Norway Referendum

[PHILLPS@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

Trond reports the response of an Eastern European on the net to his
postings on the referendum re Norway's adherence to the EU.  Trond,
I would gather from the tone of his response, was both surprised and
a little depressed.  Though I am still depressed, I am no longer
surprised by the naivety of so many eastern European economists when
it comes to the operation of the market mechanism.  I had the
opportunity today to talk to an such an economist when we were
discussing the issue of the IMF and he asked why I was so negative
about IMF Conditionality which had been held out as the salvation
of a particular eastern European nation.  When I asked for the
example of a single nation which had developed under such
conditionality conditions he had no answer, but still defended
the IMF.
  I have always argued that the real tragedy of the Stalinist
system of thought control was how it constrained the education of
economists so that now they believe the neoclassical paradigm, not
just as an analytic tool, but as a value and policy proscription.
That is what is really sad and depressing, but hardly surprising.

Paul Phillips
Economics,
University of Manitoba