August 25, 2005
ECONOMIC PRNCIPLES MAKE FOR UNUSUAL ALLIES:
A textbook case of competition (Alex Beam, August 25, 2005, Boston Globe)
Call it the Econ 101 smackdown: Two of the country's most prominent economists are joining the battle for a piece of the $100-million-a-year Introductory Economics textbook market.If you think this is small-potatoes business, think again. First-year econ is one of the most-taught undergraduate courses in the country. The current top dog, Harvard's N. Gregory Mankiw, a former chairman of the president's Council of Economic Advisers, has sold 1 million copies of the different editions of ''Principles of Economics" since it was introduced in 1997. Depending on format, it costs between $70 and $120. You do the math.
Now Princeton professor and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman, and Glenn Hubbard, Mankiw's predecessor at the CEA and dean of Columbia University's business school, are climbing into the ring. Krugman, a much-decorated trade economist who doubles as the Michael Moore of the Times editorial page needs no introduction. Hubbard was a key architect of the controversial Bush administration tax cuts, which contributed mightily to our current budget deficit.
''As a drunk is to alcohol, the Bush administration is to budget deficits," was a typical, low-key Krugman comment during Hubbard's CEA stint. In a different column, after calling Hubbard ''a highly competent economist," Krugman accused him of publishing ''a ludicrously rigged study" on income mobility during the George H.W. Bush administration.
Hubbard chuckled when I reminded him how Krugman had attacked him. ''Oh, yes, many times," Hubbard recalled. He has read portions of Krugman's textbook and praises it. ''I think Paul is an excellent economist. People don't get into this business for political reasons." I told Hubbard that Krugman's publisher has shot promotional videos of a kinder, gentler Krugman discussing elementary economics with a civility far removed from his fire-breathing op-ed persona. Again, Hubbard chuckled: ''Well, I only have one personality to offer the public."
The economics professors here at Dartmouth all say that Mr. Krugman's economic work is entirely orthodox--indeed, they say there's hardly any variation from the orthodoxy within the profession--and that no one takes his political ravings seriously because they so often can't be squared with even his own economics writings. Posted by Orrin Judd at August 25, 2005 8:09 AM
Krugman's work shares the weaknesses of much orthodox economics - it relies on over-simple and unrealistic models. It may be he doesn't feel the need to square his politics with his economics because he doesn't believe his economics.
Posted by: pj at August 25, 2005 9:23 AMSome time ago, I jokingly suggested that Krugman's columns were written by a graduate student who was taking revenge on Krugman for some reason, and that Krugman himself was unaware of them. I was joking but I haven't seen a better explanation of the gap between his columns and some of his more reasonable work.
Posted by: Jim Miller at August 25, 2005 11:17 AMPJ,
My theory is the exact opposite, that Krugman's column is the phoney baloney.
The Times and the leftist reading public currently want a lunatic, anti-Bush ranter, so Krugman gives them one. As a consequence, his books sell much more briskly than if he were presenting the well-reasoned, centrist opinions his economic writing would suggest.
Posted by: H.D. Miller at August 25, 2005 12:02 PMIt's a shame he turned into such a whackjob.
His essay on why the mid-90's Asian boom was majorly overblown - as well as the USSR's early growth - was a nice piece of work.
Posted by: Ali Choudhury at August 25, 2005 12:50 PMPrinciples of Economics: best price $59 on www.Half.com
Still too much but at least it helps to fight the text book price scam.
Posted by: Scott at August 25, 2005 1:11 PMI would be embarassed to be seen in public with Krugman.
Posted by: Robert Schwartz at August 25, 2005 1:39 PMMr. Krugman's economic work is entirely orthodox
I have no reason to doubt this, but what I wonder is how Mr. Krugman is going to get is future economic writing taken seriously, especially if he's not able to reign in his New Writing Skills gained as a whackjob opinion columnist.
Posted by: at August 25, 2005 3:17 PM