Video

I’ve been traveling a bit lately and catching up on some writing deadlines, hence less posting than usual. In the meantime, I’ve been doing some videos that readers might enjoy.

Thanks to the nudge by the excellent marketing team at Hoover, I’m doing a weekly “grumpy economist rant” of short videos. The collection is here. So far I’ve done

• “Just let them build,” on housing supply and what happens if you subsidize demand without fixing supply

• “The trouble with tariffs.” Free trade basics.

• “The price control trap” Price controls don’t work, even in natural disasters

• “Where does inflation come from?” You probably know where I’m going on that one.

• “Your EV is a non-starter.” They don’t reduce carbon emissions, because what you don’t burn someone else will.

• “Taxes without distortion.” If the question is how to raise revenue with minimal economic damage the answer is a pure consumption tax.

More are coming each week. I welcome suggestions. What makes you grumpy? Or, what insights can simple economics offer to the issues of the day?

These might also be useful as discussion starters in economics classes.

I also had a nice discussion of Fed independence with Art Rolnik (formerly director of research at the Minneapolis Fed, among many other things) and Gary Stern (former president of the Minneapolis Fed), via the Heller-Hurwicz Economics Institute.