I'm giving him the kind of star treatment usually reserved for Donald Trump-who's just 'The Donald.' Of course, Mark really is the world's greatest wonk if you speak to Tom Brown about it. I actually do agree that Mark is a smart guy and you always gain a lot from his analysis-despite my differences with him on policy. Here he explains why Sumner is always talking about driving a stake through the heart of Keynesianism and declaring it 'dead.' He's just trolling. Ok, so Mark has-flattered me as far as I'm concerned-referred to my blog as a an interesting Trog where you can catch up on the latest gossip within the econ blogosphere. Nice work if you can get it.
"Why would a person title his blog "Diary of a Republican Hater" or call himself "evilsax". Do you really hate all Republicans, and are you truly evil?"
"...Keynes' efforts were motivated by a strong desire to maintain the liberal capitalist order. Honest conservatives have always understood this. In 1945, economist David McCord Wright noted that a conservative political candidate could easily run a campaign "largely on quotations from The General Theory." The following year, economist Gottfried Haberler, of the conservative Austrian school, conceded that the specific policy recommendations of Keynesian economics were not at all revolutionary. "They are in fact very conservative," he admitted.
"I agree with all of this. I too believe in the preservation of the liberal capitalist order. Did you think I'm an Marxist?"
"However, what passes for conservatism in the America is very short-sighted. The idea of conservatism-going back to Plato-is to minimize and diffuse social antagonism-as much as is possible. A realistic conservative I've written about this more than once."
http://diaryofarepublicanhater.blogspot.com/2013/10/we-already-have-sensible-conservative.html
"I don't believe that QE3 wholly offset the sequester last year. However, and this is important, so if you respond to this Mark try to speak to this too, even if there were total offset-again I don't agree that there was this is for arguments sake-all those effected by the sequester-losing benefits and services they crucially depended on and the many workers who were furloughed still suffered. Sumner thinks he can just say 'QE3, I won my bet from Krugman' and this is somehow erased."
"However, the pain and hardship of these Americans increases social conflict and anger. This is why I see Sumner's conservatism as part of the perverse American kind that leads to more social discord not less."
"Why else does he talk about driving stakes into the heart of Keynesianism."
"Why would a person title his blog "Diary of a Republican Hater" or call himself "evilsax". Do you really hate all Republicans, and are you truly evil?"
"A blog draws in readers by trolling. For example, Yves Smith inserts "QE" into the title of several of her blog posts every week whether they have anything to do with QE or not. Sumner frequently inserts "Keynesianism" into the title of his blog posts for the very same reason, to attract attention."
"Incidentally, if Scott hates everything about Keynesianism so much, why does he use the AD-AS Model (Chapter 3 of the GT) so religiously?"
"I doubt you'll find where Keynes said this."
"I believe it's in GT Chapter 24 Section III. But it's also related to the general theme of the GT as described in Chapter 1."
"Incidentally, although reviled by most modern conservatives, Keynes was himself rather conservative."
"...Keynes' efforts were motivated by a strong desire to maintain the liberal capitalist order. Honest conservatives have always understood this. In 1945, economist David McCord Wright noted that a conservative political candidate could easily run a campaign "largely on quotations from The General Theory." The following year, economist Gottfried Haberler, of the conservative Austrian school, conceded that the specific policy recommendations of Keynesian economics were not at all revolutionary. "They are in fact very conservative," he admitted.
"Peter Drucker, a conservative admirer of Keynes, viewed him as not merely conservative, but ultraconservative. "He had two basic motivations," Drucker explained in a 1991 interview with Forbes. "One was to destroy the labor unions and the other was to maintain the free market. Keynes despised the American Keynesians. His whole idea was to have an impotent government that would do nothing but, through tax and spending policies, maintain the equilibrium of the free market. Keynes was the real father of neoconservatism, far more than [economist F.A.] Hayek!"
"John Kenneth Galbraith, whose politics were well to the left of Keynes, not to mention Drucker, agreed with this assessment. "The broad thrust of his efforts, like that of Roosevelt, was conservative; it was to endure that the system would survive," he wrote. But, Galbraith added, "Such conservatism in the English-speaking countries does not appeal to the truly committed conservative."...
http://www.forbes.com/2009/08/13/john-maynard-keynes-conservative-opinions-columnists-bruce-bartlett.html
"I also hate the ideology of fiscal austerity that takes a self-righteous attitude to suffering people. The kind of society we are is perhaps suggested by the homeless man who recently died of the freezing cold in a snow storm. No one thought of helping this guy."
"I will admit to seeing this conservative ideology of blaming the victim as being responsible for such a tragedy. Of course, everyone just blames the victim-he should have gone to a shelter. He didn't so he must enjoy being homeless."
"Maybe if he chose the freezing bitter cold it's because those shelters are full of ex convicts booted out of prison thanks to lack of funding and the mentally ill also booted out of their institutions for the same reasons."
"I doubt you'll find where Keynes said this."
"I know what he said about the classical world holding good-I meant when Sumner talking about 'Driving a stake through the heart of Keynesianism."
"Incidentally, if Scott hates everything about Keynesianism so much, why does he use the AD-AS Model (Chapter 3 of the GT) so religiously?"
"I doubt you'll find where Keynes said this."
"I believe it's in GT Chapter 24 Section III. But it's also related to the general theme of the GT as described in Chapter 1."
"Incidentally, although reviled by most modern conservatives, Keynes was himself rather conservative."
"...Keynes' efforts were motivated by a strong desire to maintain the liberal capitalist order. Honest conservatives have always understood this. In 1945, economist David McCord Wright noted that a conservative political candidate could easily run a campaign "largely on quotations from The General Theory." The following year, economist Gottfried Haberler, of the conservative Austrian school, conceded that the specific policy recommendations of Keynesian economics were not at all revolutionary. "They are in fact very conservative," he admitted.
"Peter Drucker, a conservative admirer of Keynes, viewed him as not merely conservative, but ultraconservative. "He had two basic motivations," Drucker explained in a 1991 interview with Forbes. "One was to destroy the labor unions and the other was to maintain the free market. Keynes despised the American Keynesians. His whole idea was to have an impotent government that would do nothing but, through tax and spending policies, maintain the equilibrium of the free market. Keynes was the real father of neoconservatism, far more than [economist F.A.] Hayek!"
"John Kenneth Galbraith, whose politics were well to the left of Keynes, not to mention Drucker, agreed with this assessment. "The broad thrust of his efforts, like that of Roosevelt, was conservative; it was to endure that the system would survive," he wrote. But, Galbraith added, "Such conservatism in the English-speaking countries does not appeal to the truly committed conservative."...
http://www.forbes.com/2009/08/13/john-maynard-keynes-conservative-opinions-columnists-bruce-bartlett.html
http://diaryofarepublicanhater.blogspot.com/2014/02/tom-brown-giving-us-some-scintillating.html?showComment=1392328571127#c489630000107955476
Here was my answer to Mark which I'll reprint here.
"I call myself a Republican Hater because I hate Republicans-not individuals but the ideology. I particularly have a problem with people like Todd Akin who believe that women should be forced to bare their rape babies."
"I also hate the ideology of fiscal austerity that takes a self-righteous attitude to suffering people. The kind of society we are is perhaps suggested by the homeless man who recently died of the freezing cold in a snow storm. No one thought of helping this guy."
"I will admit to seeing this conservative ideology of blaming the victim as being responsible for such a tragedy. Of course, everyone just blames the victim-he should have gone to a shelter. He didn't so he must enjoy being homeless."
"Maybe if he chose the freezing bitter cold it's because those shelters are full of ex convicts booted out of prison thanks to lack of funding and the mentally ill also booted out of their institutions for the same reasons."
"I doubt you'll find where Keynes said this."
"I know what he said about the classical world holding good-I meant when Sumner talking about 'Driving a stake through the heart of Keynesianism."
"Incidentally, although reviled by most modern conservatives, Keynes was himself rather conservative."
"...Keynes' efforts were motivated by a strong desire to maintain the liberal capitalist order. Honest conservatives have always understood this. In 1945, economist David McCord Wright noted that a conservative political candidate could easily run a campaign "largely on quotations from The General Theory." The following year, economist Gottfried Haberler, of the conservative Austrian school, conceded that the specific policy recommendations of Keynesian economics were not at all revolutionary. "They are in fact very conservative," he admitted.
"I agree with all of this. I too believe in the preservation of the liberal capitalist order. Did you think I'm an Marxist?"
"I actually do see myself as something of a conservative-taking more of the long view. I mean being a liberal Democrat as I am is more or less the Whig position."
"However, what passes for conservatism in the America is very short-sighted. The idea of conservatism-going back to Plato-is to minimize and diffuse social antagonism-as much as is possible. A realistic conservative I've written about this more than once."
http://diaryofarepublicanhater.blogspot.com/2013/10/we-already-have-sensible-conservative.html
"For instance, my problem with Sumner always telling us that fisca austerity is no problem as long as the Fed does the MM panacea-I know his ideal policy is NGDPLT, how could I not as many times as I've heard it?-but he evidently thinks that even QE3 for full monetary offset, is that it's not true.
"I don't believe that QE3 wholly offset the sequester last year. However, and this is important, so if you respond to this Mark try to speak to this too, even if there were total offset-again I don't agree that there was this is for arguments sake-all those effected by the sequester-losing benefits and services they crucially depended on and the many workers who were furloughed still suffered. Sumner thinks he can just say 'QE3, I won my bet from Krugman' and this is somehow erased."
"However, the pain and hardship of these Americans increases social conflict and anger. This is why I see Sumner's conservatism as part of the perverse American kind that leads to more social discord not less."
So yes, taking the long view of things, a guy who calls himself 'evil' and a 'Republican Hater' desires less social conflict and rage than more and does consider himself a conservative. However, this doesn't mean that you are opposed to all social change-which is another problem I have with certainly at least American conservatives-who reside in the Republican party. Social change will happen, and this is not a necessary evil but a necessary good.
P.S. I fully agree that Keynes is a conservative. Why do RBCers, Austrians, and Monetarists-including certainly Sumner-see him as the anti Christ then? I don't think this can be explained simply with trogging.
"I don't believe that QE3 wholly offset the sequester last year. However, and this is important, so if you respond to this Mark try to speak to this too, even if there were total offset-again I don't agree that there was this is for arguments sake-all those effected by the sequester-losing benefits and services they crucially depended on and the many workers who were furloughed still suffered."
ReplyDeleteWell, I do believe that QE3 offset not only the sequester, but also the end of the Payroll Tax Holiday and the end of the high income portion of the Bush Tax Cuts, which together had twice the budgetary impact as the sequester.
Moreover almost exactly half of the noninterest spending cuts under the sequester are falling on the Defense Department, which I wholly support, and can only say they didn't go far enough. No doubt this will negatively impact the wages and salaries of civilian employees of the Defense Department as well the bloated profits of defense contracters. But since these wages, salaries and profits are based on a hugely wasteful use of taxpayer money all I can say is maybe it's high time for them to find another means of earning a living.
Evidently the fiscal fascists have never seen a government program that deserved to be cut.