Now's As Good A Time As Any

Coincidentally, I think I had a dream about him the other night. He introduced himself as Milton “Money” Friedman. You know…”Money is my middle name.”

I saw Sherrod Brown’s commercial today, and I’m going to have to hold my nose to vote for him. In fact, I don’t know if I even can in good conscience. He had an ad with a lot of sad factory workers and said that DeWine voted for free trade. Brown said that if elected he would “put Americans first”. But that’s the damn problem! The Republicans put Americans first with guns, and the Democrats put Americans first with money, and they both say “screw the rest of the world”.

We’ll kick the bums out this time, and it won’t be long before we’re kicking out the new bums to put back the old bums again. Aaaarrrghh….

I’m leaving the country in not much more than three weeks, and I have so much stupid crap to do for school. I’m contemplating how much of it I can blow off and still pass my classes.

By the way, I already failed at not buying anything today: I got some Enchildas Rancheras at El Acapulco AKA Mom ‘n’ Pop Mexican Restaurant (where I wussed out of practicing my Spanish).

Did I already tell you there’s an Argentine Queen cover band that’s going to be playing while I’m in Buenos Aires? I’m so psyched!

I don’t usually buy anything on Buy Nothing Day, but it’s not an ideological thing…it’s just that I’m tired from turkey and travel and I’d much rather sleep the day away. I might cheat today, though, because the Tough & Lovely are playing at Skully’s tonight, and I think I’d have to buy a ticket to see them…unless somebody’s willing to comp me, for old times’ sake.

There’s a book called Debunking Economics…sounds like something I could stand to read and believe it or not.

Dang it, I knew I should have bought some PetroChina stock!!!

Uh, that’s all I got for now, Longtime Reader. But I’m feeling a bit of a pang for economics all of the sudden while having to make all these lesson plans and crap.

Actually…letting African farmers export food without having to pay tariffs or compete with heavily subsidized First World agriculture is free trade. Nobody’s really opposed to that except farm state senators and Archer Daniels Midland (at least not in this country).

Arrrgh…that’s like the third time that’s happened to me. They’re very efficient about it though. The attempted charge triggered a security alert, and they called me today to cancel the card and replace it. But that’s really annoying…I hadn’t even used that card in several years!

If you really want to save money, how about shutting down Camp Pendleton? Just look at where it is!!! Money money money…

The University of Chicago’s Steven Levitt (future Nobel Prize winner…and one of my former professors!) has a new book out, Freakonomics, and he’ll be on The Daily Show tomorrow night to promote it. Sumo corruption! Gang accountants! A theory of the decline of crime in the 1990’s that ticked off everybody! Are you ready for some economics?!

UPDATE 4/28 at 11:38 PM: Freakonomics has a web site. Levitt got two segments on TDS and acquitted himself well. Plus, Jon Stewart said “Freakonomics!” and wiggled his fingers around at the beginning and end of the show. His book is #4 on Amazon, trailing only Harry Potter #6, Thomas Friedman’s “The World Is Flat” and “He’s Just Not That Into You”.

“Protectionism Tonight”…I mean…”Lou Dobbs Tonight”. My basic objection: no one would tolerate a show on a “news channel” (even Fox News) called “Abortion is Murder Tonight” or, say, “Meat is Murder Tonight”.

What a jingoist jerk.

Trade deficits don’t matter. To trot out one well worn argument, we aren’t concerned about the trade deficit between New York and New Jersey (there surely is one, one way or the other). Or the trade deficit between Manhattan and Brooklyn. Or between Greenwich Village and Wall Street. If people believe trade deficits matter, then not only do you have an isolationist U.S., but it would logically follow that each state should wall itself off from other states, too. And cities to other cities. And suburbs to suburbs. And before you can say “feudalism”, the global economy goes to crap.

Now, on the other hand, budget deficits do matter. No such thing as a free lunch, you know. If you’re not paying for it in taxes, you’re paying for it in depreciation of the dollar against other currencies. If not that, then you’re paying higher interest rates or your savings are being devalued due to inflation.

Tax cuts don’t stimulate the economy. If taxes are at the “wrong” rate (too high), then they should be set at the “right” rate and left alone. If tax cuts were always good, why not just abolish taxes and pay for all our spending by borrowing and printing money?

By the way, while I’m writing this I’m both avoiding doing my stupid chemistry lab report and listening to classic NES video game music (Contra, Ninja Gaiden, Super Mario 1).

The World Bank is supposed to help other countries. And you, Mr. President, went and picked…I don’t even want to say his name, I hate him so much. At least he’ll be out of the Defense Department and won’t be able to kill people anymore (at least not with weapons).

Nationalism: bad. Internationalism: good!

If you had purchased $1,000 worth of Euros on the day Bush was inaugurated, they would be worth $1,415 today.

Warren Buffett knows what he’s talking about!

1. I am considering going to see Diary of a Mad Black Woman out of morbid curiosity.
2. The whole threat of the economy collapsing due to high oil prices is a little overhyped. People only spend a small portion of their income on gasoline or things that generally require gasoline (like shipping things by truck). People will spend less on other stuff and find alternatives to using so much gasoline. The economy will grow slower or shrink for a couple of years while the market sorts out the energy situation, but it won’t be the end of the world.