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September 28, 2008
Going Negative
Here is a question: have any of the mainstream NY Times editorial columnists (with the possible exception of Paul Krugman, and then only just a bit) had anything interesting, useful or insightful to say about the current financial crisis??
Can someone explain to me the purpose on earth of Thomas Friedman? It seems like he drifts through life, every few years selecting a new, a meaningless, pot to bang. His latest being the vacuous notion that we need ``nation building at home''.* And he gets paid shitloads for this drivel. How do I get in on this? What a racket!
*I couldn't even get through his "Flat World" (or whatever the hell it was called) book. I was reduced to tearful laughter by the utter silliness, the complete lack of economic logic, by page 40. Honestly, he has earned millions for what would amount to a (badly) failing second-year paper at any respectable PhD program.
Here endeth the bitch.
Update: Perhaps it is a sign of my shifting interests and priorities (what with a young critter on the way) that I am increasingly drawn to, and appalled by, Judith Warner's stuff. She has nothing to offer but the whiny prejudices of an entitled, Volvo-class Princessa. Fortunately for her, however, we haven't gotten to the point here in North Carolina where we drag a mediocre columnist into the back yard and shoot 'em.
Update 2: Some friends have asked why I haven't had anything to say about the financial crisis. The reason is that I am a simple little health economist and econometrician. I don't know much about bundling, counter-party risk, de-leveraging, etc. I believe it will be years before we really understand fully what happened. I have my own pet theory (that overly loose monetary policy was the main culprit), but it is no more informed than anyone else's and may yet be revealed as utter crap. I'm only human, after all. It's not like I work for the NY Times.
Posted by dag at September 28, 2008 3:28 PM