Famous economist Joseph Stiglitz has many major credentials that are
easy to find here
(Wikipedia).
1. "Joseph Stiglitz On What Anti-Globalization Looks Like In The Trump Age," The Leonard Lopart Show, 34 min 26 sec podcast, November 29, 2017
2. Eight (8) min 46 sec Democracy Now!--Economist Joseph Stiglitz: "Anti-Globalization in the Era of Trump--Joseph Stiglitz on Shared Prosperity Without Protectionism" November 30, 2017.
NAFTA was not "a bad deal" for those who negotiated it. The corporations got what they wanted at the time--more money for the wealthy and less money for workers. The corporations are heading us in the same direction now.
In 2000, globalization was seen by many as unfair to developing countries. Corporations had been at the table writing the rules. In 2017, dt has been proclaiming that globalization is unfair to the United States, that the United States got snookered somehow. In fact globalization has not worked out well for many Americans and many Europeans, but dt is not going to be able to "fix it."
Dt has no clue, no understanding, of how the trade deficit problem works. Trade agreements only determine which country or countries we have the deficit with. The trade deficit will go up as debt increases, which it will even more if the current "tax reform"/cost of living increase bill passes. Prof. Stiglitz said, "The way this happens is though an increase in the value of the exchange rate." I am not sure what he meant by that last. To share my confusion you might want to see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exchange_rate#Fluctuations_in_exchange_rates
In the podcast, Prof. Stiglitz discusses the Trans Pacific Partnership proposal and says that withdrawing from the TPP days after the election was the one thing that dt has done right.
The TPP really was a bad deal. You might recall that much was written on the TPP during the Presidency of Barack Obama. Dt probably ended it because it was President Obama's baby, but whatever. It is good that he did it.
Professor Joseph Stiglitz also repeats the fact, most emphatically, that "trickle down economics" does not work. It is highly unlikely that lowering taxes on the rich is going to improve the lot of workers. He addresses some recent contrary statements by some specific "conservative economists" as fantasies and refers to a disaster that happened with similar promises having been made related to a bill that passed in 1981 and then had to be revised in 1986.
He also talks some specifics about how the current hot tax bill is designed to increase the divisions between and among people in different parts of the country.
Further along in the podcast there is much about the problems with EU currency and with Brexit. He also talks briefly about how China has taken the lead by virtue of its rapid growth. Dt's idea of tariffs against China would never work. Tariffs would just destroy the U.S. economy and damage the global economy for the rest of the world also.
You might want to listen carefully to the whole thing.
There is a new book by Joseph Stiglitz, Globalization and Its Discontents Revisited: Anti-Globalization in the Era of Trump (November 28, 2017). The reviews at Amazon seem to address his earlier book from 2002. Amazon seems to overlooked the fact that they are very different books; the new book has new chapters.
Professor Stiglitz is pessimistic. I have another book that is more hopeful. Owning Our Future: The Emerging Ownership Revolution, by Marjorie Kelly (2012) It came highly recommended, and I would like to believe in it. But even though there are models, I do not find it in me to have much faith in the concept of getting the wealthy as a group to do anything other than work at increasing their wealth. I think we will probably have to manage some other way.
love to you and your family,
Larry
1. "Joseph Stiglitz On What Anti-Globalization Looks Like In The Trump Age," The Leonard Lopart Show, 34 min 26 sec podcast, November 29, 2017
2. Eight (8) min 46 sec Democracy Now!--Economist Joseph Stiglitz: "Anti-Globalization in the Era of Trump--Joseph Stiglitz on Shared Prosperity Without Protectionism" November 30, 2017.
NAFTA was not "a bad deal" for those who negotiated it. The corporations got what they wanted at the time--more money for the wealthy and less money for workers. The corporations are heading us in the same direction now.
In 2000, globalization was seen by many as unfair to developing countries. Corporations had been at the table writing the rules. In 2017, dt has been proclaiming that globalization is unfair to the United States, that the United States got snookered somehow. In fact globalization has not worked out well for many Americans and many Europeans, but dt is not going to be able to "fix it."
Dt has no clue, no understanding, of how the trade deficit problem works. Trade agreements only determine which country or countries we have the deficit with. The trade deficit will go up as debt increases, which it will even more if the current "tax reform"/cost of living increase bill passes. Prof. Stiglitz said, "The way this happens is though an increase in the value of the exchange rate." I am not sure what he meant by that last. To share my confusion you might want to see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exchange_rate#Fluctuations_in_exchange_rates
In the podcast, Prof. Stiglitz discusses the Trans Pacific Partnership proposal and says that withdrawing from the TPP days after the election was the one thing that dt has done right.
The TPP really was a bad deal. You might recall that much was written on the TPP during the Presidency of Barack Obama. Dt probably ended it because it was President Obama's baby, but whatever. It is good that he did it.
Professor Joseph Stiglitz also repeats the fact, most emphatically, that "trickle down economics" does not work. It is highly unlikely that lowering taxes on the rich is going to improve the lot of workers. He addresses some recent contrary statements by some specific "conservative economists" as fantasies and refers to a disaster that happened with similar promises having been made related to a bill that passed in 1981 and then had to be revised in 1986.
He also talks some specifics about how the current hot tax bill is designed to increase the divisions between and among people in different parts of the country.
Further along in the podcast there is much about the problems with EU currency and with Brexit. He also talks briefly about how China has taken the lead by virtue of its rapid growth. Dt's idea of tariffs against China would never work. Tariffs would just destroy the U.S. economy and damage the global economy for the rest of the world also.
You might want to listen carefully to the whole thing.
There is a new book by Joseph Stiglitz, Globalization and Its Discontents Revisited: Anti-Globalization in the Era of Trump (November 28, 2017). The reviews at Amazon seem to address his earlier book from 2002. Amazon seems to overlooked the fact that they are very different books; the new book has new chapters.
Professor Stiglitz is pessimistic. I have another book that is more hopeful. Owning Our Future: The Emerging Ownership Revolution, by Marjorie Kelly (2012) It came highly recommended, and I would like to believe in it. But even though there are models, I do not find it in me to have much faith in the concept of getting the wealthy as a group to do anything other than work at increasing their wealth. I think we will probably have to manage some other way.
love to you and your family,
Larry
