Knowing and Making

The Wall Street Journal's RTE blog (via Paul Krugman) has been spluttering about being misrepresented by Sarah Palin. RTE criticised her for saying "everyone who ever goes out shopping for groceries knows that prices have risen significantly over the past year or so". In fact, RTE pointed out, inflation in food prices has been at a record low this year, of just 0.6%. General inflation is also low, at 1.1%. Palin - and I have to give her credit for this - responded quite cleverly to RTE by citing the Wall Street Journal itself, which said in an article last week : "an inflationary tide is beginning to ripple through America’s supermarkets and restaurants…Prices of staples including milk, beef, coffee, cocoa and sugar have risen sharply in recent months" RTE correctly points out the facts of the matter: beef is up, but bananas are cheaper; producer prices are up but retailers have not yet passed them on; the catering industry is increasing quality and offeri...

Sometimes I think you should stop reading my blog and just read Steve Randy Waldman's Interfluidity instead. His last two articles, like nearly everything else he writes, are full of brilliant insights. In " Information is stimulus ", he answers Paul Krugman's (and my) question about asymmetry clearly and convincingly, making a thoroughly true case for certainty as a source of economic strength. In " Vanilla afterthoughts ", he neatly clarifies the argument for vanilla financial products while providing an entirely new insight into its public choice consequences. I have noticed several times that he seems to be thinking more or less what I want to think, but is about three steps further ahead. Maybe that's because he used to be a Java programmer before taking up economics. Whereas I...used to be a Java programmer before taking up economics. Hoping to see Steve writing a bit more in future, as he's been quiet this summer.