The Conscience of a Liberal
by Paul R. Krugman · first published 2006
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11HN commenters
2008–2022first – last mentioned
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Today's most widely read economist challenges America to reclaim the values that made it great. Here he studies the past eighty years of American history, from the reforms that tamed the harsh inequality of the Gilded Age to the unraveling of that achievement and the reemergence of immense economic and political inequality since the 1970s. Seeking to understand both what happened to middle-class America and what it will take to achieve a "new New Deal," Krugman has woven together a nuanced account of three generations of history with sharp political, social, and economic analysis. This book, w
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I actually have a couple of sources for this :). Apologies for the late reply, I also have a day job ;) I would recommend Krugman's Conscience of a Liberal for an entertaining read. He referenced another book, aptly called Inequality[1], which I'm currently going through. Its a little more academic prose so its not something I can finish quickly (in short,…
on “Apple plans to spend $1B to support advanced manufacturing jobs in the U.S” ↗…will support the workers' families after the workers die from inhaling toxic substances day after day?" These are questions in which the small businessman's lobbyist has no interest. In one chapter "Conscience of a Liberal" Krugman histories the development of this relatively new conservative and wealthy network of individuals and not-for-profit corporations. Read/skim the book for details: http://www.amazon.com/Conscience-Liberal-Paul-Krugman/dp/039...…
on “The Myth of Welfare’s Corrupting Influence on the Poor” ↗…New Deal policies and this has been done through the creation and continued funding of institutions dedicated to what Krugman calls "movement conservatism". I would suggest 2 books: "Dark Money" and "Conscience of a Liberal" to get a better idea of the world that we operate in right now.
on “How Camus and Sartre split up over the question of how to be free” ↗That was true in the USA from the 1950s through the 1980s. Since then the middle-class has been more than decimated. Paul Krugman's book "Conscience of a Liberal" tells how/why this happened: https://www.amazon.com/Conscience-Liberal-Paul-Krugman/dp/03... I'm conservative in general, but I agreed with Bernie Sanders on (at least) 3 issues and have a 4th bone…
on “We should kill the 40-hour work week” ↗…wealthy arch-conservatives and small-business organizations (who supported right-wing ideas because they reduce taxes and empower employers vis-a-vis employees and especially unions) in his book "The Conscience of a Liberal": http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0393333132?keywords=conscie... This network of organizations, which took decades to build, does indeed compose a "vast right-wing conspiracy" in the sense that they…
on “The Myth of Welfare’s Corrupting Influence on the Poor” ↗He calls it "The Conscience of a Liberal" and then says "So yes, I’ve been wrong. Let those who are without error cast the first stone." Krugman is a good example of what's gone amiss with liberalism. Even worse than his many errors, is his…
on “Krugman: Internet’s Economic Impact No Greater Than Fax Machine (1998)” ↗Paul Krugman, the author of "The Conscience of a Liberal," is a noted conservative???
on “Rich more likely to walk away from mortgage” ↗…liberal bias". Surprisingly (not), the conservatives don't see it that way, because they have their own confirmation bias, and their evidence clearly supports their view. Krugman titles his column "The Conscience of a Liberal". Remember that. He's writing as a liberal, not really as an economist.
on “Survival of the Wrongest – Evidence has a well-known liberal bias” ↗…news cycle (in the future, I'd like to spend more time reading these sorts of books and less time on news). [1] https://frenchpress.thedispatch.com/p/america-is-in-the-grip... [2] Paul Krugman's "The Conscience of a Liberal" and Charles Murray's "By the People"
on “As religious faith has declined, ideological intensity has risen” ↗…are pretty familiar with Sanders etc but here's [3] an article by a center-left economist talking a little bit about how the nature of this coalition affects what policies are possible. [1] Krugman's Conscience of a Liberal and Murray's By the People [2] https://www.amazon.com/When-Party-Came-Town-Representatives/... [3] https://www.bradford-delong.com/2019/03/passing-the-baton-th...
on “What is ‘elite overproduction’?” ↗…good recommendation, the correct action is to admit that fact. That goes for the current crisis as well. Krugman seems to have very strong idealogical tendencies, given that he wrote a book called "The Conscience of a Liberal," and thus expresses his opinion about how to handle these matters much more forcefully than is warranted by the information that is provided by economics. In my opinion, this is an abuse of the natural…
on “The Capitalist Manifesto: Greed Is Good (To a point)” ↗…just the invisible hand of Adam Smith to solve this problem. Actually implementing policies to do this is incredibly complex, a lot of this is discussed (as they mention in the article) in the book Conscience of a Liberal by Paul Krugman. He made good arguments for raising minimum wages and the importance of unions. I'm kind of torn on the Union issue (too much Chicago School of Economics influence...), so i think there…
on “Trying to understand income inequality in the USA” ↗…https://devinhelton.com/hate-group-history ) - The left's strategy of "electing a new people" -- favoring mass immigration from Mexico because it will help push liberal policies. This was stated openly in Paul Krugman's "Conscience of a Liberal" and you see articles all the time about it (for example https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/10/19/... ) - The continued scapegoating of "white men" and "structural racism" as being…
on “Peter Thiel, YC, and hard decisions” ↗…assumptions to what other academic economists think, and although it might different in style and presentation it will be the same. He is hated intensely for his politics (he has a book called a "The Conscience of a liberal" and hasn't held back criticising people like George W. Bush, Trump and Putin) and by followers of heterodox economic schools and crypto-enthusiasts. It is your loss to ignore his insights.
on “A Response to Paul Krugman from a Keynesian Bitcoiner” ↗Which? Conscience of a Liberal? I didn’t find it particularly insightful, but it was alright.