Assorted Links (7/27/2010)

Here’s a list of articles that I have been reading lately:

Debate Heats Up Over Stimulus Spending – WSJ.com

online.wsj.com

“Eighteen months after Obama administered a massive dose of spending increases and tax cuts, a fight has broken out about whether fiscal-stimulus medicine is curing the illness or making it worse.”  For a page 1 story of a major newspaper, I was pleasantly surprised by how well the reporter (Jon Hilsenrath) was able to summarize the empirical academic literature which assesses the relative efficacy of fiscal policy instruments such as deficit spending and tax cuts…

Robert M. Kimmitt and Matthew J. Slaughter: The Foreign Investment Solution for American Jobs – WSJ.

online.wsj.com

“In The Wall Street Journal, Robert M. Kimmitt and Matthew J. Slaughter write that the Obama administration can spur job growth for Americans by making it easier for foreign companies to do business in the United States.”

Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete and Yoweri Museveni: Free Trade and the Fight Against Malaria – WSJ.com

online.wsj.com

“Tanzanian President Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete and Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni write in the Wall Street Journal that removing tariffs would be good for African health and for African entrepreneurs.”

Stephens: From WikiLeaks to the Killing Fields – WSJ.com

online.wsj.com

“In The Wall Street Journal, Global View columnist Bret Stephens says that liberals contemplate withdrawal from Afghanistan with no thought of the consequences.”

The Patriarch’s Will – a game theory puzzle – Mind Your Decisions

mindyourdecisions.com

“Here is a scenario which occurred many millennia ago: The patriarch of a wealthy family was on his deathbed and wanted to divide his gold among his eight sons who were all very, very greedy. Wishing to favor the oldest son (as tradition would have it) but also to reward the more cunning of his progeny, he made the following decree…”

The Costs of War – Freakonomics Blog – NYTimes.com

nytimes.com

“A new paper reviews war costs in Iraq and Afghanistan.”

McGurn: Giving Lousy Teachers the Boot – WSJ.com

online.wsj.com

“In The Wall Street Journal, Main Street columnist William McGurn on bad teachers in D.C. who were booted by school chancellor Michelle Rhee.”

Science Turns Authoritarian — The American, A Magazine of Ideas

american.com

“Science is losing its credibility because it has adopted an authoritarian tone, and has let itself be co-opted by politics.”

The American Spectator : America’s Ruling Class — And the Perils of Revolution

online.wsj.com

My friend Kevin Stuart (Ph.D. student in UT-Austin’s Department of Government) brought this very compelling essay to my attention the other day…

2010 Tour de France – part II – The Big Picture – Boston.com

boston.com

The Cop on the Banks of the Nile – WSJ.com

online.wsj.com

Fouad Ajami writes in The Wall Street Journal that no great upheaval has taken place in the Egypt of Hosni Mubarak. But the country has stagnated, and some of its children have blamed the U.S. and embraced terror.”

Fan and Fred and the Problem of Narrative – WSJ.com

online.wsj.com

“In The Wall Street Journal, Brian Carney notes that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s blunders don’t fit the left’s story about how greedy bankers caused the financial crisis. That’s why they haven’t been reformed.”

ATMs in Antarctica: An Interview With Wells Fargo’s David Parker

needcoffee.com

“I was fascinated when I learned that there was an ATM on Antarctica, specifically at McMurdo Station. Just because, you know, it’s not like your local ATM that they can zip a service tech out to. So to sate my curiosity, I gave a ping to Wells Fargo, who manages that ATM–and got a chance to chat with David Parker. All shall be explained.”