September 27, 2024 — Jimmy Carter turns 100 on October 1. His presidency has always been underestimated. A few of his accomplishments, like the Camp David Accords, are well-known. But his legacy has been hurt by misperception of some specific developments of those years, 1977-1981. This is particularly true when viewed in light of new information that did not come out until more recently.
Consider policy in three areas: (1) deregulation, (2) inflation, and (3) the Iranian hostage crisis.
August 26, 2024 — Over the past 85 years, Hollywood has had much to say about financial markets and institutions – often reflecting a distinctly populist perspective. At a time when both populism and financial volatility are much in evidence, what lessons might these movies hold about regulation?
Start with the Wizard of Oz. The 1939 movie was a populist allegory about money, though most devotees don’t know it. The Emerald City represents Wall Street, while the yellow brick road symbolizes the gold standard. The Cowardly Lion represents William Jennings Bryan, who, when the original book was written in 1900, was an agrarian populist candidate running for president against the monetary austerity of the gold standard and on behalf of western farmers (the Scarecrow) and eastern factory workers (the Tin Man).
April 25, 2024 — I have in the past identified a media phenomenon that I called the syndrome of “False Imbalance.” No, not “False Balance,” where the journalist takes an issue that is in truth unbalanced and pretends it is balanced. In a misguided attempt to sound impartial, he or she presents an unsupported viewpoint (say, climate change denial) on equal basis with a factual one.
False Imbalance takes a debate that is in truth balanced and pretends it is imbalanced. A leader is described as under widespread attack, without indicating that half the attacks are coming from one direction and half from the opposite direction. The reader is given no way of knowing that the public figure may be steering a path that carefully balances the pros and cons.