An economics, investment, trading and policy blog with a focus on Modern Monetary Theory (MMT). We seek the truth, avoid the mainstream and are virulently anti-neoliberalism.
The whole of Venezuela is a shit hole? Even the lavish areas which you'd mistake for the richest parts of the United States? But we shouldn't let that get in the way of another perfectly bad argument by Matt. What's the point in debunking any of his ludicrous arguments and statements? Facts mean nothing. Science even less. Matt belongs to a cult of his own creation and it has only one member. Anything he doesn't like is unempirical, no matter how much evidence there is. Matt's unique "scientific" standard is whether he agrees with it, not whether it is supported by staggering amounts of evidence. Apparently, evolution is unempirical, even though it is the most tested scientific theory in history. Anything that isn't "deterministic" is not worth bothering with, even though it has been known for centuries that determinism is impossible to reconcile with science. Like evolution, the whole field of chaos is self-evidently unempirical, possibly a hoax, and not worth engaging with.
In Matt's imagination, the three body problem doesn't exist. Laplace's demon and Maxwell's demon aren't problems. Or they are for stupid people who claim to be scientists, that is everyone in the scientific world. Matt knows the answers to all these deep problems but doesn't want the glory that comes with solving the problems and creating a field in which the term Frankosim will be as famous as Newtonian. Matt doesn't seem to realise that nearly all DETERMINISTIC equations are unsolvable, in the sense that they do not have unique solutions. For the most part, universities focus only on the tiny minority of ones that have unique solutions (even then the techniques to do so are very difficult), not the innumerable amount that cannot be so solved. Numerical approximations are the best that can be achieves and these are what we call "solutions". There are no exact solutions. Matt is oblivious to all this, but still blathers on about determinism, stochastic processes, empiricism, material systems, shit holes and whatever else that enters his head. No wonder he likes Trump.
As usual, Matt can't be bothered by the history of a country. If it's poor it's just shit hole. History, geography, internal politics, the international political situation, the international economic order or anything else need not complicate Matt's mind-numbingly simplistic view of the world. Poor countries are shit holes and let's sneer at them and demean them in the crassest fashion. Matt regards himself as some sort of advocate of "material systems", yet he never applies even the most elementary material systems test to the countries that pass on his shit hole radar screen, which more or less also happen to be the countries Washington has told the populace is an enemy. Countries are either shit holes or they're not. For this self-proclaimed "material systems" analyst, the materials a country has to work with, the environment it is in, the forces that affect it and any other material issue is irrelevant. Matt's amazing contribution to "material systems" analysis is whether it is a shit hole or not a shit hole. Give the man every science prize from now to eternity.
They made the decision to join OPEC so now they have to live with it.... they lived for 10 years off pure rent and now nobody there knows how to do anything real... they have to start over from scratch...
To Matt's thinking, if Venezuela didn't join OPEC they wouldn't have any economic and social problems! Matt doesn't compare living standards for the majority prior to OPEC and after OPEC, the economy prior to Chavez and after Chavez, that the comparisons have to take in NEW information etc. Matt doesn't take into account the Gulf Arab states forcing the price of oil down, and they're OPEC members. More zero-dimensional material systems thinking from Matt: whatever a Republican controlled Washington claims is self-evidently right.
Rent seeking is another term Matt waves around. No mention of US rent seeking through intellectual property rights, post-1945 trade arrangements, especially the WTO, enormous agricultural subsidies for example, US sanctions etc.
they lived for 10 years off pure rent and now nobody there knows how to do anything real... they have to start over from scratch.
No, they did most things right in the face of massive opposition. Most people became significantly better off. They didn't get off of oil dependency fast enough but they tried. Basically they did not move fast enough to avoid problems. Of course being part of OPEC having a lot of oil is a tremendous boon to Venezuela. If it can use it wisely.
The one thing they did completely wrong is not to float their currency, but maintained a byzantine system of multiple exchange rates as an incredibly inefficient, counterproductive way of helping the poor. There is an insane, highly prevalent idea, particularly in the international left, particularly Marxists, maybe worst in Latin America that "floating" is the right-wing capitalist oppressor way and fixed rates are progressive, left-wing populist. Completely backwards. Deserves everything you have ever said about material system incompetence.
All this just shows the extent of the opposition and even more, how important it is to have the material systems competence to float and then sing Que Sera, Sera while tending your own garden. Having guns in a war is very helpful to winning it. But knowing that you should point them at the other guy, not your own head is even more important.
Yes, that old Weisbrot article is very good, and was the one I had in mind when I wrote that. Should have realized it was commented on here already. Don't have links, but you have to read those lefties fixed-raters to believe how wrongheaded they are. Reminds me of the crack suicide squad from The Life of Brian.
There are shitholes in the US yes Jeff....
ReplyDeleteBut certainly not the whole nation....
The whole of Venezuela is a shit hole? Even the lavish areas which you'd mistake for the richest parts of the United States? But we shouldn't let that get in the way of another perfectly bad argument by Matt. What's the point in debunking any of his ludicrous arguments and statements? Facts mean nothing. Science even less. Matt belongs to a cult of his own creation and it has only one member. Anything he doesn't like is unempirical, no matter how much evidence there is. Matt's unique "scientific" standard is whether he agrees with it, not whether it is supported by staggering amounts of evidence. Apparently, evolution is unempirical, even though it is the most tested scientific theory in history. Anything that isn't "deterministic" is not worth bothering with, even though it has been known for centuries that determinism is impossible to reconcile with science. Like evolution, the whole field of chaos is self-evidently unempirical, possibly a hoax, and not worth engaging with.
ReplyDeleteIn Matt's imagination, the three body problem doesn't exist. Laplace's demon and Maxwell's demon aren't problems. Or they are for stupid people who claim to be scientists, that is everyone in the scientific world. Matt knows the answers to all these deep problems but doesn't want the glory that comes with solving the problems and creating a field in which the term Frankosim will be as famous as Newtonian. Matt doesn't seem to realise that nearly all DETERMINISTIC equations are unsolvable, in the sense that they do not have unique solutions. For the most part, universities focus only on the tiny minority of ones that have unique solutions (even then the techniques to do so are very difficult), not the innumerable amount that cannot be so solved. Numerical approximations are the best that can be achieves and these are what we call "solutions". There are no exact solutions. Matt is oblivious to all this, but still blathers on about determinism, stochastic processes, empiricism, material systems, shit holes and whatever else that enters his head. No wonder he likes Trump.
As usual, Matt can't be bothered by the history of a country. If it's poor it's just shit hole. History, geography, internal politics, the international political situation, the international economic order or anything else need not complicate Matt's mind-numbingly simplistic view of the world. Poor countries are shit holes and let's sneer at them and demean them in the crassest fashion. Matt regards himself as some sort of advocate of "material systems", yet he never applies even the most elementary material systems test to the countries that pass on his shit hole radar screen, which more or less also happen to be the countries Washington has told the populace is an enemy. Countries are either shit holes or they're not. For this self-proclaimed "material systems" analyst, the materials a country has to work with, the environment it is in, the forces that affect it and any other material issue is irrelevant. Matt's amazing contribution to "material systems" analysis is whether it is a shit hole or not a shit hole. Give the man every science prize from now to eternity.
I wouldn’t go there if you paid me...
ReplyDeleteThey made the decision to join OPEC so now they have to live with it.... they lived for 10 years off pure rent and now nobody there knows how to do anything real... they have to start over from scratch...
To Matt's thinking, if Venezuela didn't join OPEC they wouldn't have any economic and social problems! Matt doesn't compare living standards for the majority prior to OPEC and after OPEC, the economy prior to Chavez and after Chavez, that the comparisons have to take in NEW information etc. Matt doesn't take into account the Gulf Arab states forcing the price of oil down, and they're OPEC members. More zero-dimensional material systems thinking from Matt: whatever a Republican controlled Washington claims is self-evidently right.
ReplyDeleteRent seeking is another term Matt waves around. No mention of US rent seeking through intellectual property rights, post-1945 trade arrangements, especially the WTO, enormous agricultural subsidies for example, US sanctions etc.
Tillerson is claiming responsibility for Venezuela’s shitholishness:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/venezuela/article197273904.html
they lived for 10 years off pure rent and now nobody there knows how to do anything real... they have to start over from scratch.
ReplyDeleteNo, they did most things right in the face of massive opposition. Most people became significantly better off. They didn't get off of oil dependency fast enough but they tried. Basically they did not move fast enough to avoid problems. Of course being part of OPEC having a lot of oil is a tremendous boon to Venezuela. If it can use it wisely.
The one thing they did completely wrong is not to float their currency, but maintained a byzantine system of multiple exchange rates as an incredibly inefficient, counterproductive way of helping the poor. There is an insane, highly prevalent idea, particularly in the international left, particularly Marxists, maybe worst in Latin America that "floating" is the right-wing capitalist oppressor way and fixed rates are progressive, left-wing populist. Completely backwards. Deserves everything you have ever said about material system incompetence.
All this just shows the extent of the opposition and even more, how important it is to have the material systems competence to float and then sing Que Sera, Sera while tending your own garden. Having guns in a war is very helpful to winning it. But knowing that you should point them at the other guy, not your own head is even more important.
MNE (23 OCT 2106)
ReplyDeleteMark Weisbrot — Venezuela's Economic Crisis: Does It Mean That the Left Has Failed?
Mark Weisbrot
Yes, that old Weisbrot article is very good, and was the one I had in mind when I wrote that. Should have realized it was commented on here already. Don't have links, but you have to read those lefties fixed-raters to believe how wrongheaded they are. Reminds me of the crack suicide squad from The Life of Brian.
ReplyDelete