Re: Today's Wall Street Journal on Mankiw's new textbook

[Brian Eggleston <egglesto@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

William S. Lear wrote:
>
> In a revolting editorial disguised as a book review, the Wall Street
> Journal today published, on p. A18, the thoughts of Mark Skousen, who
> celebrates Mankiw's new textbook as a "counterrevolutionary" work
> which "defeats" Keynesianism and puts "classical economics back at the
> forefront, where it belongs".  Mankiw, apparently undeterred by the
> 1980s, "approvingly quotes Milton Friedman" that "inflation is always
> and everywhere a monetary phenomenon".  One other gem discerned by
> Skousen in Mankiw's new book is that "Unemployment is caused not by
> greedy industrialists, but by minimum wage laws, collective
> bargaining, unemployment insurance and other regulations that raise
> the cost of labor."
>
> Are there any critical reviews of this book yet out?
>
> A letter to the editor might be in order from PKT folks...
>
> Bill

The current Chronicle of Higher Education (Oct. 10) has a 2 page piece
as well.  Several economists offer comment.  My favorite--Alan
Sanderson's (Chicago, no less!) "In some ways, his book is sort of the
Cliffs Notes text for economics students.  To paraphrase Gertrude Stein,
'There is no there there.'"

Brian Eggleston
Augustana College