Paul Ryan’s views of government seem more influenced by Milton Friedman than Ayn Rand
The future of Social Security and Medicare might be very different if Ryan is successful in getting Friedman’s ideas adopted.
Louis Johnston writes Macro, Micro, Minnesota for MinnPost, reporting on economic developments in the news and what those developments mean to Minnesota. He is Professor of Economics at College of Saint Benedict | Saint John’s University.
The future of Social Security and Medicare might be very different if Ryan is successful in getting Friedman’s ideas adopted.
The company is fighting to stay alive amidst recent changes sweeping through retailing.
Europe is only 60 years into the process, while we’ve had more than 230 years to sort out our monetary and fiscal issues — and it’s still a work in progress.
In economic terms, it comes down to “income elasticity.”
The debate over the sugar support program and repealing the medical device tax offer two good examples.
The benefits of Ron Paul’s suggested changes are hard to imagine.
His ideas for ending the Federal Reserve are the latest chapter in an age-old American argument dating to Hamilton and Jefferson.
Narayana Kocherlakota thinks unemployment is stuck at 8 percent and inflation is on the horizon.
A look back at Minnesota’s Fortune 500 companies helps put the layoffs in a larger context.
It’s wrong to base a higher education finance system on the premise that social benefits are shrinking, compared with private benefits.
His perspective misses the fact that the resources and income in an economy are not created by business alone.
Why we don’t make Tonka trucks in Minnesota anymore illustrates free trade’s benefits and costs.
The move makes a lot of sense for both companies – and it would be a win-win for the Minnesota economy.
To answer that question, let’s look at the tax system from an economist’s perspective.
Best Buy’s fall may seem abrupt, but the company faces the same question mass retailers faced the last 100 years
The company faces the same challenges mass retailers have confronted in the past.
Faulty reasoning and inappropriate analogies lead many to mistakenly conclude inflation is on the way.
Increases in the prices of individual products, such as gasoline, tell us nothing about inflation.
I hope it encourages a long-needed public discussion of the World Bank’s role in economic growth and development.
More and more nations will confront the kinds of monetary problems now facing Iceland.
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By Louis D. Johnston | Columnist
Aug. 17, 2012