Monday, April 17, 2017

Response to Krugman column on jobs

Here is my response to today's Krugman column, but remember that if you follow the link, then the NY Times counts it against you... That's another problem I've written about.

Good column, but Professor Krugman needs to go deeper than a hope "we can and should ensure that a decent life endures even when a job doesn't." There are some deep truths there, but he seems to be missing them, even though they are rooted in economics.

One side involves a fake problem: The need for more money by people who are already wealthy. It's a fake problem because there is NO solution. Extreme greed will NEVER be satiated, and there is always a bigger number representing more money that can be owned, even if the economy has been so strangled that there is nothing to spend the money on. Greed is not good; greed stupidly thinks the "problem" is other people having any money.

The other side involves time, and this is the part that is really annoying the super-greedy bastards. Their wealthy time is ultimately no different from the peasants' time. #PresidentTweety gets 24 hours a day just like you or me. Our time gets filled by living, whether we're rich or poor. (Perhaps that's the real reason the rich bastards hate the idea of universal healthcare?) We (and that certainly should include Professor Krugman) need to consider economics in terms of time, and especially in terms of filling each person's time with activities that actually contribute to the economy.

We've barely noticed high technology means essential production time can't fill our time, but our society needs to compensate with more investment and recreational time to balance things out. Ekronomics 101, eh?

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As a blogger from before there were blogs, I've concluded what I write is of little interest to the reading public. My current approach is to treat these blogs as notes, with the maturity indicated by the version number. If reader comments show interest, I will probably add some flesh to the skeletons...