Sunday, July 16, 2006

Economists who kick things



Adbusters magazine selected a cross-section of “economists” and asked them a loaded question: “How can economists justify their refusal to address the environmental problems they are complicit in?” Robert Costanza, John Raulston Saul, Paul Ormerod and others respond.
I think David Colander says it best:

"Economics weeds out people interested in the broad picture. Someone interested in bigger policy issues will probably never choose to go to graduate school in economics, and won't make it through if they do."

I've noticed a few good posts on this subject in the blogosphere. Worth mentioning:
Marginal Revolution has categorized the type of people who succeed in economics; and, Greg Mankiw addresses the trade-off that economists face between “breadth and depth.” It's easy to see why this man is so well-liked.

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