{"id":5755,"date":"2014-09-19T01:37:47","date_gmt":"2014-09-19T05:37:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/?p=5755"},"modified":"2018-08-24T15:31:33","modified_gmt":"2018-08-24T19:31:33","slug":"friday-september-19-2014-an-interesting-thought-from-mark-thoma","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/?p=5755","title":{"rendered":"Friday, September 19, 2014 \u2014 An Interesting Thought from Mark Thoma"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s become a clich\u00e9 that this gen\u00ader\u00ada\u00adtion of macro\u00adecon\u00ado\u00admists have with\u00addrawn from the actu\u00adal world and embed\u00added them\u00adselves in a cocoon. You can get a Nobel Prize in Eco\u00adnom\u00adics for dream\u00ading up an equa\u00adtion that does\u00adn\u2019t have to be test\u00aded against real events in actu\u00adal economies. (How the physi\u00adcists, who must wait patient\u00adly for con\u00adfir\u00adma\u00adtion from real\u00adi\u00adty, must envy them.) Too much empha\u00adsis on method\u00adol\u00ado\u00adgy, is the usu\u00adal con\u00adclu\u00adsion. But Mark Thoma, in the Fis\u00adcal Times<\/em> has some\u00adthing to say about that:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>There has been quite a bit of crit\u00adi\u00adcism direct\u00aded at the tools and tech\u00adniques that macro\u00adecon\u00ado\u00admists use, e.g. crit\u00adi\u00adcism of dynam\u00adic sto\u00adchas\u00adtic gen\u00ader\u00adal equi\u00adlib\u00adri\u00adum (DSGE<\/span>) mod\u00adels, but that crit\u00adi\u00adcism is mis\u00adplaced. The tools and tech\u00adniques that macro\u00adecon\u00ado\u00admists use are devel\u00adoped to answer spe\u00adcif\u00adic ques\u00adtions. If we ask the right ques\u00adtions, then we will find the tools and tech\u00adniques need\u00aded to answer them. <\/em>The prob\u00adlem with macro\u00adeco\u00adnom\u00adics is not that it has become over\u00adly math\u00ade\u00admat\u00adi\u00adcal \u2013 it is not the tools and tech\u00adniques we use to answer ques\u00adtions. The prob\u00adlem is the soci\u00adol\u00ado\u00adgy with\u00adin the eco\u00adnom\u00adics pro\u00adfes\u00adsion that pre\u00advents some ques\u00adtions from being asked. Why, for exam\u00adple, were the very ques\u00adtions we need\u00aded to ask pri\u00ador to the Great Reces\u00adsion ridiculed by impor\u00adtant voic\u00ades with\u00adin the pro\u00adfes\u00adsion? <\/em>The key to a bet\u00adter eco\u00adnom\u00adics is to ask bet\u00adter ques\u00adtions, and that will require a much more open mind \u2013 par\u00adtic\u00adu\u00adlar\u00adly from those in charge of what gets pub\u00adlished in eco\u00adnom\u00adic jour\u00adnals \u2013 about the kinds of ques\u00adtions econ\u00ado\u00admists are allowed to ask.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

This is an inter\u00adpre\u00adta\u00adtion that would be under\u00adstood by some\u00adone in the nat\u00adur\u00adal sci\u00adences (e.g. geo\u00adphysics, or epi\u00addemi\u00adol\u00ado\u00adgy, or cli\u00adma\u00adtol\u00adogy.) Ask\u00ading the right ques\u00adtions is the key. Thoma asks why these ques\u00adtions were active\u00adly dis\u00adcour\u00adaged. He knows the answer, but leaves us to con\u00adnect the dots. It was the result of a pro\u00adfes\u00adsion being hijacked by an aggres\u00adsive ide\u00adol\u00ado\u00adgy bent on sup\u00adpress\u00ading real inquiry, and sub\u00adsti\u00adtut\u00ading a kind of Lysenkoist agen\u00adda. It was made pos\u00adsi\u00adble by a revamped sys\u00adtem in which the prin\u00adci\u00adples of aca\u00add\u00ade\u00adm\u00adic auton\u00ado\u00admy and objec\u00adtive inquiry have become mere ecto\u00adplas\u00admic traces. Macro\u00adecon\u00ado\u00admists who did ask the right ques\u00adtions did\u00adn\u2019t seem to get far in aca\u00add\u00ade\u00adm\u00adic careers, or end up in the cushy cir\u00adcum\u00adstances that more \u201cco-oper\u00ada\u00adtive\u201d ones did. Or rather, that\u2019s the case in the core, but not nec\u00ades\u00adsar\u00adi\u00adly in the periph\u00adery. The seri\u00adous ques\u00adtion\u00ading tends to take place in sec\u00adond-tier uni\u00adver\u00adsi\u00adties, where the moose or the wal\u00adla\u00adbies nib\u00adble the shrub\u00adbery around the quad\u00adran\u00adgle. All the more pow\u00ader to \u2019em, I say. Lysenko\u2019s ghost can\u2019t patrol them all.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\n

There has been quite a bit of crit\u00adi\u00adcism direct\u00aded at the tools and tech\u00adniques that macro\u00adecon\u00ado\u00admists use, e.g. crit\u00adi\u00adcism of dynam\u00adic sto\u00adchas\u00adtic gen\u00ader\u00adal equi\u00adlib\u00adri\u00adum (DSGE<\/span>) mod\u00adels, but that crit\u00adi\u00adcism is mis\u00adplaced. The tools and tech\u00adniques that macro\u00adecon\u00ado\u00admists use are devel\u00adoped to answer spe\u00adcif\u00adic ques\u00adtions. If we ask the right ques\u00adtions, then we will find the tools and tech\u00adniques need\u00aded to answer them.<\/p>\n

The prob\u00adlem with macro\u00adeco\u00adnom\u00adics is not that it has become over\u00adly math\u00ade\u00admat\u00adi\u00adcal \u2013 it is not the tools and tech\u00adniques we use to answer ques\u00adtions. The prob\u00adlem is the soci\u00adol\u00ado\u00adgy with\u00adin the eco\u00adnom\u00adics pro\u00adfes\u00adsion that pre\u00advents some ques\u00adtions from being asked. Why, for exam\u00adple, were the very ques\u00adtions we need\u00aded to ask pri\u00ador to the Great Reces\u00adsion ridiculed by impor\u00adtant voic\u00ades with\u00adin the profession?<\/p>\n

The key to a bet\u00adter eco\u00adnom\u00adics is to ask bet\u00adter ques\u00adtions, and that will require a much more open mind \u2013 par\u00adtic\u00adu\u00adlar\u00adly from those in charge of what gets pub\u00adlished in eco\u00adnom\u00adic jour\u00adnals \u2013 about the kinds of ques\u00adtions econ\u00ado\u00admists are allowed to ask.<\/p>\n

- See more at: http:\/\/www.thefiscaltimes.com\/Columns\/2014\/09\/16\/Can-New-Economic-Thinking-Solve-Next-Crisis#sthash.LiClsQFW.dpuf<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

There has been quite a bit of crit\u00adi\u00adcism direct\u00aded at the tools and tech\u00adniques that macro\u00adecon\u00ado\u00admists use, e.g. crit\u00adi\u00adcism of dynam\u00adic sto\u00adchas\u00adtic gen\u00ader\u00adal equi\u00adlib\u00adri\u00adum (DSGE<\/span>) mod\u00adels, but that crit\u00adi\u00adcism is mis\u00adplaced. The tools and tech\u00adniques that macro\u00adecon\u00ado\u00admists use are devel\u00adoped to answer spe\u00adcif\u00adic ques\u00adtions. If we ask the right ques\u00adtions, then we will find the tools and tech\u00adniques need\u00aded to answer them.<\/p>\n

The prob\u00adlem with macro\u00adeco\u00adnom\u00adics is not that it has become over\u00adly math\u00ade\u00admat\u00adi\u00adcal \u2013 it is not the tools and tech\u00adniques we use to answer ques\u00adtions. The prob\u00adlem is the soci\u00adol\u00ado\u00adgy with\u00adin the eco\u00adnom\u00adics pro\u00adfes\u00adsion that pre\u00advents some ques\u00adtions from being asked. Why, for exam\u00adple, were the very ques\u00adtions we need\u00aded to ask pri\u00ador to the Great Reces\u00adsion ridiculed by impor\u00adtant voic\u00ades with\u00adin the profession?<\/p>\n

The key to a bet\u00adter eco\u00adnom\u00adics is to ask bet\u00adter ques\u00adtions, and that will require a much more open mind \u2013 par\u00adtic\u00adu\u00adlar\u00adly from those in charge of what gets pub\u00adlished in eco\u00adnom\u00adic jour\u00adnals \u2013 about the kinds of ques\u00adtions econ\u00ado\u00admists are allowed to ask.<\/p>\n

- See more at: http:\/\/www.thefiscaltimes.com\/Columns\/2014\/09\/16\/Can-New-Economic-Thinking-Solve-Next-Crisis#sthash.LiClsQFW.dpuf<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s become a clich\u00e9 that this gen\u00ader\u00ada\u00adtion of macro\u00adecon\u00ado\u00admists have with\u00addrawn from the actu\u00adal world and embed\u00added them\u00adselves in a cocoon. You can get a Nobel Prize in Eco\u00adnom\u00adics for dream\u00ading up an equa\u00adtion that does\u00adn\u2019t have to be tested \u2026<\/p>\n

Read more \u00bb<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wp_typography_post_enhancements_disabled":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,940],"tags":[1384,1386,1385,1383],"class_list":["post-5755","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-a-blog","category-am-blog-2014","tag-economists","tag-lysenko","tag-macroeconomists","tag-mark-thoma"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5755","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5755"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5755\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5765,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5755\/revisions\/5765"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5755"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5755"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.philpaine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5755"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}