PrintSeptember 23, 2009
An Unwelcome Message for Obama
A recently released economics book will not likely be featured by the legacy media as a selection for the Obama Book of the Month Club. Last March, TIME noted that the White House had been "seized" by a book entitled Animal Spirits: How Human Psychology Drives The Economy, and Why It Matters For Global Capitalism written by two economists. White House Budget Director Peter Orszag was photographed clutching a copy. A May piece in the American Thinker stated that Animal Spirits authors Akerlof and Shiller implied that we citizen consumers are irrational animals and the government is the wise zookeeper. Key points in the book include these:(1) The authors accept [John Maynard] Keynes' understanding of the role of government vis-à-vis citizens with regard to the economy. For them, it's like a parent-child relationship. (2) The current downturn in the U.S. economy can be traced to inadequate parental oversight.(3) When animal spirits are free to roam amidst an...(Read Full Article)
