Proselytism and Religious Freedom: The Political Implications of Proselytism (with Al-Marayati, Daug
In the context of a globalizing world marked by the freer flow of people and ideas, proselytism has become increasingly controversial. On March 3, 2010, the Berkley Center sponsored a day-long symposium on proselytism and religious freedom in the 21st century. Experts from a variety of scholarly and policy fields investigated the theological, legal, and political implications of the missionary impulse.
Debating the War of Ideas: (with Afsaruddin, Ahmed, Phares and Patterson)
Debating the War of Ideas is a new book that brings together competing voices from across continents, religions, and political persuasions to present their understanding of the strife within the Muslim world and/or between Islamic and Western traditions?the ideas that so many around the globe believe are worth fighting, killing, and even dying for. This event included a panel discussion with chapter contributors Asma Afsaruddin, Akbar Ahmed, Walid Phares, Eric Patterson, and others.
Selgin on Free Banking
George Selgin of West Virginia University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about free banking, where government treats banks as no different from other firms in the economy. Rather than rely on government guarantees to protect depositors (coupled with regulation), banks would compete with each other in offering security and return on deposits. Selgin draws on historical episodes of free banking, particularly in Scotland, to show that such a world need not be unduly hazardous or filled with
Higgs on the Great Depression
Robert Higgs, of the Independent Institute, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the Great Depression, the New Deal, and the effect of World War II on the American economy. Using survey results, financial data, and the pattern of investment in the 1930s, Higgs argues that New Deal policies created a climate of uncertainty that prolonged the Great Depression. Using consumption data, he argues that prosperity did not return during wartime, but rather after the war when government interventi
Reis on Keynes, Macroeconomics, and Monetary Policy
Ricardo Reis of Columbia University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about Keynesian economics in the classroom and in research. Reis argues that Keynesian models are a useful framework for helping undergraduates understand macroeconomic ideas of general equilibrium. More generally, Reis argues, Keynesian ideas remain influential in macroeconomic research, particularly among Neo-Keynesians. Reis discusses the lessons the economics profession and the world have learned from the Great Depress
Roberts on Smith, Ricardo, and Trade
Russ Roberts, host of EconTalk, does a monologue this week on the economics of trade and specialization. Economists have focused on David Ricardo's idea of comparative advantage as the source of specialization and wealth creation from trade. Drawing on Adam Smith and the work of James Buchanan, Yong Yoon, and Paul Romer, Roberts argues that we've neglected the role of the size of the market in creating incentives for specialization and wealth creation via trade. Simply put, the more people we tr
Romer on Charter Cities
Paul Romer of Stanford University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about charter cities, Romer's idea for helping the poorest of the poor around the world. Romer envisions a city where the rules about property and safety and contract and so on are rules that allow individuals to flourish in an urban setting in contrast to the cities they live in now where so many aspects of economic and personal life are dysfunctional. Charter cities would be havens for the world's poor and could be created
Transperencies on Composting
