I'm not convinced the other candidates aren't sufficiently less neo-Keynesian than Cary Moon. It's not clear to me, reading this, that she stands out. Based on the rhetoric of every viable politician in Seattle, one can surmise safely that they all believe markets can fail and government intervention is useful and sometimes required. I'd argue though that a lot of what passes for progressive politics is neither neo-Keynesian or neo-Classical. Neo-Keynesians would first look to see if the failings in the market could be fixed through government action - internalizing externalities like taxing for the true cost of pollution say. Trying to find the least costly and most efficient remedy.
My experience lately around here is that the first response or at least rhetoric is some sort of legal mandate, not instead centered on changing the incentive structure. Things like minimum wage, secure scheduling, paid sick leave, etc. Those are government regulations meant to address perceived "failings" in the marketplace. It's perfectly acceptable for a democratically elected body to seek those kind of remedies, but I'm not sure they're born of some economic rationale. Most seem to be implemented without regards to the costs associated with them. That doesn't seem to be economically minded to me at all.
@7, for example, Senator John McCain is a proven failure who votes 95% with Comrade Trump, and the rest of the time with his Russian masters.
Whereas Cary Moon was right about the tunnel being a waste of scarce tax dollars on a project we still have no need for, to solve a problem we still don't have.
Charles Mudede - Thanks for bringing this up.
I don't agree with everything you've said (total neoclassical failure to predict, in any sense, 2008, or fractional reserve banking?) - but NO ONE else is talking about this. And economics does hold a shocking amount of authority over politicians and their advisors, regardless of where it comes from. Kudos.
@4, @7 The majority of this article was an explanation of contemporary economics, not a comparison of Cary Moon's policies with the other candidates. Charles says she gets it, an opinion which I guess he expects us to implicitly trust, but doesn't give any us any quotes from her, or discuss anything she's done with this knowledge, as if it's expected we're already aware of her entire career. He does link to her campaign issues page, but, once again, doesn't specifically explain how those positions distinguish her from the other candidates, a few of whom seem to hold similar views.
I'm not saying the writing was bad. It's just not a contrast, or even a study of Moon's positions. I am curious how she'd directly compare with Oliver. Moon claims on her issues page that she'll, "Exponentially expand affordable housing from only 6% of Seattle’s housing market toward a goal of four times this share." So, basically, the same as Nikita Oliver's 25% affordable housing goal? Is the one percent difference really doing it?
Oliver is also in favor of a speculation tax, as well as quite a few other policies listed on Moon's issues page, according to this Urbanist Questionnaire. Where's the tremendous, endorsement-worthy difference?
Thanks for your comments about my reading comprehension, @4 and @7. They were really helpful, especially in light of the eight sentences where Charles Mudede actually mentions Cary Moon and attempts to link her policies with his understanding of economic theory. You know what would have been more helpful? More than eight sentences about Cary Moon's policies and how they link with Charles Mudede's understanding of economic theory.
u r complaining about freshwater economics
u and Mrs. Moon wrote an article about how global financial distortions r leading to condo development that is not meant to capture streams of rents or to sell to people choosing places to live. this is basically a European freshwater position - Austrian, Swiss (BIS), German (ok, there's the Baltic). sadly, it's also an Obamaish position - withholding skilled immigration legislation as bait for comprehensive reform when a new surge of middle class workers was most precious, Cadillac health plan tax, medical device tax, Dodd-Frank financial chastity, Iraq pullout, fiscal sequester, the Grand Bargain wtf, war on fossil fuels, conservative Fed (re)appointments when Rohmer & Woodford were available, all of this in the largest recession in more than a half-century. ok I understand the fossil fuel stuff, but the rest was so prudish and geeky in the context of the Great Recession. Medicaid expansion and the obligatory stimulus package were the only baller acts properly sized for the moment
we used to b the party of FDR doing WW2, Medicare, and SocSec in the same administration, LBJ doing Vietnam, Medicaid, and 'welfare as we knew it' in the same (SHORT!) administration. now it's the Republicans who can invade two countries, do Medicare part D, and cut their homies' taxes at the same time. we're captain save-a-ho trying to cut deficits and cockblock the only industries that hire and invest in the post-industrial US. if not for Bush's hubris and Gates/Greenspan blowing up the Clinton economy, we might b a dead party. I'm not certain that we're not dead, as it is
if Chinese capital flight can pimple our city with skyscrapers way out of proportion with the means of people to reside in them, they would b bounded only by the availability of construction equipment and labor, and we could all get chill jobs operating cranes, polishing Caterpillar gear, or renting parking lots to construction equipment. to me it seems more likely that a lot of housing units r under construction because numerous people are moving to Seattle, and important real-economy businesses r giving them great jobs
I do love Ha-Joon Chang. Mazzucato is important, too. Check out "why info grows" by MIT physicist Cesar Hidalgo, also, if u like Ha-Joon. it is an experience like shrooming while speculating haplessly via neoliberal priors at the reasons why all the Big 3 auto cos were in Detroit, all the internet action in Valley, all the finance in NY, all the movies in Hollywood, all with a good sense of humor. unfortunately Bannon is beating us to the punch in dunking his head in freshwater. 'a nation is more than just an economy' shows he gets it. the bigots will drink the punch that designated driver Obama left over and we will not again b the life of the party, for years to come
Whatever one thinks of economics, capitalism, unemployment, and related subjects, Charles' case would seem to have been stronger if he actually quoted Cary Moon. As it is, the piece contains precious little about Cary Moon and absolutely no quotations from her, either from interviews or writings. When Charles refers to her at all, it is to simply tell us she knows this or that. And there are virtually no references to competing candidates' disagreements or perspectives. Wouldn't quotations from an actual interview with Cary Moon (and from some of the other candidates) have made for a stronger argument for her candidacy? Either that, or simply have Charles write a piece directly expressing his own views.
My conclusion from the article is that Charles and Ms. Moon must have had an excellent conversation about economics at some point. What I don't get from this article is information that will help me decide who should be the next mayor. This entire article seems more like the information that would follow an asterisk that was placed next to the word "economics" in an article that actually told us information about Cary Moon's ideas for running our city.
If you define market urbanists as people who believe that building more housing helps make housing less expensive, definitionally we do not believe this.
Nicely done, Charles.
Charles says, and repeats, that Cary Moon understands this stuff, and then he explains to us what it is that she understands.
Is comprehension really that difficult, or do you have a knee-jerk need to duke it out with him?
Also, Charles, don't you mean that neo-Keynesians are saltwater economists? You call them freshwater...
My experience lately around here is that the first response or at least rhetoric is some sort of legal mandate, not instead centered on changing the incentive structure. Things like minimum wage, secure scheduling, paid sick leave, etc. Those are government regulations meant to address perceived "failings" in the marketplace. It's perfectly acceptable for a democratically elected body to seek those kind of remedies, but I'm not sure they're born of some economic rationale. Most seem to be implemented without regards to the costs associated with them. That doesn't seem to be economically minded to me at all.
@4 I was confused about that part as well. Krugman strikes me as decidedly saltwater, perhaps it was just a typo.
@5 There's a difference between "no accomplishments of-note" and "proven failure." Your rhetoric seems just a tad hyperbolic.
Whereas Cary Moon was right about the tunnel being a waste of scarce tax dollars on a project we still have no need for, to solve a problem we still don't have.
I don't agree with everything you've said (total neoclassical failure to predict, in any sense, 2008, or fractional reserve banking?) - but NO ONE else is talking about this. And economics does hold a shocking amount of authority over politicians and their advisors, regardless of where it comes from. Kudos.
I'm not saying the writing was bad. It's just not a contrast, or even a study of Moon's positions. I am curious how she'd directly compare with Oliver. Moon claims on her issues page that she'll, "Exponentially expand affordable housing from only 6% of Seattle’s housing market toward a goal of four times this share." So, basically, the same as Nikita Oliver's 25% affordable housing goal? Is the one percent difference really doing it?
Oliver is also in favor of a speculation tax, as well as quite a few other policies listed on Moon's issues page, according to this Urbanist Questionnaire. Where's the tremendous, endorsement-worthy difference?
u and Mrs. Moon wrote an article about how global financial distortions r leading to condo development that is not meant to capture streams of rents or to sell to people choosing places to live. this is basically a European freshwater position - Austrian, Swiss (BIS), German (ok, there's the Baltic). sadly, it's also an Obamaish position - withholding skilled immigration legislation as bait for comprehensive reform when a new surge of middle class workers was most precious, Cadillac health plan tax, medical device tax, Dodd-Frank financial chastity, Iraq pullout, fiscal sequester, the Grand Bargain wtf, war on fossil fuels, conservative Fed (re)appointments when Rohmer & Woodford were available, all of this in the largest recession in more than a half-century. ok I understand the fossil fuel stuff, but the rest was so prudish and geeky in the context of the Great Recession. Medicaid expansion and the obligatory stimulus package were the only baller acts properly sized for the moment
we used to b the party of FDR doing WW2, Medicare, and SocSec in the same administration, LBJ doing Vietnam, Medicaid, and 'welfare as we knew it' in the same (SHORT!) administration. now it's the Republicans who can invade two countries, do Medicare part D, and cut their homies' taxes at the same time. we're captain save-a-ho trying to cut deficits and cockblock the only industries that hire and invest in the post-industrial US. if not for Bush's hubris and Gates/Greenspan blowing up the Clinton economy, we might b a dead party. I'm not certain that we're not dead, as it is
if Chinese capital flight can pimple our city with skyscrapers way out of proportion with the means of people to reside in them, they would b bounded only by the availability of construction equipment and labor, and we could all get chill jobs operating cranes, polishing Caterpillar gear, or renting parking lots to construction equipment. to me it seems more likely that a lot of housing units r under construction because numerous people are moving to Seattle, and important real-economy businesses r giving them great jobs
I do love Ha-Joon Chang. Mazzucato is important, too. Check out "why info grows" by MIT physicist Cesar Hidalgo, also, if u like Ha-Joon. it is an experience like shrooming while speculating haplessly via neoliberal priors at the reasons why all the Big 3 auto cos were in Detroit, all the internet action in Valley, all the finance in NY, all the movies in Hollywood, all with a good sense of humor. unfortunately Bannon is beating us to the punch in dunking his head in freshwater. 'a nation is more than just an economy' shows he gets it. the bigots will drink the punch that designated driver Obama left over and we will not again b the life of the party, for years to come
"That which is asserted without evidence, can be dismissed without evidence."
Show that those economic theories have been "discredited", otherwise your complaint has no standing and can be summarily dismissed.
Thank you.
If you define market urbanists as people who believe that building more housing helps make housing less expensive, definitionally we do not believe this.