Saturday, October 29, 2011

Military Keynesians, Austrian Economics and Paul Krugman

Paul Krugman gets things half correct, when he observes that Republican budget cutters become "military Keynesians" when it comes to spending for the military-industrial complex.

He quotes Talking Points Memo:
It took months of fighting — the threat of a government shutdown, the graver threat of a default on the national debt, and now a new threat of major, automatic cuts to Medicare and defense programs — but Congress’ deficit obsession has finally exposed the rarest of all species: Republican Keynesians.

With just a under a month until the deficit Super Committee must recommend policies that cut the 10 year deficit by $1.2 trillion, members of the Republican party — the same party that’s been on the war path for deep spending cuts, and that decries President Obama’s “failed stimulus” — are making uncharacteristic arguments against slashing spending. Trim too much, too quickly, they warn, and people will lose their jobs!

“What’s more, cutting our military—either by eliminating programs or laying off soldiers—brings grave economic costs,” wrote Chairman Buck McKeon (R-CA) in a Wall Street Journal op-ed last week. “[I]f the super committee fails to reach an agreement, its automatic cuts would kill upwards of 800,000 active-duty, civilian and industrial American jobs. This would inflate our unemployment rate by a full percentage point, close shipyards and assembly lines, and damage the industrial base that our warfighters need to stay fully supplied and equipped.”
But then Krugman gets slick, after the quote he writes:
One thought here is that a Keynesian is an Austrian whose campaign contributors are about to lose a lucrative contract
Say what? An Austrian is a lot more than about spending cuts. Austrian economics is about business cycle theory, the methodology of economics and subjectivism, among other things. As far as members of congress go, the only congressman that gets all this is Ron Paul and he is against expansion of military spending (in fact he wants huge cuts.) In other words, there are no Austrians in Congress calling for military spending based on Keynesian theory, or anything else.

Slickster Krugman, I'm becoming convinced, is obsessed with Austrian economics and will attempt to paint Austrians with any dirty smelly brush he has and I'm convinced he has a collection of dirty smelly brushes.

6 comments:

  1. I think he is making reference to Ron Paul's contributions coming from military personnel and that those donors are going to lose their lucrative relationship with big spending Republicans if he is elected. I guess he thinks that Military personnel, through their contributions to candidates are groveling for government money much the way academia does in his world.

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  2. Bob, don't forget that Bachmann reads Mises at the beach. LOL

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  3. Krugman is an ass whose only useful function has already been flushed.

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  4. Krugman is terrified of austrian econ which is why he mentions it so often despite basically no major policy makers or politicians in DC with any sort of power besides Ron Paul advocating it.

    Probably the fact that the online austrian blogs like this one constantly prove him wrong and catch him in lies while also correctly predicting the things he missed is a big reason.

    Remember his whole prediction that there was no way that commodity prices would rise unless demand was stimulated with QE2? The Washington Post or NY Times won't remember that and point it out, but the Austrian internet blogs will and do.

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  5. "The ancient wisdom of lawyers: When the facts are on your side, argue the facts. When the law is on your side, argue the law. When you have neither, bang the table. "

    Krugman has no facts, no economic law and is just banging the table.

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  6. "The deficit Super Committee must recommend policies that cut the 10 year deficit by $1.2 trillion"

    Another subtle truth from Krugman. He admits the Supercongress is only about cutting the size of the future deficit.

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