palgrave editor who will respond directly to you with a discount offer.
Let me remind you of some comments this book has received:
"This could be the best one-volume treatment of Keynes's economics since Keynes himself. Clear, logical and faithful, Paul Davidson introduces the real Keynes to a new generation. And do we ever need him." - James K. Galbraith, The University of Texas at Austin and Levy Economic
Institute
"Global imbalances, the unshackling of capital, the precarious state of modern capitalism: rarely has the world of economics been in more need of the thoughts of John Maynard Keynes. Although Keynes is no longer with us, this book is the next best thing. Paul Davidson is the leading expert on Keynes and Keynesianism and his book should be read by anybody who wants to understand the world as it is, rather than as the economic text books say it ought to be.
" - Larry Elliott, Economics Editor, The Guardian

"Davidson convincingly shows how Keynes's radical assault on classical economic theory was undermined by mainstream interpreters anxious to make his doctrines politically acceptable. Keynes's own ‘general theory' is compellingly explained; its obfuscators attacked with Davidson's familiar panache." - Lord Skidelsky, biographer of Keynes

"Paul Davidson's fascinating, encyclopaedic book captures the drama of the appearance of the General Theory, illuminates the controversies still surrounding it, and passionately defends Keynes's radical innovations in economic theory and policy. It is high time for economists and policymakers to go back to Keynes's own words, whose power Davidson so effectively articulates." Peter L. Bernstein, President of Peter L. Bernstein, Inc., and author of Against the Gods: The Remarkable Story of Risk and also Capital Ideas Evolving

Paul Davidson
Editor, Journal of Post Keynesian Economics
Bernard Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis
The New School
79 Fifth Avenue, 11th Floor
New York, New York 10003
phone and fax number: (732)605-0255
email: pdavidson@utk.edu
http://econ.bus.utk.edu/davidson.html

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Heterodox Book Reviews

Bad Money

by Kevin Phillips. Penguin Group, ISBN 9780670019076, 256 pages, $25.95 HB.
http://us.penguingroup.com/nf/Book/BookDisplay/0,,9780670019076,00.html 
Review by James K. Galbraith
http://www.texasobserver.org/article.php?aid=2762 

Economics: An Introduction to Traditional and Progressive Views

7th edition by H. J. Sherman, E. K. Hunt, R. F. Nesiba, P. A. O’Hara, and B. A. Wiens-Tuers. M.E. Sharpe, Armonk, New York: 2008. Paper ISBN: 978-0-7656-1668-5; USD: $89.95.
http://www.mesharpe.com/mall/resultsa.asp?Title=Economics%3A+An+Introduction+to+Traditional+and+Progressive+Views%2C+Seventh+Edition 

“An Appreciation of the new edition of Hunt, Sherman, O’Hara, Nesiba and Weins-Tuers Combined with a Suggestion” by Michael Meeropol, Western New England College

“Discussion of Economics, An Introduction to Traditional and Progressive Views by Howard Sherman, E.K. Hunt, Reynold F. Nesiba, Phillip A. O’Hara, and Barbara Wiens-Tuers” by John Miller. Click for the review1 and review2.

The Predator State

REVIEW OF THE PREDATOR STATE: How Conservatives Abandoned the Free Market and Why Liberals Should too, by James K. Galbraith. New York, London, Toronto, Sydney: Free Press, 2008. ISBN-13 978-1-4156-6683-0, ISBN-10 1-4156-6683-X c. xiv, 211 pages. (Note: review is based on Advance Uncorrected Proofs.)
Reviewed by L. Randall Wray

The Size of Nations

by Alberto Alesina and Enrico Spolaore, MIT Press, 2003. ISBN: 978-0-262-01204-1; 266 pages.
Reviewed by Sara Hsu, Trinity University

Reclaiming Nature: Environmental Justice and Ecological Restoration

Edited by James Boyce, Sunita Narain, and Elizabeth Stanton, Anthem Press, 2007.
ISBN: 9781843312352; 439 pages.
Reviewed by Amit Basole, University of Massachusetts, Amherst

Consumer Capitalism

by Anastasios S. Korkotsides, Routledge, 2007.
ISBN: 978-0-415-37518-4; 256 pages.
Reviewed by Peter T. Manicas, University of Hawai’i at Manoa

The New Development Economics: After the Washington Consensus

Edited by Jomo K.S. and Ben Fine, Zed Books. 2006. ISBN 978-1-84277-643-8; 304 pages.
Reviewed by Quentin M.H. Duroy, Denison University

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Heterodox Graduate Program and PhD Scholarships

The FHTW Berlin

The FHTW Berlin (Berlin’s largest University of Applied Sciences) is now inviting application for the next intake of our Master programme in “International and Development Economics” (MIDE), starting on April 1, 2009.

The programme is an 18-month full-time Master's degree programme in "International and Development Economics" (MIDE), taught entirely in English. Designed for students from developing and transition countries as well as from Germany and other developed countries with a special interest in the economic challenges facing "Third World"-countries, the programme prepares students to work in areas related to global economic affairs and development.

The MIDE programme has been established for students who have a first degree in economics/business administration or in other social sciences with a focus on economics. It is designed to enhance understanding of development economics, the international economic context in which socio-economic development takes place, and of key sectors and policy areas that are relevant for developing countries, with a particular focus on agriculture, financial institutions and public enterprises. In order to understand the challenges of formulating current development policies, the programme covers both the principal theoretical debates as well as specific contemporary examples of strategies, policies and projects.

MIDE has been accredited by the Foundation for International Business Administration Accreditation (FIBAA).

Applications will be accepted until 30 September 2008. The MIDE application form and further information is available on our web page:
www.mide.fhtw-berlin.de under "Prospective Students".   

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Heterodox Websites and Blogs

The Society for the Development of Austrian Economics Listserv

The Society for the Development of Austrian Economics is happy to announce the creation of a new scholarly listserv dedicated to the discussion of Austrian economics:
The AustrianEcon listserv is a scholarly discussion list sponsored by the Society for the Development of Austrian Economics (SDAE). It is devoted to the ideas of the Austrian school of economics and related contributions to the understanding of human action and its consequences. We aim for as broad a discussion as possible across any disciplines or schools of thought that relate to Austrian economics. It must be emphasized that the listserv is not a forum for political discussion except to the degree that such issues have a direct connection to the scholarly contributions of the Austrian school both past and present.

Membership in the list is subject to the approval of the list manager.
Membership will be limited to those affiliated with universities, think-tanks, or other scholarly/intellectual organizations. Exceptions for those not so affiliated will be granted on a case-by-case basis at the discretion of the list manager. SDAE members are automatically eligible for membership. You can join the Society at http://it.stlawu.edu/sdae . You can request to join the list by emailing the list manager Steve Horwitz at sghorwitz@stlawu.edu .

We strongly encourage members to use the list as a vehicle for the dissemination of their current scholarship. In particular, discussion of working papers is a very valuable use of the listserv. Any members wishing to make a paper available for discussion should contact the list manager and the paper will be posed at the SDAE website for list members to access. Austrian analyses of current contributions to the mainstream economics literature are also strongly encouraged as is discussion of current work in related disciplines (e.g., evolutionary psychology, political science, history, etc.) or traditions in economics (e.g., constitutional political economy, public choice, or various heterodox schools etc.) of which members might be less aware.

AustrianEcon is a _moderated_ listserv. All messages require approval of the list manager.

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For Your Information

Course on “Alternative Paradigms of Economics for Business Management”

Taught by Linda Nowakowski
Ubon Ratchatani University, Thailand
http://bba.bus.ubu.ac.th/index.php/Different_Economic_Paradigms_for_Business_Management-2008

En attendant le prochain krach

Un article intéressant sur la finance mathématique, largement généralisable à la macroéconomie contemporaine.
Pour susciter le débat.

Rebonds
En attendant le prochain krach
CHRISTIAN WALTER professeur des universités associé à Sciences-Po Paris, actuaire agrégé, membre du Cesces (CNRS Paris-Descartes) QUOTIDIEN LIBERATION : lundi 26 mai 2008

Combien de temps devra-t-on encore attendre pour que les établissements financiers ou bancaires installent dans leurs processus de gestion et de contrôle des risques (de marché ou de crédit), des modélisations probabilistes adaptées à la nature exacte de l’incertitude affectant les variations boursières ? Combien de pertes ou de faillites financières, combien de mises en difficultés de sociétés de gestion d’actifs, combien de désillusions d’épargnants abusés par des produits de gestion mal vendus ou mal conçus, combien de licenciements d’équipes de trading sera-t-il nécessaire de subir pour que les places financières se décident enfin, à travers leurs instances professionnelles ou régulatrices, à changer de génération de modèles probabilistes ?

Le plus terrible dans cette histoire récente est que des modèles probabilistes en finance mathématique, réellement performants et pertinents, existent depuis quelques années dans la recherche la plus en pointe. De plus, en ce domaine extrêmement compétitif et férocement gardé, l’école française de finance mathématique a acquis une réputation mondiale d’excellence par ses travaux publiés dans les meilleures revues scientifiques internationales. Mais la résistance de nombreux universitaires américains à des modèles certes plus pertinents mais qui présentent pour principal défaut celui d’être non conformes à la vulgate caduque des prix Nobel des années 1980 a pour effet d’empêcher ces modèles de pénétrer les sphères professionnelles et les instances réglementaires internationales.

Ce phénomène d’inertie intellectuelle est amplifié par une sorte de mimétisme généralisé pour des modèles datés, accompagné d’une référence (révérence ?) permanente aux productions américaines. C’est le fétichisme du mouvement brownien (la dynamique trajectorielle de base des modèles des années 1960), éventuellement amendé marginalement par des innovations sans danger pour l’édifice complet, qui continue à alimenter les pages des principales revues scientifiques de langue anglaise.

L’orthodoxie financière tient sous sa domination forte et sans failles les publications scientifiques, et les chercheurs européens les plus innovants ne peuvent accéder à ces revues que dans la mesure où ils valident, au moins implicitement, les hypothèses fausses des modélisations américaines. On appelle cela en histoire des sciences un paradigme (si l’on adopte la terminologie de Thomas Kuhn), un programme de recherche (si l’on suit plutôt la démarche d’un Imre Lakatos), un langage performatif produisant un encastrement cognitif selon Bruno Latour et Michel Callon, une convention au sens de Duhem- Quine. Quelque chose qui résiste malgré les attaques successives dont l’édifice intellectuel de la finance mathématique orthodoxe est l’objet.

Relisons donc les philosophes : selon Quine, la science totale (et ici, il s’agit de la finance mathématique) est «sous-déterminée par l’expérience», en sorte que tout événement de nature expérimentale qui contredirait les colonnes de l’édifice scientifique peut être ignoré dans sa portée révolutionnaire : «Les bordures du système doivent rester en ligne avec l’expérience ; le reste […] a pour objectif la simplicité des lois» (1). Dans la finance mathématique, les bordures du système pourraient représenter les ajustements marginaux des modélisations browniennes, tandis que le reste ne change pas. Quant à la «simplicité des lois», on pourrait trouver ici les réglementations internationales et la trop fameuse norme IAS 39 (Fair Market Value) qui reposent sur des hypothèses de marché complet, arbitré dont tous les économistes savent aujourd’hui qu’elles sont non validées.

Prenons juste une illustration. Sait-on par exemple qu’aujourd’hui, alors que de plus en plus d’institutions financières de gestion de l’épargne longue sont conduites à observer qu’une diversification maximale (conforme à celle prônée par la théorie du portefeuille de Markowitz, consolidée par le modèle d’équilibre de marché de Sharpe - les prix Nobel 1990) ne représente pas la meilleure composition d’un portefeuille pour la protection de l’épargne à long terme et que, dans certaines situations, c’est au contraire une certaine «concentration» de titres qui serait appropriée, cette question est quasiment taboue et interdite de débat dans les congrès les plus prestigieux de la finance internationale. Quels que soient les effets observés sur le couple performance - risque, le discours dominant reste la diversification. Diversifiez votre portefeuille, braves épargnants, ne vous souciez pas du lendemain, la fée diversification veille sur vous, jusqu’au prochain krach…

A la question initiale posée du moment du changement de modèles, Pierre Duhem aurait répondu : les modèles scientifiques changent «quand les colonnes vermoulues ne peuvent plus supporter un édifice qui branle de toutes parts». Combien de pertes faudra-t-il encore pour que les colonnes vermoulues du temple de la finance mathématique des années 1980 s’effondrent et pour que l’on reconstruise un édifice qui pense adéquatement l’incertitude ?

(1) W. Quine, Du point de vue logique, Vrin, 2003.

Dernier ouvrage paru:Critique de la valeur fondamentale, sous la direction de ChristianWalter et Eric Brian. Springer, 2007.

Why we buy what we buy

Here's an article on behavioural economics which appeared in The Guardian:

A shopper wants to buy some cheese, but he must decide between the 197 varieties on offer. Conventional wisdom says that such a huge choice makes it more likely he'll make a purchase. But that doesn't take into account human unpredictability, according to the new discipline of behavioural economics (cont.)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2008/may/20/consumeraffairs.economics 

Panmure House Project

Dear friends of the Panmure House Project,

As some of you might be aware already, the Edinburgh City Council agreed to the sale of Panmure House to Edinburgh Business School (which is the Graduate School of Business at the Heriot-Watt University). As is indicated in the Council decision document (accessible from the Project's website http://panmurehouseproject.googlepages.com/ ), EBS intends "to preserve and re-instate the building to reflect the lifestyle of Adam Smith, with the necessary technological infrastructure to serve as an educational hub." The sale is "subject to the agreement of the Scottish Ministers" because the accepted offer is significantly lower than the competing bid from a private developer. (The press coverage is available at
http://panmurehouseproject.googlepages.com/presscoverage/. )

On behalf of the supporters of the Panmure House Project, I have already expressed thank yous to the Council for making this important decision, and I have contacted the Scottish government to express our support for the Council's decision. We now are anxiously waiting for the decision of the Scottish government.

It is my understanding that our campaign was taken seriously by the Council (as reflected in the Council's document). Thank you again for participating in this campaign and for your effort to give due respect to Adam Smith's home and to Scottish heritage.

My personal apologies for not spreading the news earlier - this is a busy time of the academic year, too much exam marking!

Tatiana Kornienko
Coordinator
Panmure House Project
http://panmurehouseproject.googlepages.com/

A Brave Army of Heretics by David Warsh

http://www.economicprincipals.com/issues/2008.05.25/319.html 
Among the most prescient sentences I have ever written was this one, in 1984, in my first book, The Idea of Economic Complexity: "Complexity is an idea on the tip of the modern tongue."

Three years later, New York Times reporter James Gleick created a sensation in certain circles with his best-seller, Chaos: Making a New Science (1987). Complexity, The Emerging Science at the Edge of Order and Chaos, by Science news writer M. Mitchell Waldrop; and Complexity: Life at the Edge of Chaos, by his editor-colleague, Roger Lewin, two books about the Santa Fe Institute, http://www.santafe.edu/  , a research center established near Los Alamos National Laboratory in 1984 with National Science Foundation funding, appeared in 1992 (cont.).

Crude Oil Prices: "Market Fundamentals" or Speculation?

by Paul Davidson, Editor, Journal of Post Keynesian Economics
In a May 12, 2008 New York Times article entitled “The Oil Nonbubble ” Paul Krugman argued there is no evidence of a speculative oil bubble because if speculators are driving up the price of oil above the price “justified by fundamentals”, then a market adjustment would occur where “ drivers would cut back on their driving; homeowners would turn down their thermostats; owners of marginal oil wells would put them back into production ...[and the resulting] excess supply would...drive prices back down”. Click here to download the paper.

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