DOCSLIB.ORG

Monetary Policy: a Lecture Series Edited by Norbert J

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Monetary Policy: a Lecture Series Edited by Norbert J SPECIAL REPORT No. 207 | FEBRUARY 13, 2019 Monetary Policy: A Lecture Series Edited by Norbert J. Michel, PhD Foreword Norbert J. Michel, PhD Monetary Policy: A Lecture Series Edited by Norbert J. Michel, PhD Foreword Norbert J. Michel, PhD SR-207 This paper, in its entirety, can be found at: http://report.heritage.org/sr207 The Heritage Foundation 214 Massachusetts Avenue, NE Washington, DC 20002 (202) 546-4400 | heritage.org Nothing written here is to be construed as necessarily reflecting the views of The Heritage Foundation or as an attempt to aid or hinder the passage of any bill before Congress. SPECIAL REPORT | NO. 207 FEBRUARY 13, 2019 Table of Contents Contributors ...........................................................................................................................................................................................v Foreword .................................................................................................................................................................................................. 1 The Federal Reserve at 100: A Panel Discussion ............................................................................................................. 5 A Brief Tour of the Fed’s Historical Performance ......................................................................................................... 5 Lawrence White The Federal Reserve’s Mythical Reputation ...................................................................................................................... 9 George Selgin The Fed’s Performance During the 2008 Crisis ............................................................................................................. 14 Gerald Dwyer An Introduction to Bitcoin and Its Regulatory Environment ............................................................................... 19 George Gilder Nominal Gross Domestic Product Targeting as a Policy Rule .............................................................................. 21 Scott Sumner Money: How the Destruction of the Dollar Threatens the Global Economy—and What We Can Do About It ................................................................................................. 31 Steve Forbes The Forgotten Depression—1921: The Crash That Cured Itself ........................................................................... 37 James Grant Monetary Policy Based on Rules ............................................................................................................................................. 43 John Taylor Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................................................................. 49 iii SPECIAL REPORT | NO. 207 FEBRUARY 13, 2019 Contributors Gerald Dwyer earned his PhD in economics from News Hour. He also contributed an essay to the sixth the University of Chicago. He is a visiting professor edition of Graham and Dodd’s Security Analysis. A for- and BB&T scholar at Clemson University, where he mer Navy gunner’s mate, he holds a master’s degree taught from 1989 to 1999. He teaches as an adjunct at in international relations from Columbia University, the University of Carlos III in Madrid and at Trinity and he is a member of Phi Beta Kappa and a trustee College in Dublin. He is a former vice president at the of the New York Historical Society. He and his wife Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, where he served as Patricia live in Brooklyn; they are the parents of four director of the Center for Financial Innovation and grown children. Stability; he retired from this position in 2012. He Steve Forbes was born in 1947 in Morristown, helped to found the Society for Nonlinear Dynamics New Jersey; he earned a bachelor’s in history from and Econometrics and has served as its president and Princeton in 1970, and for approximately 10 years, he as its treasurer. He serves on three editorial boards: served on the Board of Trustees at Princeton. Cur- Journal of Financial Stability, Economic Inquiry, and rently, he is chairman and editor in chief of Forbes Finance Research Letters. The author of several books, Media. The company’s flagship publication,Forbes , essays, and articles, Dwyer is currently studying the is the nation’s leading business magazine, with a cir- ongoing financial crisis with its implications for eco- culation of over 900,000. The combined Forbes pub- nomic growth. lications have reached more than five million readers George Gilder is the co-founder of the Discov- worldwide. A widely respected economic prognosti- ery Institute and the chair of the Institute’s Cen- cator, Steve Forbes is the only writer to have won the ter on Wealth, Poverty, and Morality. The author of highly prestigious Crystal Owl Award four times—a several books, he is widely known for his influential prize given to the financial journalist whose econom- book Wealth and Poverty, an international bestseller ic forecast for the coming year proved most accurate. on supply-side economic theory first released in 1981. He is the author of several books, and he serves on He has served as chairman of the Lehrman Institute’s the boards of several organizations, including the Economic Roundtable and as program director for Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation, the Foun- the Manhattan Institute. His writing has appeared in dation for the Defense of Democracies, and The Heri- Forbes, Harper’s, National Review, and The Wall Street tage Foundation. Journal, among other publications. He lives in New Norbert J. Michel, PhD is the director of The York with his wife. Heritage Foundation’s Center for Data Analysis, James Grant is the founder and editor of Grant’s where he specializes on issues pertaining to financial Interest Rate Observer, a twice-monthly journal of markets and monetary policy. He edited, and contrib- investment markets. He began his career in jour- uted chapters, to two books published by Heritage: nalism in 1972 at The Baltimore Sun, then joined The Case Against Dodd–Frank: How the “Consumer the staff ofBarron’s in 1975, where he originated the Protection” Law Endangers Americans and Prosper- “Current Yield” column. His newest book, The For- ity Unleashed: Smarter Financial Regulation. Before gotten Depression—1921: The Crash That Cured Itself, rejoining Heritage in 2013, Michel was a tenured pro- provides a history of America’s last governmentally fessor at Nicholls State University’s College of Busi- unmedicated economic downturn. He is the author of ness, teaching finance, economics, and statistics. His several other books, including Bernard Baruch: The earlier stint at Heritage was as a tax policy analyst in Adventures of a Wall Street Legend; Money of the Mind; the think tank’s Center for Data Analysis from 2002 Minding Mr. Market; The Trouble With Prosperity; Mr. to 2005. He previously was with the global energy Market Miscalculates; John Adams: Party of One; and company Entergy, where he built a logistic regres- Mr. Speaker! The Life and Times of Thomas B. Reed, the sion model to help predict bankruptcies of commer- Man Who Broke the Filibuster. His financial journal- cial clients. His work allowed Entergy to better moni- ism has appeared in many publications, including the tor monetary losses caused by customers’ delinquent Financial Times and The Wall Street Journal, and he payments. Michel holds a PhD in financial economics has appeared on multiple well-known television news from the University of New Orleans. He received his programs, including 60 Minutes and Jim Lehrer’s bachelor of business administration degree in finance v MONETARY POLICY: A LECTURE SERIES and economics from Loyola University. He currently Ford, Carter, George H. W. Bush, and (during his 2000 resides in Alexandria, Virginia. campaign) George W. Bush, as well as to presidential George Selgin is a senior fellow and director of the candidates Bob Dole and John McCain. He was a Center for Monetary and Financial Alternatives at the member of the Congressional Budget Office’s Panel Cato Institute, and Professor Emeritus of Econom- of Economic Advisers from 1995 to 2001; from 2001 to ics at the University of Georgia. His research covers a 2005 he served as undersecretary of the Treasury for broad range of topics within the field of monetary eco- International Affairs. He has won numerous awards nomics, including monetary history, macroeconomic for his work, including the Bradley Prize, the Adam theory, and the history of monetary thought. He is the Smith Award, the Adolf G. Abramson Award, the author of The Theory of Free Banking; Bank Deregula- George P. Shultz Distinguished Public Service Award, tion and Monetary Order; Less Than Zero: The Case for the Hoagland Prize, the Rhodes Prize, the Alexander a Falling Price Level in a Growing Economy; and, most Hamilton Award, the Treasury Distinguished Service recently, Good Money: Birmingham Button Makers, the Award, and the medal of the Republic of Uruguay. He Royal Mint, and the Beginnings of Modern Coinage, is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sci- 1775–1821. Selgin is one of the founders, along with ences in the Econometric Society, and he formerly Kevin Dowd and Lawrence H. White, of the Modern served as vice president of the American Economic Free Banking School, which draws its inspiration Association. He is the author of several books, includ- from the writings of F. A. Hayek on denationalization ing Getting Off Track
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Market Monetarism Roadmap to Economic Prosperity Marcus Nunes
    Market Monetarism Roadmap to Economic Prosperity Marcus Nunes Benjamin Cole With a foreword by Scott Sumner Text Copyright © 2013 Marcus Nunes and Benjamin Cole All Rights Reserved Table of Contents Foreword Chapter 0: Introduction and Summary Chapter 1: It´s All in the Framing Chapter 2: Camelot and the origins of the Great Inflation Chapter 3: The Great Inflation Chapter 4: The Volcker Transition Chapter 5: The Great Moderation Chapter 6: The ‘Great Recession’ (or the ‘Bernanke Little Depression’) – Why Did It Happen? Chapter 7: The International Experience Concluding Thoughts - Thinking the Unthinkable: Quantitative Easing as Conventional Policy Tool Foreword During the 1930s most people thought the Great Depression represented a relapse after the exuberant boom of the 1920s, worsened by a severe international financial crisis. Then in the 1960s Milton Friedman and Anna Schwartz showed that the real problem was an excessively contractionary monetary policy. Yes, the Fed cut interest rates close to zero, and did what is now called “quantitative easing,” but it was too little too late. At Friedman’s 90th birthday party Ben Bernanke gave a speech that included this memorable promise: “Let me end my talk by abusing slightly my status as an official representative of the Federal Reserve. I would like to say to Milton and Anna: Regarding the Great Depression. You're right, we did it. We're very sorry. But thanks to you, we won't do it again.” In this path-breaking study of the Great Recession, Marcus Nunes and Benjamin Cole show that Ben Bernanke and the Fed made many of the same mistakes that were made during the 1930s.
    [Show full text]
  • Parallel Journeys: Adam Smith and Milton Friedman on the Regulation of Banking
    A Service of Leibniz-Informationszentrum econstor Wirtschaft Leibniz Information Centre Make Your Publications Visible. zbw for Economics Rockoff, Hugh Working Paper Parallel journeys: Adam Smith and Milton Friedman on the regulation of banking Working Paper, No. 2010-04 Provided in Cooperation with: Department of Economics, Rutgers University Suggested Citation: Rockoff, Hugh (2010) : Parallel journeys: Adam Smith and Milton Friedman on the regulation of banking, Working Paper, No. 2010-04, Rutgers University, Department of Economics, New Brunswick, NJ This Version is available at: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/59460 Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen: Terms of use: Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Documents in EconStor may be saved and copied for your Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden. personal and scholarly purposes. Sie dürfen die Dokumente nicht für öffentliche oder kommerzielle You are not to copy documents for public or commercial Zwecke vervielfältigen, öffentlich ausstellen, öffentlich zugänglich purposes, to exhibit the documents publicly, to make them machen, vertreiben oder anderweitig nutzen. publicly available on the internet, or to distribute or otherwise use the documents in public. Sofern die Verfasser die Dokumente unter Open-Content-Lizenzen (insbesondere CC-Lizenzen) zur Verfügung gestellt haben sollten, If the documents have been made available under an Open gelten abweichend von diesen Nutzungsbedingungen die in der dort Content Licence (especially Creative Commons Licences), you genannten Lizenz gewährten Nutzungsrechte. may exercise further usage rights as specified in the indicated licence. www.econstor.eu February, 2010 Parallel Journeys: Adam Smith and Milton Friedman on the Regulation of Banking Hugh Rockoff Rutgers University and NBER Department of Economics 75 Hamilton Street New Brunswick NJ 08901 [email protected] 1 Abstract Adam Smith and Milton Friedman are famous for championing Laissez Faire, yet both supported government regulation of the banking system.
    [Show full text]
  • Introduction
    INTRODUCTION I The 1920s and 1930s were a glorious era in the history of the Austrian School of economics. In those days, the city of Vienna saw the first genuine culture of scholars working in the tradition established by Carl Menger, and this culture radiated throughout the rest of the German-speaking world and into other countries. Many important works of this period have been translated into English, in particular, the books by Ludwig von Mises and F.A. Hayek, and also works of other scholars like Fritz Machlup, Gottfried von Haberler, Oskar Morgenstern, Franz uhel, Hans Mayer, Paul Rosenstein-Rodan, and Leo Schönfeld-Illy.1 Among the pioneering works of this time that have hitherto not been accessible to the anglophone public is that by Richard von Strigl. First published in 1934 under the title Kapital und Pro- duktion by the former Austrian Institute for Business Cycle Research in its series “Contributions to Business Cycle Research,”2 it was reprinted in 1982 by Philosophia Verlag in 1For a sample of writings by these authors from the inter-war period see Austrian Economics: ASampling in the History of a Tradition, Israel M. Kirzner, ed., vol. 2 (London: William Pickering, 1994). 2Beiträge zur Konjunkturforschung, edited by the Österreichischen Institut für Konjunkturforschung. The first seven volumes in this series are all classics of Aus- trian economics: F.A. Hayek, Geldtheorie und Konjunkturtheorie (Vienna: Hölder- Pichler-Tempsky, 1929); Fritz Machlup, Börsenkredit, Industriekredit und Kapitalbil- dung (Vienna: Springer, 1931); F.A. Hayek, Preise und Produktion (Vienna: Springer, 1933); Erich Schiff, Kapitalbildung und Kapitalaufzehrung im Konjunkturverlauf (Vienna: Springer, 1933); Oskar Morgenstern, Die Grenzen der Wirtschaftspolitik (Vienna: Springer, 1934); Fritz Machlup, Führer durch die Krisenpolitik (Vienna: Manz, [1934] 1998); and Richard von Strigl, Kapital und Produktion (Munich: vii Capital and Production Munich under the editorship of Professor Barry Smith.
    [Show full text]
  • Central Banks As Sources of Financial Instability
    SUBSCRIBE NOW AND RECEIVE CRISIS AND LEVIATHAN* FREE! “The Independent Review does not accept “The Independent Review is pronouncements of government officials nor the excellent.” conventional wisdom at face value.” —GARY BECKER, Noble Laureate —JOHN R. MACARTHUR, Publisher, Harper’s in Economic Sciences Subscribe to The Independent Review and receive a free book of your choice* such as the 25th Anniversary Edition of Crisis and Leviathan: Critical Episodes in the Growth of American Government, by Founding Editor Robert Higgs. This quarterly journal, guided by co-editors Christopher J. Coyne, and Michael C. Munger, and Robert M. Whaples offers leading-edge insights on today’s most critical issues in economics, healthcare, education, law, history, political science, philosophy, and sociology. Thought-provoking and educational, The Independent Review is blazing the way toward informed debate! Student? Educator? Journalist? Business or civic leader? Engaged citizen? This journal is for YOU! *Order today for more FREE book options Perfect for students or anyone on the go! The Independent Review is available on mobile devices or tablets: iOS devices, Amazon Kindle Fire, or Android through Magzter. INDEPENDENT INSTITUTE, 100 SWAN WAY, OAKLAND, CA 94621 • 800-927-8733 • [email protected] PROMO CODE IRA1703 Central Banks as Sources of Financial Instability F GEORGE SELGIN he present financial crisis has set in bold relief the Jekyll and Hyde nature of contemporary central banks. It has made apparent both our utter depen- T dence on such banks as instruments for assuring the continuous flow of credit in the aftermath of a financial bust and the same institutions’ capacity to fuel the financial booms that make severe busts possible in the first place.
    [Show full text]
  • The Case of Canadian Inflation Targeting
    A Service of Leibniz-Informationszentrum econstor Wirtschaft Leibniz Information Centre Make Your Publications Visible. zbw for Economics Laidler, David Working Paper The interactive evolution of economic ideas and experience: The case of Canadian inflation targeting EPRI Working Paper, No. 2015-1 Provided in Cooperation with: Economic Policy Research Institute (EPRI), Department of Economics, University of Western Ontario Suggested Citation: Laidler, David (2015) : The interactive evolution of economic ideas and experience: The case of Canadian inflation targeting, EPRI Working Paper, No. 2015-1, The University of Western Ontario, Economic Policy Research Institute (EPRI), London (Ontario) This Version is available at: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/123489 Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen: Terms of use: Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Documents in EconStor may be saved and copied for your Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden. personal and scholarly purposes. Sie dürfen die Dokumente nicht für öffentliche oder kommerzielle You are not to copy documents for public or commercial Zwecke vervielfältigen, öffentlich ausstellen, öffentlich zugänglich purposes, to exhibit the documents publicly, to make them machen, vertreiben oder anderweitig nutzen. publicly available on the internet, or to distribute or otherwise use the documents in public. Sofern die Verfasser die Dokumente unter Open-Content-Lizenzen (insbesondere CC-Lizenzen) zur Verfügung gestellt haben sollten, If the documents have
    [Show full text]
  • A Comparative Institutional Analysis of Free Banking and Central Bank NGDP Targeting
    CORE Metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk Provided by Southern Methodist University The Journal of Private Enterprise 29(1), 2013, 25–39 A Comparative Institutional Analysis of Free Banking and Central Bank NGDP Targeting Ryan H. Murphy* Suffolk University Abstract This paper argues that the choice between free banking and central bank NGDP targeting is a difficult to answer empirical question, contrary to the position of those on either side of the debate. Public choice concerns, the lack of the signals of profit and loss, and optimal determination of currency areas are points against any form of central banking. However, free banking may be suboptimal relative to central bank NGDP targeting for three reasons explored here. Until more data become available, it is impossible to gauge the relative importance of one set of these tradeoffs against the other. JEL Codes: E24, E42, D70 Keywords: Free banking; NGDP targeting; Public choice; Comparative institutional analysis I. Introduction As the Great Recession continued, some of the most ardent supporters of the free market began entertaining the possibility that “demand-side” problems were causing persistent unemployment. Although the right-wing press has criticized the untraditional behavior of central banks, monetary policy actually appeared tight by the standard set forth by one of the most eminent and stringent inflation hawks of the 20th century, F.A. Hayek. This standard requires constant total overall spending in the economy (Hayek, 1931; White, 1999). This implies that M*V should be kept at a constant level for money to remain “neutral.” Following the equation of exchange, this is in effect the same as a Nominal Gross Domestic Product (NGDP) target of 0%.
    [Show full text]
  • The Menger-Mises Theory of the Origin of Money—Conjecture Or Economic Law? Kristoffer Hansen*
    THE QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF AUSTRIAN ECONOMICS VOLUME 22 | No. 1 | 26–48 | SPRING 2019 WWW.QJAE.ORG The Menger-Mises Theory of the Origin of Money—Conjecture or Economic Law? Kristoffer Hansen* JEL Classification: B13, B40, B53, E40, E42 Abstract: In recent years some economists have begun to doubt the scientific standing of the standard Austrian theory of the origin of money. They seem to think that it is only one possible solution to the problem of accounting for money’s value. Of these economists, Gary North (North 2012b) has presented the most cogent count- er-interpretation to how we should understand the theory of the origin of money as elaborated by Carl Menger and Ludwig von Mises. Unlike the rest of economic theory, the origin of money and Mises’s regression theorem do not partake of the character of a scientific law deduced from the basic principles of the science, but is rather, and is presented as such in the writings of Menger and Mises, what North terms “conjectural history.” In this essay we will respond to North’s challenge and to the economists who agree with him. * Kristoffer Hansen ([email protected]) is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Angers. This paper originated as a presentation to the fellows’ seminar at the Mises Institute in 2017. I would like to thank Dr. Salerno and Dr. Thornton and the fellows for their helpful comments. I would also like to thank Dr. David Gordon, Dr. Guido Hülsmann, and Prof. Patrick Newman for helpful suggestions and comments.
    [Show full text]
  • Blast from the Past: Hayek, Gold, and Money
    Blast from the Past: Hayek, Gold, and Money Nikhil Sridhar Richard Salsman, Faculty Advisor 1 Acknowledgements I would like to thank Professor Richard Salsman for his invaluable guidance in the writing of this paper and his incredible mentorship throughout my undergraduate career. I would also like to express my gratitude George Selgin of the Cato Institute’s Center for Monetary and Financial Alternatives for recommending many of the sources used in this paper. Finally, there is little chance that this paper would have been completed without the endless debates on monetary economics with my dear friends Gaurav Sharma, Alexander Frumkin, and Aditya Paruchuri. 2 Abstract The resurgence of Austrian economics and the development of market monetarism as a school of thought since the Global Financial Crisis has brought NGDP targeting into the mainstream political economic discourse. This paper will discuss a close cousin of nominal income targeting, Hayek’s rule for monetary policy, and explore its relationship with the classical gold standard, as many advocates of a stable nominal income pathway have also expressed support for some form of a gold standard in the past. This paper offers a theoretical and historical exposition of Hayek’s rule and the classical gold standard before offering a comparative institutional analysis of these two monetary regimes with special consideration given to political economic considerations. 3 Table of Contents Introduction ....................................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Ludwig Von Mises and Contemporary Free Banking Theory
    Ludwig von Mises and Contemporary Free Banking Theory Wang Kesong Abstract: It has long been debated whether 100 percent reserve is an inherent requirement of a truly “free” banking system. This paper examines accordingly 1) the historical question regarding Mises’s true position on free banking and 2) the theoretical claims of both Mises and contemporary free banking theorists on this issue, in light of Mises’s general theory of money and banking. I argue that Mises is in fact lying on the middle ground between modern 100 percent reserve free bankers and fractional reserve free bankers. For the second issue, I argue that 1) Mises’s theoretical claims on free banking are not satisfactory, 2) modern FRFB theorists’ modified theory is not satisfactory, and 3) 100 percent reserve free bankers’ fraud/embezzlement argument is generally correct, whereas it does not satisfactorily explain the nature of modern “demand deposits”. I thus propose a modified analysis as a complement and reinforcement to their argument. I also point in my conclusion two possible ways to a resolution of modern free banking debate. 1. Introduction Recent decades have witnessed a remarkable revival of a long-ignored research approach in monetary/banking theory. The idea of “free banking”—the application of the general principle of free trade in money and banking—greatly challenges the long-held belief regarding the alleged necessity of a centralized monetary/banking system. However, as in many other cases, controversies arise even among the proponents of this general idea: while one group seeks for an unconditional deregulation of the banking industry, another group argues in contrast the “inseparable” requirement of a “truly free” banking system, viz., 100 percent reserve legal requirement.
    [Show full text]
  • Sound Money an Austrian Proposal for Free Banking, NGDP Targets, and OMO Reforms
    sound money An Austrian proposal for free banking, NGDP targets, and OMO reforms Anthony J. Evans The Adam Smith Institute has an open access policy. Copyright remains with the copyright holder, but users may download, save and distribute this work in any format provided: (1) that the Adam Smith Institute is cited; (2) that the web address adamsmith.org is published together with a prominent copy of this notice; (3) the text is used in full without amendment [extracts may be used for criticism or review]; (4) the work is not re–sold; (5) the link for any online use is sent to info@ adamsmith.org. The views expressed in this report are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect any views held by the publisher or copyright owner. They are published as a contribution to public debate. © Adam Smith Research Trust 2015 Published in the UK by ASI (Research) Ltd. Some rights reserved Printed in England CONTENTS Executive summary xii Foreword ix Introduction xv 1 Open Market Operations 1 1.1 The Sterling Monetary Framework 2 1.2 Merging liquidity provision and monetary policy 6 1.3 Five reforms for OMO 9 2 NGDP Targets 19 2.1 Austrian foundations 23 2.2 The pros and cons 26 2.3 Market monetarism 29 2.4 Limits of NGDP targets 32 3 Free Banking 53 3.1 What is a “free” bank? 57 3.2 Is there a limit on credit creation under free banks? 59 3.3 Are private banks prone to bank runs? 61 3.4 Are central banks necessary? 65 3.5 Are central banks the natural consequence of the market? 67 3.6 Would a Free Banking system improve macroeconomic stabilisation? 69 4 Conclusion 75 Appendix 81 References 85 Executive summary • This paper applies a free market approach to monetary theory to critically assess recent UK monetary policy.
    [Show full text]
  • University of Georgia
    ECONOMICS 816: Macroeconomic Theory II Spring 2011 Nguyen Engineering Building 1107 W 7:20 – 10:00 pm Prof. Lawrence H. White Enterprise 349 Office Hours TuTh 2:45-3:45, or by appointment ph: 993-4049 fax: 993-1133 [email protected] Prerequisites: ECON 715, or permission of instructor. Overview: Intertemporal equilibrium; monetary equilibrium; monetary disequilibrium and its spillover effects on intertemporal and labor markets; proposals for neutralizing monetary policy. Requirements: exam date grading weight 1st exam (75 mins.) TBA 20% 2nd exam (75 mins.) TBA 20% Final exam (cumulative) 11 May, 7:30-10:15 pm 50% Problem sets and participation 10% The following policies are stated as a matter of record. (1) Collaboration on problem sets is allowed. (2) Cheating on an exam is grounds for a zero score on the exam. (3) Failure to take an exam at the scheduled time will result in an exam score of zero (absent a valid medical excuse or certified final exam conflict). You may not take an exam at a different time from the rest of the class. Please don't ask. (3) No one will be permitted to leave an exam before 30 minutes have elapsed, or to enter after anyone has left. (4) Performance on these exams, and on problem sets, will be the only bases for grading. No other "extra credit" will be assigned or accepted. Books (abbreviated below): MD: Michael Darby, Macroeconomics: The Theory of Income, Employment, and the Price Level (McGraw-Hill 1976). Relevant chapters posted on Blackboard. IF: Irving Fisher, The Theory of Interest (1930).
    [Show full text]
  • George Selgin
    Government-Mandated Shutdown: Monetary & Fiscal Policy in Crisis | George Selgin March 26, 2020 “[T]o avert panic, central banks should lend early and freely, to solvent INTRODUCTION firms, against good collateral, and at 'high rates.’” — Walter Bagehot George Selgin is a senior fellow and director of the Center for Monetary and Financial Alternatives at the Cato Institute and Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Georgia. His research covers a broad range of topics within the field of monetary economics, including monetary history, macroeconomic theory, and the history of monetary thought. He is the author of The Theory of Free Banking (Rowman & Littlefield, 1988); Good Money: Birmingham Button Makers, the Royal Mint, and the Beginnings of Modern Coinage (University of Michigan Press, 2008); Money: Free & Unfree (The Cato Institute, 2017); Less Than Zero: The Case for a Falling Price Level in a Growing Economy (The Cato Institute, 2018) and, most recently, Floored! How a Misguided Fed Experiment Deepened and Prolonged the Great Recession (The Cato Institute, 2018). Selgin is one of the founders, with Kevin Dowd and Lawrence H. White, of the Modern Free Banking School, which draws its inspiration from the writings of F. A. Hayek on denationalization of money and choice in currency. Selgin has written for numerous scholarly journals, including the British Numismatic Journal; the Economic Journal; the Economic History Review; the Journal of Economic Literature; and the Journal of Money, Credit, and Banking; and for popular outlets such as the Christian Science Monitor, the Financial Times, and the Wall Street Journal, among others. Selgin holds a BA in economics and zoology from Drew University, and a PhD in economics from New York University.
    [Show full text]