Good Economics for Hard Times by Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo

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Good Economics for Hard Times by Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo

There is a fundamental problem with economists – they are seldom right. Could the problem be economics itself? This is an underlying theme in this book even as the authors strived to discover why economists do not agree with each other, and why the public often do not agree with the government and the economists who advised them.

The authors discuss whether free trade is the solution for poor economic growth, or is free trade the problem? They study countries (such as India) that have gone through different approaches and arrived at uncertain conclusions. After opening up to trade – in return for IMF money – it took India more than a decade after 1991 to see economic growth. They discuss the economic benefits of tariffs versus free trade. The conclusions are far from clear, because trade and growth are a complex mix, but it seems that tariffs often backfire.

Economic growth id not entirely dependent on trade, and even in trade, one factor stands out in contrast to capital – labour. Once the authors launch into the supply of labour, we see the problems of immigration and racism. The authors point out that the traditional bias against immigrant workers is mistaken. People do not move just because the pay is better elsewhere. In fact, we are blinded into not seeing that people generally do not like to move, and there are many strong reasons for that. There is the issue of connection. People are more likely to move if they have connections in their intended destination. Then there are family ties back home, in contrast to the poor living conditions elsewhere, and so on. The authors also point out that anti-immigrant sentiments have existed from time immemorial, only the subject changes. First people were against Jewish immigrants, then Italian immigrants, then African immigrants, and now, it is Muslim ones. Eventually, the authors say, the immigrants get assimilated, and the nation’s attention (or prejudice) turn to others.

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