Luxury, or Where Moammar Meets Smith and Marx
Blogging is often inspired by odd things. This post, for instance, came to me while reading about how Moammar Gathafi (it is spelled thusly on his passport) was a big fan of the FT's How To Spe…
Showing posts with the label IPE 101
Explaining PRC's Growing Impatience with MNCs
Traditionally, the activities of multinational corporations have been a focus of study in international political economy (see description ), though this emphasis has dwindled somewhat in recent year…
Again: No Link Between Democracy and Growth
Dani Rodrik is legendary in development studies and political science in general. While perusing the handiwork of our fellow IPE bloggers at North Carolina, I was surprised to come across his new Pr…
What is Global Policy?
I thought I'd make an entry on this deceptively simple question for future reference as part of my series of " IPE 101 " posts that are a cornerstone of this blog not only for newbies b…
No, China Didn't Overtake Germany as #1 Exporter
I am sometimes amazed by the lack of understanding in mainstream media of simple trade figures. "China 'overtakes' Germany to become largest exporter," trumpets the Independent . Di…
Are They Dropping Dollars for Euros as Reserves?
This is a wonky post that I believe needs to be made anyway. I have made it plenty clear that I am no fan of the dollar and that anyone dumb enough to hold it--including myself, of course--should n…
Karl Marx Was All for Free Trade
It never ceases to amaze me that posts on the topic of Karl Marx [ 1 , 2 , 3 ] remain among the most popular ones here since I am hardly an authoritative commentator on Marxist thought. Nevertheless,…
On "Measuring the Progress of Societies"
I have used the term "growth lubber" to put down those who make economic growth (as exemplified by measures such as GDP) their principal measure of human well-being. Few will argue that eco…
Reply to Posner: Is HDI "Dubious" and "Senseless"?
While preparing material for the post above on measuring the progress of societies, Google pointed me in the direction of a recent post made by Richard Posner on the popular Becker-Posner blog which …
Globalization and Inequality Roundup
This is my final installment relating to the October 2007 IMF World Economic Outlook . It concerns the headline subject matter of the report, Globalization and Inequality . Now, some ink has been spi…
Structurally Adjusting the IMF
And now here's an old-school, straight-up IPE topic: the fate of the IMF. As you know, the IMF was originally intended to be a lender of last resort when countries ran into balance of payments cr…
Test Your IPE Knowledge
For some reason, I've had a sudden inspiration to test my reader's knowledge of IPE. I don't know why but multiple choice exams do not feature much in British higher education; I miss giv…
The Three Waves of Globalization
In a review of recent books by Rajan Menon and Daniel Drezner, the Economist seems to find novelty in the idea that globalization is not all it's cracked up to be. Menon champions a strong Amer…
Is Global Inequality Rising or Falling?
The question of global inequality is perhaps the linchpin of all IPE debates for it concerns, among other things, the benefits of economic globalization and the efficacy of development efforts. For o…
Demystifying Neoliberalism
David Brooks' recent column in the New York Times has set off a controversy in the blogosphere over whether, indeed, neoliberalism is " dead ." It appears to me that much of the conf…