All posts by Jim Garven

My name is Jim Garven. I currently hold appointments at Baylor University as the Frank S. Groner Memorial Chair of Finance and Professor of Finance & Insurance. I also currently serve as an associate editor for Geneva Risk and Insurance Review. At Baylor, I teach courses in managerial economics, risk management, and financial engineering, and my research interests are in corporate risk management, insurance economics, and option pricing theory and applications. Please email your comments about this weblog to James_Garven@baylor.edu.
Assorted Links

Assorted Links (6/5/2010)

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

 
Hard Times, Bright Futures — The American, A Magazine of Ideas
www.american.com
“Robert Reich and others think the latest crop of America’s entrepreneurs is teeming with the out-of-work and desperate. We’re not so sure.”
 
Self-Reported Economic-Impact Estimates Deserve Scrutiny – The Numbers Guy – WSJ
blogs.wsj.com
“Reports from Google and from Super Bowl host cities’ bid committees that they provide big economic boosts appear to be overstated.”
 
Arthur Brooks: Slouching Towards Athens – WSJ.com
online.wsj.com
“In The Wall Street Journal, American Enterprise Institute President Arthur Brooks says the Obama agenda will make America look more like Greece, and turn tea partiers into the kind of public sector workers who strike and riot in Athens for higher pay.”
 
Employers on Strike – WSJ.com
online.wsj.com
“The Wall Street Journal writes on the May jobs report and notes that most of the jobs added were from temporary census workers.”
 
Quotes Uncovered: The Marx Brothers and Proverbs – Freakonomics Blog – NYTimes.com
freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com
“Fred Shapiro traces the origins of popular quotes.”
 
Capitalism: Hollywood’s Miscast Villain – WSJ.com
online.wsj.com
“Why the film industry is so good at getting business wrong.”
 
Quote of the Day: The Shack | Mother Jones
motherjones.com
“Does “The Shack” offer answers to Christianity’s most vexing question?”
 
Athens on the Potomac — The American, A Magazine of Ideas
www.american.com
“Paul Krugman is right: America isn’t Greece. That doesn’t mean we aren’t in worrisome shape. And by one measure, we are in worse shape than Greece.”
 
Book review: The Shallows – WSJ.com
online.wsj.com
“John Horgan reviews Nicholas Carr’s The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains.”
 
Mitch Daniels: Hoosiers vs. Crony Capitalism – WSJ.com
online.wsj.com
“Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels writing in The Wall Street Journal on how creditors in his state took on the federal government in the Supreme Court and helped restored the rule of law after last year’s Chrysler bailout.”
 
Kim Strassel: Washington Rebels Against Chicago – WSJ.com
online.wsj.com
“In The Wall Street Journal, Potomac Watch columnist Kimberley Strassel wonders if the White House dealings with Joe Sestak and Andrew Romanoff violates the Hatch Act.”
 
Why We Can’t Just Keep Raising Taxes on the Rich – Business – The Atlantic

www.theatlantic.com

“One thing about taxes that most people don’t find intuitive is that the higher they are, the harder…”
 
Burton G. Malkiel: Entitlement Reform and the Global Budget Crisis – WSJ.com
online.wsj.com
“Burton G. Malkiel writes in The Wall Street Journal that putting Social Security on a sustainable path isn’t nearly enough to end our entitlement shortfall. But it would do a lot to convince markets that Washington can be serious.”
 
Daniel Henninger: Beating Up on Israel – WSJ.com
online.wsj.com
“Daniel Henninger writes in The Wall Street Journal that preferring to be blowhards than statesmen, the world’s powers find it easier to denounce small nations like Israel than take on large and difficult problems like Iran or North Korea.”
Assorted Links

Assorted Links (6/3/2010)

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

Burton G. Malkiel: Entitlement Reform and the Global Budget Crisis – WSJ.com
Source: online.wsj.com
“Burton G. Malkiel writes in The Wall Street Journal that putting Social Security on a sustainable path isn’t nearly enough to end our entitlement shortfall. But it would do a lot to convince markets that Washington can be serious.”

Daniel Henninger: Beating Up on Israel – WSJ.com
Source: online.wsj.com
“Daniel Henninger writes in The Wall Street Journal that preferring to be blowhards than statesmen, the world’s powers find it easier to denounce small nations like Israel than take on large and difficult problems like Iran or North Korea.”
 
A Gulf Spill Reality Check – Forbes.com
Source: blogs.forbes.com
“Debate over the disaster is vital, but it must recognize four important points.”
 
How Washington Just Worsened the Gulf Oil Spill
Source: www.american.com
“President Obama made BP’s problem worse, and in so doing has worsened the problems facing not only the administration but also the unfortunate residents of the Gulf of Mexico.”
 
Curtis C. Ebbesmeyer: How Far Will the Gulf Gusher Spread? – WSJ.com
Source: online.wsj.com
“In The Wall Street Journal, Curtis Ebbesmeyer writes that the oil from Deepwater Horizon will ride the Gulf Stream across the Atlantic.And in years to come, some will even wash up on European shores.”
 
A rough week for Guatemala – The Big Picture – Boston.com
Source: www.boston.com
“In just the past seven days, residents of Guatemala and parts of neighboring Honduras and El Salvador have had to cope with a volcanic eruption and ash fall, a powerful tropical storm, the resulting floods …”
 
Paul Ingrassia: The Lessons of the GM Bankruptcy – WSJ.com
Source: online.wsj.com
“In The Wall Street Journal, automotive writer Paul Ingrassia says that the slow drift to insolvency by the auto company needs to be kept in mind as the national government’s profligate spending continues to increase unchecked.”
 
The Oil Plume – NYTimes.com
Source: www.nytimes.com
“The continuing oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico will likely come to serve as a metaphor for the ineffectiveness of governing institutions.”
 
The BP Oil Spill’s Lessons for Regulation – Project Syndicate
Source: www.project-syndicate.org
“As the damaged BP oil well continues to spew millions of gallons of crude from the depths of the floor of the Gulf of Mexico, the immediate challenge is how to mitigate an ever-magnifying environmental catastrophe. But the disaster poses a much deeper challenge to how modern societies deal with regulation.”
 
The Gulf Spill and Alaska – WSJ.com
Source: online.wsj.com
“Alaska Governor Sean Parnell warns in The Wall Street Journal that he see signs that the Obama administration wants to use the disaster to shut down oil production even in the safest areas.”
 
Risk is Risk, On or Off Balance Sheet – Regulating Wall Street
Source: w4.stern.nyu.edu
“The derivatives rules in the Senate financial reform bill pose a serious threat to the financial system because they leave critical institutions – including but not limited to derivatives clearinghouses – without a lender of last resort. A major feature of the legislation prohibits any “swaps entity” from receiving federal assistance such as deposit insurance or access to the Federal Reserve’s lending facilities. The bill will force banks to spin off their derivatives activities into separate corporate entities. Yet, sweeping the risks inherent in derivatives trading off bank balance sheets does not make them disappear.”    
 
The Visible Hand – Freakonomics Blog – NYTimes.com
Source: freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com
“Who would you rather buy from on Craigslist?”
 
Have We Crossed the Point of No Return? – Philipp Bagus – Mises Daily
Source: mises.org
“A specter is haunting the world, and especially Europe: the specter of a sovereign insolvency. The acute sovereign-debt crisis is largely the result of government interventions in response to the financial crisis.”
 
Google says Google TV coming this fall – Computerworld
Source: www.computerworld.com
“Google today joined partners Intel, Sony and Logitech to formally introduce the long awaited Google TV platform.”
Finance, Financial Crisis

Classic Adam Smith quote on banking…

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“Though the principles of the banking trade may appear somewhat abstruse, the practice is capable of being reduced to strict rules. To depart upon any occasion from those rules, in consequence of some flattering speculation of extraordinary gain, is almost always extremely dangerous, and frequently fatal to the banking company which attempts it.”

— Adam Smith, “The Wealth of Nations”, 1776

Art, Music, and Culture, Economics, Finance, Financial Crisis, Foreign Policy, Politics, Public Policy, Terrorism

Assorted Links (5/29/2010)

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Here’s a list of articles that I have been reading lately: 
 
Charles Krauthammer – A disaster with many fathers
“Obama is as responsible for the Gulf as Bush was for New Orleans.”
 
Academics on What Caused the Financial Crisis – Real Time Economics – WSJ
“The Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission on Friday and Saturday heard several academic economists’ take on what led to a near-meltdown of the global economy.”
 
Static In Search for Cellphone-Tumor Link – The Numbers Guy – WSJ
“Why a long-term study couldn’t reach conclusive results.”
 
Mark Helprin: On Memorial Day – WSJ.com

“In The Wall Street Journal, Mark Helprin writes about what we owe to the fallen, and to those now serving.”

 
Calling a State Sponsor a State Sponsor

“A growing body of evidence points to Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez’s singular role in supporting terrorism and related criminality.”

 
Waves & Beyond and The Gift by Jan Florence Garven
“Waves & Beyond and The Gift by Jan Florence Garven: Jan Florence Garven is an artist who specializes in mixed media. She combines paper, metal, wax, textiles and found objects to convey conceptual images.”
 
Lighter than air – The Big Picture – Boston.com
“Fill a lightweight material with hot air, helium or hydrogen, and you have a vessel that floats in the air. People around the world use balloons, blimps and airships for transportation, to conduct research, to deliver messages, to protest, and – mostly – for having fun.”
 
Peggy Noonan: He Was Supposed to Be Competent – WSJ.com
“The spill is a disaster for the president and his political philosophy, Peggy Noonan argues in The Wall Street Journal.”
 
Obama’s Blowout Preventer – WSJ.com
“The Wall Street Journal that Interior Secretary Ken Salazar had a reform plan to prevent blowouts like the one at the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico.”
 
World economy: Fear returns | The Economist
“Governments were the solution to the economic crisis. Now they are the problem.”
 
Wall Street’s Next Debacle Gets Help From Senate: Roy C. Smith – Bloomberg.com
“After a yearlong effort to get it right, the U.S. Senate passed a financial overhaul bill last week that actually weakens the government’s ability to manage the next financial crisis. The House version passed last December is better, but not much.”
Art, Music, and Culture, Economics, Finance, Financial Crisis, Foreign Policy, Politics, Public Policy, Terrorism

Assorted Links (5/29/2010)

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Here’s a list of articles that I have been reading lately: 
 
Charles Krauthammer – A disaster with many fathers
“Obama is as responsible for the Gulf as Bush was for New Orleans.”
 
Academics on What Caused the Financial Crisis – Real Time Economics – WSJ
“The Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission on Friday and Saturday heard several academic economists’ take on what led to a near-meltdown of the global economy.”
 
Static In Search for Cellphone-Tumor Link – The Numbers Guy – WSJ
“Why a long-term study couldn’t reach conclusive results.”
 
Mark Helprin: On Memorial Day – WSJ.com

“In The Wall Street Journal, Mark Helprin writes about what we owe to the fallen, and to those now serving.”

 
Calling a State Sponsor a State Sponsor

“A growing body of evidence points to Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez’s singular role in supporting terrorism and related criminality.”

 
Waves & Beyond and The Gift by Jan Florence Garven
“Waves & Beyond and The Gift by Jan Florence Garven: Jan Florence Garven is an artist who specializes in mixed media. She combines paper, metal, wax, textiles and found objects to convey conceptual images.”
 
Lighter than air – The Big Picture – Boston.com
“Fill a lightweight material with hot air, helium or hydrogen, and you have a vessel that floats in the air. People around the world use balloons, blimps and airships for transportation, to conduct research, to deliver messages, to protest, and – mostly – for having fun.”
 
Peggy Noonan: He Was Supposed to Be Competent – WSJ.com
“The spill is a disaster for the president and his political philosophy, Peggy Noonan argues in The Wall Street Journal.”
 
Obama’s Blowout Preventer – WSJ.com
“The Wall Street Journal that Interior Secretary Ken Salazar had a reform plan to prevent blowouts like the one at the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico.”
 
World economy: Fear returns | The Economist
“Governments were the solution to the economic crisis. Now they are the problem.”
 
Wall Street’s Next Debacle Gets Help From Senate: Roy C. Smith – Bloomberg.com
“After a yearlong effort to get it right, the U.S. Senate passed a financial overhaul bill last week that actually weakens the government’s ability to manage the next financial crisis. The House version passed last December is better, but not much.”
Economics, Game Theory, Health Care Reform, Politics, Public Policy

Assorted Links (5/27/2010)

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

 
Judy Shelton: The Recovery Starts With Sound Money – WSJ.com
Source: online.wsj.com
“Judy Shelton writes in The Wall Street Journal that the willingness to work for the sake of future prosperity is a universal human quality, but people must believe there is a link between effort and reward. With public confidence in fiat currencies at an all-time low, now is the time to link the dol…”
 
Dan Danner: ObamaCare vs. Small Business – WSJ.com
Source: online.wsj.com
“Dan Danner, president of the National Federation of Independent Business, writes in The Wall Street Journal on why his organization supports the constitutional challenge to the health-insurance mandate in the new health-care reform law.”
 
Daniel Henninger: A New Age of Reform – WSJ.com
Source: online.wsj.com
“In The Wall Street Journal, Daniel Henninger says the mood in the country suggests that the U.S. may be at the start of an era of political and economic reform.”
 
The Next Financial Crisis
Source: www.thecrimson.com
“Washington, D.C., May 27, 2025. Just four months into his first term, President Scott P. Brown faces what is rapidly becoming a severe financial crisis, with the collapse yesterday of yet another Stable Wind Farm Trust.”
 
Christie for President – WSJ.com
Source: online.wsj.com
“John Fund writes in The Wall Street Journal that Governor Christie is prospering politically despite $5 million in attack ads being hurled against him by public employee unions.”
 
Applying game theory to relationships, MBA, parenting – 4 videos by Barry Nalebuff – Mind Your Decisions
Source: mindyourdecisions.com
“Barry Nalebuff is co-author of three of favorite game theory books Thinking Strategically, The Art of Strategy and Co-opetition.”
 
Government Spending May Hurt the Private Sector – Business – The Atlantic
Source: www.theatlantic.com
“This morning, Tyler Cowen links to an interview with Joshua Coval of Harvard Business School on the…”
 
David Malpass: The Panic, Round Two: What Would Reagan Do? – WSJ.com
Source: online.wsj.com
“In The Wall Street Journal, David Malpass writes that giant pools of capital are sitting idle in unproductive deposits or inflation hedges. They could easily fund job growth if real, after-tax prospects improved.”
 
Should the Government Bail Out Union Pension Funds? – Business – The Atlantic
Source: www.theatlantic.com
“Fox Business has made something of a splash claiming that Senator Casey has introduced a bill to…
“Fox Business has made something of a splash claiming that Senator Casey has introduced a bill to bail out union pensions that will cost $165 billion. Media Matters lashes back, arguing that the bill will only cost $8-10 billion and isn’t a bailout. Who’s right?””
Economics, Financial Crisis, Game Theory, Health Care Reform, Politics, Public Policy

Assorted Links (5/25/2010)

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

Hard Sell – WSJ.com

Source: online.wsj.com

“John Fund writes in The Wall Street Journal that ObamaCare appears more unpopular than ever.”

Chronicle of a Currency Crisis Foretold – Project Syndicate

Source: www.project-syndicate.org

“The crisis in Greece and the problems in Spain and Portugal have exposed the euro’s inherent flaws, and no amount of financial guarantees – much less rhetorical reassurance – from the EU can paper them over. While the euro is likely to survive the current crisis, not all of the eurozone’s current members may be there a year from now.”

Progressives, Jim Crow, and Selective Amnesia

Source: www.american.com

“The Rand Paul episode reveals a drastic misreading of history and of the government’s role in ending racial discrimination in this nation.”

America’s New Jobs Bill – WSJ.com

Source: online.wsj.com

“The Wall Street Journal dissects this week’s stimulus bill.”

Money Market Funds Missing from the Senate Bill – Regulating Wall Street

Source: w4.stern.nyu.edu

“Money market funds are the stepchild of finance. Even though they manage more than $4 trillion in assets, you won’t find them in the Senate’s financial reform bill from last Thursday. Is this justified?”    

Not just their Big Fat Greek Funeral – Mark Steyn – Macleans.ca

Source: www2.macleans.ca

“As lazy, feckless, corrupt and violent as Greece undoubtedly is, it’s not that untypical…”

That’s Rich at Steven Landsburg | The Big Questions: Tackling the Problems of Philosophy with Ideas.

Source: www.thebigquestions.com

“It’s now crystal clear what the Tea Party stands for, says Frank Rich midway through a column that makes it crystal clear what Frank Rich stands for, and it isn’t pretty.”    

Stimulus Surprise: Companies Retrench When Government Spends – HBS Working Knowledge

Source: hbswk.hbs.edu “New research from Harvard Business School suggests that federal spending in states appears to cause local businesses to cut back rather than grow. A conversation with Joshua Coval.”

Game Theory TV – Freakonomics Blog – NYTimes.com

Source: freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com “Game theory lessons on YouTube.”

Review & Outlook: The New Lords of Finance – WSJ.com

Source: online.wsj.com “The Wall Street Journal editorial page says that Congress’s financial reform is a marriage of Big Finance and Big Government.”

Roberts on the Crisis | EconTalk | Library of Economics and Liberty

Source: www.econtalk.org

“Russ Roberts, host of EconTalk, discusses his paper, “Gambling with Other People’s Money: How Perverted Incentives Created the Financial Crisis.” Roberts reflects on the past eighteen months of podcasts on the crisis, and then turns to his own take, a narrative that emphasizes the role of government rescues of creditors and the incentives this created for imprudent lending. He also discusses U.S. housing policy, particularly the Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs), Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and how the government’s implicit guarantee of lenders to the GSE’s interacted with housing policy to increase housing prices. This in turn, Roberts argues, helped create the subprime market, created mainly by private investors. The episode closes with some of Roberts’s doubts about his narrative.”    

Consumer Financial Protection–the Good, the Bad and the Ugly – Regulating Wall Street

Source: w4.stern.nyu.edu

“On Thursday the Senate passed its version of the financial reform bill, and the reconciliation process with the previously passed House bill will now begin. What are the implications for consumer protection? The similarities between the two bills in the area of consumer protection and more notable than their differences, but there are some distinctions to keep in mind and some troubling issues common to both bills. Consumer protection is a worthy goal, especially given some of the documented abuses leading up to and during the financial crisis, but bad regulation may be worse than under-regulation.”    

Economic View – Greece May Not Be as Rich as It Looks – NYTimes.com

Source: www.nytimes.com

“Europe no longer pretends Greece is wealthy. Now the Continent acts as though Greece will quickly become wealthy enough to pay back ever-growing sums of debt.”