Climate Engineers - Who are the Architects?. Listening to the current debate about fuel prices, excise, GST on fuel, pricewatching, etc etc, I wonder [and hope] when the conversation will really turn to the mid [let alone] the long-term future? Where are those who are often ready to tell us about the power of markets and the signals they send?…
Category Archives Economics
On time will be out of time. Yesterday Access Economics joined the growing list of economic forecasters predicting recession this year. Of course forecasting the economy is a mug’s game and it is still far from certain that there will be a recession in 2009. But what is clear is that the economy will either be weak (most economists would…
As Planet Warms, Poor Nations Face Economic Chill. A rising tide is said to lift all boats. Rising global temperatures, however, may lead to increased disparities between rich and poor countries, according to a recent economic analysis of the impact of climate change on growth. [ScienceDaily: Latest Science News]
HECS-style for parental leave. According to ABC News, HECS architect, Bruce Chapman has finally released his proposal for paid parental leave using an income-contingent loan (through CEDA). His baseline idea, which I have endorsed many times, is that parents will be given income support during maternity leave in the form of a loan that will be paid back through the…
Jobs safe after Pontiac dumped: Holden. CAR maker Holden will lose one of its biggest export models with a move by United States parent company General Motors to dump the Pontiac brand. [Herald Sun | Breaking News]
Wetter cities, drier (but richer) rural areas. John Quiggin has a terrific CEDA report out today. From the executive summary: Replacing city water restrictions with higher prices in the long term will encourage people to invest in water-saving technologies, find other ways to use less water, and encourage the development of new supply options such as recycling. The report also…
Top Incomes in Indonesia. Pierre van der Eng and I have a new paper out, looking at inequality in Indonesia. Entitled-Top Incomes in Indonesia, 1920-2004, it uses a combination of taxation statistics and survey data to estimate how-the share of the very richest has changed over time. Our abstract: Using taxation and household survey data, this paper estimates top income…
A conversation on creative capitalism. There is a very interesting conversation going on between some very noted individuals at this new blog. It started with this Davos speech by Bill Gates. Ed Glaeser has joined in to support it somewhat while economists such as Steve Landsburg, Richard Posner, Gary Becker and others are doing the typical economist thing and wondering…