In a fantastic article Professor Gregory Mankiw tries telling Trump what he should and shouldn’t do with the economy, and that the answers for the questions the president thinks are simple, are not… Worth reading!
Think before you speak…about inequality
If you’re one of those crusaders fighting against inequality be sure to read this. You might be richer than you might ever have thought, worse (or better yet!) you could be in the top 10%. If you find out you’re waging a war against your own self, don’t abandon it, rather appreciate the responsibility!
Quotable!
Here are a few interesting lines from here and there. Not related in any way, but great!
If you’re an average Pakistani, you are likely to be happier than a decade earlier
Some of the biggest gains in happiness (or life satisfaction) occurred in Indonesia, China, Pakistan, Malaysia and Russia in the 2007-2014 period, says this Pew Report. Of the Pakistanis asked how happy or satisfied they are with their lives on a scale of 1 to 10, 25% thought they were on ‘7’ or above. In 2014, the number of happier Pakistanis had climbed up to 51%, indicating a majority. I couldn’t go through the latest research, but even more must be ‘happier’ as measured by the Cantril Ladder if tested today.
Is it better to buy or rent a house?
If you’re wondering whether you should rent or buy a house, this post might help you think better. It’s a classic explanation in a perfect market world, by Emily Oster, an associate professor of economics at Brown University.
To infinity and beyond!
Pakistan’s economy is a pleasant surprise, according to Tyler Cowen of George Mason University and http://www.mruniversity.com/
Though he discusses the economy’s prospects very briefly, it may make you feel good. Access the article here.
If that is not enough to get you upbeat, you can access PwC’s report here, which predicts Pakistan to be among the fastest growing economies in 2014-50 period.
Wealth Equality: 8 vs 3,600,000,000
When Oxfam released its report last year claiming 62 people as wealthy as half the world, I thought it might be overstated, especially the rate of rise of inequality. But this year they say it was actually understated. 8 people own as much wealth as 3.6 billion people.
This article summarises the key findings and the main report (and a more formal executive summary) are available here.
How to get rich in America
This article by The Economist tells you how to get rich in America. Much of it should apply to all parts of the world I suppose. But it is enthusiastic in its effort to convince you that it will turn out for you how it does for most of them. I think there is a fair chance you may turn out to be an outlier. Interesting read though!
If there were a point in this blog…
Time and again I have come across some article which I would love to share with my students. But it’s not possible to share each and everything in the class, especially with the workload even pseudoacademics have.
So this place is dedicated to share whatever I find intriguing. You may expect stuff relating to economics, politics, happiness, and ‘development’, and of course everything that challenges the already developed notions in these fields.
My contributions will be limited, apart from pointing to articles here and there – but that’s a time-inconsistent pledge. And please spare me if you find something here that does not fall in any of the mentioned categories. Breaking categories is part of the effort, right?!
(Un)Happy (Un)Learning!
Econ(h)appiness 