Monthly Archives: May 2012

Monetary theory and fiscal policy:the insights of Alvin Hansen

Posted on May 22, 2012 by haroldchorneyeconomist

One of the greatest interpreters of J.M.Keynes was the American economist Alvin Hansen whose A Guide to Keynes became a staple for beginning macro students during the 1950s and sixties. Hansen made several important errors of interpretation and the IS LM … Continue reading →

Posted in austerity, business cycles, classical economics, Federal Reserve, fiscal policy, full employment, J.M.Keynes, Milton Friedman and NAIRU, monetary policy, quantity theory of money, U.S., Uncategorized | 2 Comments

The Ghost of Maurice Duplessis

Posted on May 19, 2012 by haroldchorneyeconomist

The Québec conflict over access to higher education and the refusal of the embattled Liberal party government of Jean Charest to compromise the principal of a major increase in fees has reached a critical point. With the adoption by the … Continue reading →

Posted in Canada, civil liberties, Québec, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

François Hollande a Supply Sider ? Oh M.Hollande SVP Say it ain’t So .Victor Hugo Would Not Approve.

Posted on May 16, 2012 by haroldchorneyeconomist

Well it didn’t take long. Its not even 24 hours since François Hollande has assumed the Presidency of France and already some insiders are claiming, perhaps accurately although in my view its still too early to say definitively that M.Hollande … Continue reading →

Posted in austerity, deficit hysteria, European debt crisis, European unemployment, France politics+economy, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Greece on road to new election;François Hollande begins his term as Président of France

Posted on May 15, 2012 by haroldchorneyeconomist

This has  been a watershed day in Europe. With considerable pomp, much joy and great expectations François Hollande has begun his term as seventh Président of the fifth République following in the historic footsteps of Charles De Gaulle, Georges Pompidou, … Continue reading →

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Greek talks appear to fail:New elections very likely;anti-austerity a growing movement

Posted on May 13, 2012 by haroldchorneyeconomist

According to the latest reports from Greece the talks among the three leading party leaders and the Greek president have failed to reach an agreement essentially because Syriza is sticking to its position and refusing to agree to enforcing  extreme … Continue reading →

Posted in austerity, deficit hysteria, deficits and debt, European debt crisis, European unemployment, Greek sovereign debt crisis, Mr.Papandreou and democracy, Uncategorized, unemployment | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Mélenchon challenges Le Pen in her Pas de Calais assembly seat; Greece new election very likely

Posted on May 12, 2012 by haroldchorneyeconomist

Jean Luc Mélenchon , the left wing anti-austerity candidate for the French presidency has announced that he will be a candidate against Marine Le Pen, the right wing National Front Presidential candidate who holds a national Assembly seat in the … Continue reading →

Posted in austerity, deficit hysteria, deficits and debt, European debt crisis, European unemployment, Greek sovereign debt crisis, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Greece has a GDP as large as…Minnesota or Alberta !

Posted on May 11, 2012 by haroldchorneyeconomist

Just to put matters into a bit of perspective we should note that the GDP of Greece in 2011 was 217.8 billion Euros or roughly 283 billion U.S. $. The GDP of Alberta in 2011 was 286.6 billion C $ … Continue reading →

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Greek political stalemate continues: Pasok tries to get agreement on government that backs austerity but seeks to soften its impact

Posted on May 11, 2012 by haroldchorneyeconomist

The head of Pasok has been handed the mandate to hammer out an agreement to form a coalition government from itself with 13.4 % of the vote, New Democracy with 19 % of the vote and the social democratic party … Continue reading →

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Coalition building in Greece:A coalition may require Pasok &New Democracy party factions to co-operate with the left.

Posted on May 8, 2012 by haroldchorneyeconomist

The head of the the second most sucessful party , Syriza , the coalition of the Left , Alexis Tipras has now been given the task of trying to form a government around an anti austerity position, after New Democracy … Continue reading →

Posted in austerity, deficit hysteria, deficits and debt, European debt crisis, European financial stability fund, European unemployment, France politics+economy, Greek sovereign debt crisis, Mr.Papandreou and democracy | Leave a comment

Stock market reaction knee jerk and irrational…as usual

Posted on May 7, 2012 by haroldchorneyeconomist

The negative initial reaction to the election in France of François Hollande and the repudiation of austerity in Greece was not unexpected. Nevertheless it is irrational and by the end of the day stocks seem to be recovering although the … Continue reading →

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