Group Problem-Solving Exercises: An Application in Economics

I often teach Intermediate Macroeconomic Theory, one of the courses economics majors are required to take. Macroeconomic theory is primarily directed to questions concerning inflation, employment, and economic growth. Currently, there are two professionally sanctioned ways of thinking about these issues- Keynesian economics and monetarism . Intermediate macroeconomics is of little value to our majors if they leave the course unable to think like an economist . Accordingly, it is my principal objective in this course that, by the end of the semester, students be able to do both Keynesian economics and monetarism - that is, to think their way through concrete issues from either perspective

Reasonable Value and the International Organization of Labor Rights

Critics of “globalization” have argued that “core” labor rights should be written into regional and multilateral trade agreements. “Free traders” oppose this; arguing if should be dealt with by the International Labor Organization, not in trade agreements. The critics find this less than satisfactory, as the ILO has no enforcement capability. We argue that the ILO is the appropriate body for dealing with labor rights, though not for the reasons that the “free traders” stand on. Rather, the ILO embodies the theoretical standpoint, theory of value, and analysis of labor markets found in the institutional economics of John R. Commons. While there are problems in applying Commons’ approach internationally, it is possible that incorporating ILO findings in national decision making may promote the ILO as an authoritative figure.Les critiques de la « mondialisation » ont défendu l’idée selon laquelle les principaux droits du travail devraient faire partie des ententes de commerce régionales et multilatérales. Les « libres échangistes » s’opposent à cela, préconisant plutôt le fait que ceux-ci devraient être établis par l’Organisation internationale du travail (OIT) et non par les traités commerciaux. Les critiques de la « mondialisation » considèrent cette dernière option insatisfaisante, dans la mesure où l’OIT ne possède pas de capacité exécutoire. Nous soutenons que l’OIT est l’organisme approprié pour traiter des droits du travail, non pour la raison invoquée par les « libres échangistes », mais plutôt parce que l’OIT incorpore un point de vue fondé sur une théorie de la valeur et une analyse des marchés du travail issue de la théorie économique institutionnaliste de John R. Commons. Bien qu’il y ait des problèmes à appliquer l’approche commonsienne au niveau international, il est possible qu’en transposant les conceptions de l’OIT dans le processus de décision national, on puisse promouvoir l’OIT comme une autorité compétente

Waste, Industry and Romantic Leisure: Veblen's Theory of Recognition

types: ArticleVeblen’s work contains a neglected, since for the most part implicit, theory of recognition centred on his concepts of waste and workmanship. This article tries to develop this theory in order to shed new light on the theorem of conspicuous leisure and consumption. The legitimacy of violence at the ‘predatory stage’ of culture has been partly superseded by a legitimacy of industrial efficiency, so that the leisure classes need to disguise their conspicuous waste as socially useful productive endeavours. At the same time waste remains a powerful symbol of legitimate status, so that even the industrial classes turn to it in order to assert their social worth and demand social recognition. Waste - which is far more central in Veblen’s theory than is emulation - becomes an ambiguous symbol which can stand for both unproductive privilege and industrial efficiency. The utilitarian urge for efficiency and the meaninglessness of a struggle for recognition through conspicuous waste produce a desire for a romantic escape, also acknowledged by Veblen, but often overlooked in his sharp criticism of consumerism