Assorted

As America falters, policymakers must look ahead by Summers (see also the rest of the comments)

How should economic policy respond to a potential fall-off in US demand? The great irony is that just as the worst investment decisions are made by those who do today what they wish they had done yesterday – buying assets that have already risen and selling those that have just lost their value – so also the worst economic policy decisions are made by policymakers who, instead of responding to current circumstances, seek to rectify past mistakes

How U.S. News Calculates "Employment at 9 Months"

Consistent common sense-Donald J. Boudreaux

"During the 1960s when Congress was mandating all sorts of automobile safety rules, such as prohibiting dashboards and car doors from having sharp metal edges, my colleague Gordon Tullock asked what is the goal of such regulation. "To save lives!" was, of course, the reply. "Fine," said Gordon. "But you're going about it all the wrong way. If you really want to save as many lives as possible on the highways, you should mandate that each steering-wheel column have a steel dagger jutting out with its point just inches from the driver's heart."

How Not to Bet on Global Warming

Growth story in volatile times

Nicole Richie vs. Carol Burnett from The Numbers Guy

Debating Hedge Funds ( The Economic Times of India)

Bombay as a Financial Centre

10 Austrian Vices and How to Avoid Them

Tsuyoku Naritai! (I Want To Become Stronger)

Removing the Blinders on International Trade

Picking the Perfect NCAA Bracket

Indian Currency Regime and Its Consequences

Social, Economic and Educational Conditions of Indian Muslims

The Marginal Cost and Marginal Benefit of Cancer Drugs

Private Property and Socialism: A Contradiction? BECKER

Beyond the Subprime Debacle- Robert J. Samuelson

Remember the bank panic of 1907? Probably not. But revisiting it is one way to clarify the differences between the old financial order and the new -- and the challenges posed to the new order by the subprime mortgage mess. Higher defaults on these loans to weaker borrowers raise a question: Is the new order better than the old? For the U.S. economy, the stakes are huge.

Consider the financial upheaval. Since the early 1800s, banks had dominated the system. People and businesses deposited their cash in banks; then the banks made loans. Now, much money bypasses banks. In 1975, banks and savings and loan associations -- close cousins -- issued 73 percent of all home mortgages. By 2006, their share of the $10 trillion mortgage market was 29 percent. Almost 60 percent had been "securitized": bundled into bonds and sold to investors (pensions, mutual funds, foreign investors).