Comments on: Economists Who Live In A Bubble

By: gtheobald

gtheobald — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 16:33:21 +0000

I don't understand how a payroll tax holiday will help a person who does not have a job.

By: Jim_Satterfield

Jim_Satterfield — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 03:31:01 +0000

A little bit of money might be spent, but with it being such a small amount it will almost certainly be spent on inexpensive items that are just as likely to be made overseas as in the U.S. and not accomplish hardly anything in terms of helping our economy.

By: adelinesdad

adelinesdad — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 01:58:11 +0000

I have to differ with you here.

First of all, of course saving is a good thing and part of the reason we're in this mess is because people didn't save. But as far as short-term stimulus goes, we need money spent to soften the blow of the bubble burst. I think virtually every economist agrees on that.

Secondly, I disagree that having an extra little bit of money each month would likely be spent. If people are just getting by, a little extra money would likely be used as a cushion. It would not be spent on items that aren't necessary. And you are also ignoring the many people who already spend more than they make, in which case having a little extra income would just mean the would add a little less to their debt (essentially the same as saving).

With that said, I think there are a lot of variables in these equations and things are not so cut and dry. Perhaps my argument here is over-simplified, but if that's the case then I think so is yours. But I'm not an economist. This is just what I see when I look around.

By: greenschemes

greenschemes — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 22:29:34 +0000

“It seems quite obvious that a much more scientific way of trying to give a satisfactory account of human behavior is to give up the assumption contrary to fact, that it is all planned out, and to approach the problem in an objective spirit, to observe the economic behavior of men both widely and closely, and to try to discover, as a result of observations, what generalizations can be made; whether there are uniformities in behavior; what these uniformities are.”

Wesley C. Mitchell

By: Silhouette

Silhouette — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 21:24:18 +0000

You know, I was just thinking..

I never had a course in economics either in high school or college. But I do consider myself substantially knowledgeable in human behavior. Oh…wait a minute. Aren't they the same thing? ; )