Category: History & heritage

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Economics History & heritage

[908] Of Phelps and Prize in Economics

As a blog that pretends to know economics, it’s embarrassing for me to not to blog about Edmund Phelps when he was awarded with the Prize in Economics earlier this week. Almost all blogs that love economics are celebrating his achievement. So, today, I want to celebrate his achievement too.

In modern macroeconomics, students learn that there is a trade off between inflation and unemployment. If inflation goes up, unemployment goes down and vice versa. Those who are familiar with economics will know that this refers to the Phillips curve.

The problem with the Phillips curve is that in macroeconomics, in the long run, nominal factor does not affect real factor. Inflation is a nominal factor and so, in the long run, inflation does not affect the real economy. Despite that, the original Phillips curve says that inflation affects real component of the economy.

Phelps added inter-temporal dimension into the Phillips curve. In essence, his research suggests that current expectation of future inflation affects future Phillips curve. This is the expectation-augmented Phillips curve and with that, he solved the nominal-real problem. In simple terms, the Phillips curve could move around.

The new Phillips curve is dynamic and it shows that there’s no trade off between inflation and unemployment in the long run. The new model also able to explain the stagflations of the 1970s and the low unemployment and inflation rates during the 1990s. The old static Phillips curve can’t explain those two historical events.

I learned that in class and he won the Prize in Economics for it. Last year, the winners contributed to the advancement of game theory. And yup, I learned about that in class too.

p/s – economists for full-cost accounting. Yup, among them are Greenspan and Mankiw. Mankiw call this group of economists as the Pigou Club.

Categories
Conflict & disaster History & heritage Liberty

[894] Of Lex Gabinia

An extremely interesting article at the New York Times. Pirates of the Mediterranean (via):

IN the autumn of 68 B.C. the world’s only military superpower was dealt a profound psychological blow by a daring terrorist attack on its very heart. Rome’s port at Ostia was set on fire, the consular war fleet destroyed, and two prominent senators, together with their bodyguards and staff, kidnapped.

The incident, dramatic though it was, has not attracted much attention from modern historians. But history is mutable. An event that was merely a footnote five years ago has now, in our post-9/11 world, assumed a fresh and ominous significance. For in the panicky aftermath of the attack, the Roman people made decisions that set them on the path to the destruction of their Constitution, their democracy and their liberty. One cannot help wondering if history is repeating itself.

At the Economist’s View, the blogger says “Can we avoid making the same mistakes, or is it too late already?“

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History & heritage Liberty

[884] Of 43 years of the Malaysian Federation

That 16 days have passed.

Wikipedia. Public domain.

Don’t forget your history, lest somebody will rewrite it.

Happy birthday Malaysia.

Categories
History & heritage Humor Photography

[800] Of to our glorious dead II

I wanted to blog something on economics and the environment but I unwarily caught myself some gems from my friends. Right now, I’m feeling terrible with a bad case of sore throat, a minor flu and an on and off headache. But I still want to blog. So, I cut down on the thinking part and post a picture instead.

Last April, I was at the Malaysian national monument complex. In Kuala Lumpur of course . Well, this is another picture from that complex. This time, it’s the actual picture of the main monument.

Mohd Hafiz Noor Shams. Some rights reserved

At time of completion in February 1966, it was the largest bronze statue in the world. I’m uncertain which monument is the largest bronze statue in the world currently but one thing is certain though – Malaysians’ obsession with superlative is not of recent invention.The communist rebels really hated the Malaysians’ obsession that they bombed the monument in 1975. Nah. I’m kidding about the cause but the bombing did occur.

I like the silhouette against the blue sky. The burnt section however is not so admirable.

Finally, 20 squared times 2 is 800. God, I hate blowing my nose.

Mohd Hafiz Noor Shams. Some rights reserved Mohd Hafiz Noor Shams. Some rights reserved Mohd Hafiz Noor Shams. Some rights reserved

p/s – Vegetarianism are conquering the world! Starting with India:

BOMBAY, India – Never mind pets, smokers or loud music at 2 a.m. House hunters in Bombay increasingly are being asked: “Do you eat meat?” If yes, the deal is off.

As this city of 16 million becomes the cosmopolitan main nerve of a booming Indian economy, real estate is increasingly intersecting with cuisine. More middle-class Indians are moving in, more of them are vegetarian, and the law is on their side.

“Some people are very strict. They won’t sell to a nonvegetarian even if he offers a higher price than a vegetarian,” said real estate broker Norbert Pinto.

Damn. Vegs are capable of discrimination! The shock! The horror!

I’ve had always thought vegetarians are the nicest people around. Well, that’s another one of my stereotypes smashed to pieces. Come to think of it, I wonder how I had developed a thinking that accepts vegetarians-are-the-nicest-people. It probably due to one of my political biases.

Categories
History & heritage Liberty Photography

[774] Of Masjid Negara office, Kuala Lumpur

Another photo before partying on Friday.

Mohd Hafiz Noor Shams. Some rights reserved
That’s the office of the National Mosque here in Kuala Lumpur . The photo is a bit grainy but whatever.

Mohd Hafiz Noor Shams. Some rights reserved Mohd Hafiz Noor Shams. Some rights reserved Mohd Hafiz Noor Shams. Some rights reserved

p/s – I heard the Nepali monarch’s speech and he said that he’s prepared to hand over power to a Prime Minister of the people’s choice. The king is relenting to the people.

Mohd Hafiz Noor Shams. Some rights reserved Mohd Hafiz Noor Shams. Some rights reserved Mohd Hafiz Noor Shams. Some rights reserved

pp/s – I didn’t know this had almost happened. Sumatra could have been a Malaysian annex in history:

A startling revelation of the then-Malaysian Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman’s support of counter-subversion operations to break up Indonesia and incorporate Sumatra into Malaysia is detailed in David Easter’s article, “British and Malaysian Covert Support for Rebel Movements in Indonesia during the ‘Confrontation’

I knew Malaysia and the Commonwealth forces ran subversive movement during the war that in the end incapacitated Indonesia but never had I knew that there was plan to incorporate Sumatra into the Federation. Whoa!