Well, That’s Convincing … Not!

So when the Republicans went to the White House to talk about raising the debt limit and destroying Medicare, they declared that their plan had been endorsed by 150 economists.

It took some searching to find out who these economists were, and the “star” of the show is Robert Mundell of Columbia University. The name didn’t ring any bells, and I don’t remember him being mentioned by any of the usual suspects, so I went to Wikipedia:

Robert Mundell, CC (born October 24, 1932) is a professor of economics at Columbia University and the recipient of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics in 1999. Mundell laid the groundwork for the introduction of the euro through his pioneering work in monetary dynamics and optimum currency areas, for which he won the Nobel. Mundell helped to start the movement known as supply-side economics, and is known for the Mundell–Fleming model and Mundell–Tobin effect.

About the “Nobel” – Zero received the Peace Prize, so that doesn’t hold as much validity as it once did.

I don’t think the Irish, Greeks, or Spanish would greet him with open arms or support his theories, given their current situations, and the €uro is not exactly turning into the greatest thing since sliced bread for those living under its conditions.

But the thing that makes me reject Mundell’s opinions out of hand is his status as the “godfather” of supply-side economics, which is responsible for the current US deficit, and the massive transfer of wealth to the top 1%. The architect of the destruction of the middle-class, is not to be trusted.

My test of trustworthiness for economists is quite simple: did they warn of the GOPression? If they missed the global meltdown, their theories don’t work. I tend to be a bit Old Testament [Deuteronomy, Chapter 18, verses 20-22] when it comes to economists and pundits. [Actually, I just require that they be better than flipping a coin, while the media prefers that they be worse.]