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... Who appears to have lost all sense of integrity. | ||
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I am not likely the only person in the world who knows that this statement is utter hogwash. What you mean is "the only tool we can use to pass all the readjustment pain to the rest of the world, and not suffer ourselves." Isn't that right, Paul? You have many options, but the others hurt. The proper solutions would result in a reduction of US living standards by probably around 30%. That's what you're trying to avoid, and that is what you are forcing onto other countries. The US has a huge trade deficit. When that happens to you, it's your responsibility to reduce your deficit by reducing your spending. But instead, you want other countries to reduce their surpluses. It's my problem, but I want you to fix it. What would happen if China had a huge trade deficit? Do you suppose the US would agree to hamstring its economy and produce massive unemployment to reduce their surplus just to "help China"? Of course not. You would say, "If you have a deficit, it's because you aren't competitive and nobody wants to buy what you make. It's your problem; you fix it." Yeah, well, the same to you. ".... in China’s case, .... thanks to currency manipulation on a scale unprecedented in world history..." Actually, it seems to me that your country's printing about 2 trillion in excess cash conforms precisely to "currency manipulation" on a "scale unprecedented in world history". We really have the pot calling the kettle black, don't we? And I think many people recall one of your recent articles where you sadly pointed out that (a) Greece couldn't just inflate itself out of debt as could the US, and then (b) gleefully reminded everyone that the US did precisely that after wW II. "... (China has) no business telling the United States that it can’t act to help its own economy." Yes, they do have, because you are deliberately acting to disrupt, damage and destroy their economies by taking the easy way out. And this isn't the first time you can tell everyone, "It's our currency, but your problem." What do you call the trashing of Bretton Woods? "One of the few tools available to promote US economic recovery?" And besides, you are no one to talk. The majority of your recent articles have consisted of you telling China that it couldn't act to help its own economy. And for goodness sake, let's stop the whining already. Poor little impoverished America, mistreated by Brazil and Korea and China and Japan and Germany and everbody, and having no means of defense. With its new program of printing money, the US is now actively manipulating its currency on a scale genuinely never seen before, and as a consequence is flooding developing economies with hot money, exporting inflation on a grand scale, and once more using its privilege of having a reserve currency to spread its economic adjustment pain to the rest of the world instead of making the hard and inevitable decisions at home. Dr. Krugman has been unrelenting in his criticism of China, but blindly and cowardly avoids facing the much more serious actions taken by his own country. After the US Fed announced the QE program, Krugman confined all his columns to political matters, and avoided any discussion of currencies. Except for two occasions. On one, he (I am quite certain) ghost-wrote an article for the NYT, titled "Now, Will China Get It?". apparently able only to do by stealth what he lacked the courage to do openly. In the other, Krugman included a back-handed reference to the G-20, with the inclusion of some nasty China-bashing, in an essentially unrelated political piece, virtually ensuring that critical comments would be buried. In my view, those were cowardly acts. A man in this position should have the courage to state these considerations openly and to deal with the expected fallout. This is all very disappointing. Dr. Krugman has been so vocal in his accusations of China manipulating or artificially lowering their currency, that he owes it to his readers to openly face the fact of the US now doing essentially the same thing on a grander scale and with much more damage to local economies. My observations to the Management and Editors of the NYT were that Dr. Krugman has become so political, so clearly dishonest in his presentations, so shrill and almost hysterical in his new ideologies, that he has outlived his usefulness as a columnist. | ||
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The first is titled "Paul Krugman appears to have lost his marbles". It appears increasingly likely that Alan Greenspan may not be the last economist to totally discredit himself. Read Here The next contains many comments Krugman received from readers (in NYT posts) on his incoherent, raving article. Read Here The third is a scholarly refutation made in response to one of Krugman's Error-Ridden Articles, written by Raghuram G. Rajan, who was foolishly attacked and misquoted by Dr. Krugman in one of his nonsense articles. Read Here The Structure of the US Economy Today A brief look at Trade Surpluses and Deficits Let's have a Financial Crisis |
