Not sure of why people on this list are going after Krugman. Personally, I
think he writes a very good, very readable column on a diverse range of topics.
In today's column, he deals with a very relevant topic, the hidden influence
of big money on politics, a very important but largely ignored topic. OK, so
he got the Nobel prize because he pointed something in an academic field that
Henry Ford already knew as a practical person and the Japanese already knew as
well. However, what he said wasn't recognized in the field of economics until
he said it. I did my undergrad work back in the 1950s, and the Ricardian idea
of comparative and absolute advantage is what we had to learn and how we had to
view the economic world. I did a graduate degree in the late 1960s and things
were still very much the same. What Krugman did to get his Nobel was open
economics up and make us see that while Ricardian theory may still apply to
growing grapes and oranges, it may only very partially apply to the modern
industrial and increasingly cybernetic economy, if it applies there at all. I
for one will continue to read Krugman's columns not because he is an economist
but because I find him an interesting liberal thinker.
Ed
----- Original Message -----
From: Keith Hudson
To: RE-DESIGNING WORK, INCOME DISTRIBUTION, EDUCATION ; Ed Weick
Sent: Monday, December 31, 2012 3:38 AM
Subject: Re: [Futurework] Nobel Prize -- was Re: [Ottawadissenters] Hey, you
gotta watch dem machines...
At 16:26 30/12/2012, you wrote:
(EW) Not sure of where all of this is going. Prior to Krugman, the theory
of international trade was based on the Ricardian notion of comparative
advantage. Countries would produce those products in which in which they had
an advantage, given their resources, and then trade with each other. From what
little I know, Krugman brought in the idea that, given a certain level of
technological development, resource advantage didn't really matter very much.
(KH) But that idea didn't need Krugman! Or anyone else for that matter. The
Japanese had been importing resources ('cos they had none of their own) for
decades before Krugman was even born. I believe those who say that Krugman got
a Nobel for the same reason as Paul Samuelson (who only copied Marshall's ideas
of Sale and Demand curves) -- that he was an economist very much in the
public's eye.
(EW) Any advanced country could, and would, produce cars and, given
consumer willingness to buy, these cars would be shipped to markets all over
the world. As others have pointed out, economies of scale were very important
in this. The more cars that could be produced, the lower the unit costs; the
more cars that could be shipped, the lower the costs of shipment.
(KH) And Henry Ford had known that decades before Krugman was born!
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