Neel Kashkari, the new president of the local Federal Reserve bank, shows great energy in his campaign to break up big banks and other financial institutions designated as “too big to fail.” The most recent move was a star-studded conference…
Category: Other
Tractor rollbars may illustrate tempest in a teapot
Sometimes the mundane cases best exemplify economic ideas. That is true of a bill introduced in the Minnesota Legislature this session to appropriate $250,000 to reduce farm deaths in tractor rollovers. This may or may not be a good idea,…
Tide is flowing against multilateralism
There are tides in the affairs of the globe as well as those of nations and of individuals. Right now the tide of international cooperation and of multilateral institutions is ebbing. Preference for national autonomy is flowing. For some, these…
Size matters in producing, consuming markets
Size matters, at least in many economic sectors, if not in the personal attributes of GOP presidential candidates. Candidate debate comparisons aside, there were three examples of this in the news last week: The effect of rising oil prices on…
Will global prices undermine PolyMet?
Copper-nickel mining in northeastern Minnesota remains in the news as PolyMet’s environmental impact statement was deemed adequate by the state last week, putting the project one step further on a long path, with many needed permits yet ahead. But Twin…
Fiscal process often misunderstood
U.S presidents do not have the authority to spend money from the federal Treasury. That is primarily a congressional function. Keep that in mind as presidential candidates from any party tout what they will do if elected. History shows us…
Separating economic myth from history
International economic relations seem in disarray right now, and there is no consensus on how they might be improved. In such a situation, history often beats economic theory as a source of insights. Philosopher George Santayana’s 1905 assertion that “those…
Kashkari’s sage candor on banks refreshing
Neel Kashkari, the new president of the Minneapolis Federal Reserve, is a breath of fresh economic air with his proposal voiced last week to break up big banks. In doing so, he furthers an intellectual tradition at the Minneapolis Fed.…
Toscanini, the Zika virus and bio-pirates
In economics as well as karma, everything is somehow connected. The ability to perceive often subtle interconnections is a gift that can help us understand the world we live in. But sometimes it can seem a bit manic. That happened…
A fascinating, pessimistic history of U.S. economic growth
Robert Gordon’s new book on productivity in the U.S. economy, “The Rise and Fall of American Growth,” is masterful, but reminds me of the character in Evelyn Waugh’s comic novel “Scoop,” who sings, “change and decay in all around I…