Whoever said if you lined up all the economists in the world they still wouldn't reach a conclusion?
Greg Mankiw provides evidence to the contrary:
Robert Whaples surveys PhD members of the American Economic Association and finds substantial agreement on a wide range of policy issues. For example:
- 87.5 percent agree that "the U.S. should eliminate remaining tariffs and other barriers to trade."
- 85.2 percent agree that "the U.S. should eliminate agricultural subsidies."
- 85.3 percent agree that "the gap between Social Security funds and expenditures will become unsustainably large within the next fifty years if current policies remain unchanged."
- 77.2 percent agree that "the best way to deal with Social Security's long-term funding gap is to increase the normal retirement age."
- 67.1 percent agree that "parents should be given educational vouchers which can be used at government-run or privately-run schools."
- 65.0 percent agree that "the U.S. should increase energy taxes."
And, finally, the topic that generates the most consensus:
- 90.1 percent disagree with the position that "the U.S. should restrict employers from outsourcing work to foreign countries."
One issue that fails to generate consensus is the minimum wage: 37.7 percent want it increased, while 46.8 percent want it eliminated.
More thoughts from Arnold Kling.
No comments:
Post a Comment