July 20, 2020
Political Economy Forum Seminar: Podcast Edition with Professor Mark Smith
On 7/10/20 the UW Political Economy Forum had the pleasure to welcome Professor Mark Smith to our weekly seminar. We tried something new this time : we did things over Zoom and recorded our conversation, which is available to anybody who wants to listen. Mark is Professor of Political Science at UW and the…
July 13, 2020
The Perils of Economic Populism, by Beatrice Magistro & Victor Menaldo
Argentina has cycled between populist democracies and military dictatorships over its modern history. This has catalyzed countless economic crises and catastrophes. The same is true of other Latin American countries. By contrast, Europe’s liberal democracies and the US have largely avoided this predicament, at least since World War II. That is, until now: Their political-economic…
July 9, 2020
Economic Growth and Increased Productivity is Only Half the Battle, By Taylor D.H. Rockhill
My career as an economist started nearly a decade ago, under the watchful eye of the inimitable Deirdre McCloskey. I still fondly remember reading her beautifully written, formidable Bourgeois trilogy and wondering: will I ever come close to attaining her seemingly bottomless well of knowledge? I highly recommend her Bourgeois books, Cult of Statistical Significance,…
July 8, 2020
The Economic, Political & Cultural Follies of Kicking Foreign Students Out, By Brian Ping Leung & Nick Wittstock
After the White House’s recent move to suspend the new issuance of several classes of visas, ICE published a Broadcast Message communicating that foreign students under F and M visas may not remain in the US if they exclusively take online classes in the Fall: “Students attending schools operating entirely online may not take…
F1 VISA Situation for International Students Taking Online Courses, by Beatrice Magistro
Thirteen years ago, a sixteen year-old teenager on a J-1 visa was preparing to enter the US as a high school exchange student, with the hope to live the American dream she had heard about and seen in the movies. I am that student, that experience changed my life and made me fall in love…
July 7, 2020
Digitalization, Superstar-Economics, and Major League Baseball, by Morgan Wack and Nicolas Wittstock
The economy and labor markets across the US are changing dramatically. Big technology companies powered primarily by intangible assets are creating enormous value. Those who can take advantage of the emerging knowledge economy often reap huge rewards, while the returns to the second-best options dwindle or stagnate. Similarly, the returns to the right kind…
July 6, 2020
The Integrity of Higher Education is Key to Making Democracy Work, by Victor Menaldo
Democracy is a miracle. Its practitioners sometimes need to call upon a superhuman ability to transcend their self interest and self regard, prejudices, and desire to suppress things they don’t like. Democracy only works if we tolerate dissent, unpopular opinions, speaking truth to power, and whistle blowers. That, and affording those accused of wrongdoing due…
July 4, 2020
Thoughts about Liberal Democracy on America’s Birthday, by Victor Menaldo
A Political Economy Forum Fellow and graduate student at UW, Kai Ping (Brian) Leung, spoke to the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Wednesday about his experience as a pro-democracy activist in Hong Kong. The purpose of the hearing was to discuss Beijing’s recent arrogation of the rights of the territory’s citizens: China’s new National Security…
July 2, 2020
Is Democracy Failing in the U.S.? By Gretchen Helmke, Mary Kroeger & Jack Paine
Photo by Ryan Inzana Gretchen Helmke Mary Kroeger Jack Paine The idea that American democracy is in crisis is widely accepted among scholars and pundits. Serious allegations of unfair voting practices (such as voter suppression and gerrymandering), abuses of executive power, and mounting concerns about the legitimacy of elections are normal rather than extraordinary events….
