Wednesday, May 03, 2006
US CONSERVATIVES. THE POINT MADE BY RICHARD
. Is Dubya the new Nixon?
According to Jonah Goldberg, "If Bush held the Reaganite line on liberty at home the way he does on liberty abroad, he'd be in a lot better shape."
Was that not precisely the point made by Richard in his presention?
. Is Dubya the new Nixon?
According to Jonah Goldberg, "If Bush held the Reaganite line on liberty at home the way he does on liberty abroad, he'd be in a lot better shape."
Was that not precisely the point made by Richard in his presention?
Wednesday, April 12, 2006
INNOVATION & THE CREDIT MARKET. A COUPLE OF HINTS ABOUT THE EXERCISE ...
- New products. Read about Nav-u, Sony's "personal navigator". Why not take a look at the biochemical industry? One example: AstraZeneca.
- New markets. It looks like Home Depot is looking at the Mexican market. The Financial Times runs an interesting story about Central European companies looking east, not west, to invest.
- Innovation & the Internet. The London Review of Books on Google. The Economist on blogs and business.
- New sources of energy. Check out articles at the MIT's Technology Review, like this one. A useful review of the impact of high oil prices on innovation was published by Wired back in December: here's the link. See also this Reuters article, and TMA's website devoted to "wind energy systems". Fuel cells are very popular right now. And here's an article on Australia's "solar tower of powert".
- New products. Read about Nav-u, Sony's "personal navigator". Why not take a look at the biochemical industry? One example: AstraZeneca.
- New markets. It looks like Home Depot is looking at the Mexican market. The Financial Times runs an interesting story about Central European companies looking east, not west, to invest.
- Innovation & the Internet. The London Review of Books on Google. The Economist on blogs and business.
- New sources of energy. Check out articles at the MIT's Technology Review, like this one. A useful review of the impact of high oil prices on innovation was published by Wired back in December: here's the link. See also this Reuters article, and TMA's website devoted to "wind energy systems". Fuel cells are very popular right now. And here's an article on Australia's "solar tower of powert".
Monday, April 10, 2006
THINK TANKS. A NEW BRITISH THINK TANK
. Open Europe
Think Tank inflation seems unstoppable. Open Europe, a new British Think Tank, believes (as its name tends to suggest) that "the EU must now embrace radical reform based on economic liberalisation, a looser and more flexible structure, and greater transparency and accountability if it is to overcome these challenges, and succeed in the twenty first century".
Check out the interesting publications section.
. Open Europe
Think Tank inflation seems unstoppable. Open Europe, a new British Think Tank, believes (as its name tends to suggest) that "the EU must now embrace radical reform based on economic liberalisation, a looser and more flexible structure, and greater transparency and accountability if it is to overcome these challenges, and succeed in the twenty first century".
Check out the interesting publications section.
Thursday, April 06, 2006
MA THESIS. FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO PLAN TO WRITE ON ASYMMETRIC WARFARE, CONFLICT RESOLUTION, ENERGY SECURITY, MILITARY RESTRUCTURING ...
. Thomas P. M. Barnett
Check out Thomas Barnett's blog. Barnett is a "grand strategist". In other words, he concentrates on "macro" issues, not on details. Nevertheless, his two books have caused quite a stir in the U.S. defense community (*).
Essentially, Barnett argues that connectivity, the driving force behind the process of globalization, determines the overall security outlook. "Show me a country that is disconnected from the world economy", says Barnett, "and I will show you a security problem".
In his view, the world is divided into a connected Core (OECD countries), an increasingly connected New Core (India, China, Brazil, etc.) and a disconnected Gap (Africa, the Middle East, parts of Asia and Latin America). With this framework in mind, Barnett regularly makes bold forecasts in the fields of asymmetric warfare, conflict resolution, energy security, and (especially) military restructuring.
(*) The Pentagon's New Map. War and Peace in the Twenty First Century (New York: Putnam, 2004) and Blueprint for Action. A Future Worth Creating (New York: Putnam, 2005).
. Thomas P. M. Barnett
Check out Thomas Barnett's blog. Barnett is a "grand strategist". In other words, he concentrates on "macro" issues, not on details. Nevertheless, his two books have caused quite a stir in the U.S. defense community (*).
Essentially, Barnett argues that connectivity, the driving force behind the process of globalization, determines the overall security outlook. "Show me a country that is disconnected from the world economy", says Barnett, "and I will show you a security problem".
In his view, the world is divided into a connected Core (OECD countries), an increasingly connected New Core (India, China, Brazil, etc.) and a disconnected Gap (Africa, the Middle East, parts of Asia and Latin America). With this framework in mind, Barnett regularly makes bold forecasts in the fields of asymmetric warfare, conflict resolution, energy security, and (especially) military restructuring.
(*) The Pentagon's New Map. War and Peace in the Twenty First Century (New York: Putnam, 2004) and Blueprint for Action. A Future Worth Creating (New York: Putnam, 2005).
ECONOMICS & INNOVATION. A REVIVAL OF INTEREST IN NUCLEAR POWER
. Max Wilkinson: "Embrace nuclear power and stop tilting at windmills", Financial Times
Wilkinson reflects on a "global revival of interest in nuclear power". Some 24 new reactors are now being built worldwide. A further 41 are planned, and another 113 are under consideration. That sounds like huge investments ahead!
. Max Wilkinson: "Embrace nuclear power and stop tilting at windmills", Financial Times
Wilkinson reflects on a "global revival of interest in nuclear power". Some 24 new reactors are now being built worldwide. A further 41 are planned, and another 113 are under consideration. That sounds like huge investments ahead!
Wednesday, March 29, 2006
THE EURO. ONLY FOR THE NIMBLE!
. Alan Ahearne & Jean Pisani-Ferry: "The Euro: Only for the Agile", Bruegel Policy Brief, February 2006
Warning! The euro may bring many benefits, but there are some costs attached too. Ahearne and Pisani-Ferry argue that, among other things, "the loss of the exchange rate as an instrument for coping with economic shocks can be costly". As Dr. Johnson would put it: "You've been warned!"
. Alan Ahearne & Jean Pisani-Ferry: "The Euro: Only for the Agile", Bruegel Policy Brief, February 2006
Warning! The euro may bring many benefits, but there are some costs attached too. Ahearne and Pisani-Ferry argue that, among other things, "the loss of the exchange rate as an instrument for coping with economic shocks can be costly". As Dr. Johnson would put it: "You've been warned!"
ECB WATCH. AN INDEX OF CENTRAL BANK TRANSPARENCY!
. Sylvester Eijffinger & Petra Geraats: "How transparent are central banks?", European Journal of Political Economy, Vol. 22, 2006, 1-21.
According to a study by Sylvester Eijffinger of Tilburg University and Petra Geraats of Cambridge University (*), the Reserve Bank of New Zealand and the Swedish Riksbank are the most transparent central banks. The ECB shares the fourth spot with Canada's central bank ― just ahead of the US Federal Reserve!
(*) See also "The end of surprises", The Economist.
. Sylvester Eijffinger & Petra Geraats: "How transparent are central banks?", European Journal of Political Economy, Vol. 22, 2006, 1-21.
According to a study by Sylvester Eijffinger of Tilburg University and Petra Geraats of Cambridge University (*), the Reserve Bank of New Zealand and the Swedish Riksbank are the most transparent central banks. The ECB shares the fourth spot with Canada's central bank ― just ahead of the US Federal Reserve!
(*) See also "The end of surprises", The Economist.
ECONOMICS & INNOVATION. NOTES ON EUROPE & INNOVATION (III). BRIEF NOTES
- "The growth that is driven by innovation and the catching-up process spurred by technology imitation relies on education-based human capital and related agglomeration", argues Hannu Piekola in a paper on Finland published by the Center for European Policy Studies (CEPS).
- Interested in "Neo-Schumpeterian Economics"? Check out the details of the upcoming conference, to be held a Trest (Czech Republic). Yuichi Shionoya, author of a wonderful book on Schumpeter (Schumpeter and the Idea of Social Science, Cambridge University Press, 1998) will be among the keynote speakers.
- The think tank Friends of Europe recently organized a "Lunch Debate" on the topic: Technology, Globalization and Inclusion: Is Innovation a Development Tool? You can read a summary here.
- The website Euroactive.com, which calls itself the EU Policy Portal, has a section on "Innovation &Jobs". Check it out here.
- "The growth that is driven by innovation and the catching-up process spurred by technology imitation relies on education-based human capital and related agglomeration", argues Hannu Piekola in a paper on Finland published by the Center for European Policy Studies (CEPS).
- Interested in "Neo-Schumpeterian Economics"? Check out the details of the upcoming conference, to be held a Trest (Czech Republic). Yuichi Shionoya, author of a wonderful book on Schumpeter (Schumpeter and the Idea of Social Science, Cambridge University Press, 1998) will be among the keynote speakers.
- The think tank Friends of Europe recently organized a "Lunch Debate" on the topic: Technology, Globalization and Inclusion: Is Innovation a Development Tool? You can read a summary here.
- The website Euroactive.com, which calls itself the EU Policy Portal, has a section on "Innovation &Jobs". Check it out here.
Monday, March 27, 2006
ECONOMICS & INNOVATION. NOTES ON EUROPE & INNOVATION (II). THE OECD JOINS THE FRAY
. OECD. Economic Policy Reform: Going for Growth 2006
Innovation, it would seem, is the new mantra for businesses, economists and even policy-makers. The OECD has joined the fray with its annual periodical on structural policy developments, Going for Growth. The 2006 edition seeks to extend "the scope of performance and policy indicators to the area of innovation":
"Innovation has long been a key source of progress in material living standards but the outcomes of innovation efforts are generally highly uncertain and the benefits for society as a whole may exceed those for private firms. To encourage innovation, governments have therefore put in place various measures such as financial support for private R&D projects and funding for research in universities. [Chapter 3] provides a cross-country comparison of innovation efforts and outcomes as well as of the main policy areas having an influence on those outcomes."
Individual EU countries are assessed, in terms of their "innovation performance", in chapter 4.
. OECD. Economic Policy Reform: Going for Growth 2006
Innovation, it would seem, is the new mantra for businesses, economists and even policy-makers. The OECD has joined the fray with its annual periodical on structural policy developments, Going for Growth. The 2006 edition seeks to extend "the scope of performance and policy indicators to the area of innovation":
"Innovation has long been a key source of progress in material living standards but the outcomes of innovation efforts are generally highly uncertain and the benefits for society as a whole may exceed those for private firms. To encourage innovation, governments have therefore put in place various measures such as financial support for private R&D projects and funding for research in universities. [Chapter 3] provides a cross-country comparison of innovation efforts and outcomes as well as of the main policy areas having an influence on those outcomes."
Individual EU countries are assessed, in terms of their "innovation performance", in chapter 4.
ECONOMICS & INNOVATION. NOTES ON EUROPE & INNOVATION (I). MICROSOFT AND THE EU
. "Its window may be closing", Los Angeles Times
One of Joseph Schumpeter's key insights was that an innovative entrepreneur was driven by the (almost impossible) dream of becoming a monopolist. Thus, inasmuch as it acts to stifle innovation, overzealous anti-trust regulation can be harmful.
This is all the more important since Schumpeter thought that such monopolies were usually a passing affair: competition would surely prevent them from lasting too long. This last point is made, with respect to software giant Microsoft, by a recent Los Angeles Times editorial:
"Since XP was released in 2001, however, there has been an accelerating shift away from programs that run entirely on your own computer, such as Microsoft Word, to applications and services based on the Web, such as Google's Blogger. You can tap into your corporate computer network, communicate with friends, assemble photo albums, listen to music and manage your finances using little more than a Web browser. And the list of Web-based applications is only growing".
In spite of all this, llegal disputes involving Microsoft and the European Commission never seem to end. In February 2006, the European Committee for Interoperability Systems, or ECIS, accused Microsoft once again of abusing its dominance:
"The committee asked the European Commission, which regulates antitrust issues for the European Union, to investigate Microsoft's business practices regarding its Office suite of software, including Word and Excel. The Redmond, Wash., tech giant, which has already faced sanctions in the United States and Europe for misusing its monopoly power, countered that its competitors are simply complaining about its superior products. 'ECIS is a front for IBM and a few other competitors who constantly seek to use the regulatory process to their business advantage', a Microsoft spokeswoman said in an e-mail. When faced with innovation, they choose litigation."
. "Its window may be closing", Los Angeles Times
One of Joseph Schumpeter's key insights was that an innovative entrepreneur was driven by the (almost impossible) dream of becoming a monopolist. Thus, inasmuch as it acts to stifle innovation, overzealous anti-trust regulation can be harmful.
This is all the more important since Schumpeter thought that such monopolies were usually a passing affair: competition would surely prevent them from lasting too long. This last point is made, with respect to software giant Microsoft, by a recent Los Angeles Times editorial:
"Since XP was released in 2001, however, there has been an accelerating shift away from programs that run entirely on your own computer, such as Microsoft Word, to applications and services based on the Web, such as Google's Blogger. You can tap into your corporate computer network, communicate with friends, assemble photo albums, listen to music and manage your finances using little more than a Web browser. And the list of Web-based applications is only growing".
In spite of all this, llegal disputes involving Microsoft and the European Commission never seem to end. In February 2006, the European Committee for Interoperability Systems, or ECIS, accused Microsoft once again of abusing its dominance:
"The committee asked the European Commission, which regulates antitrust issues for the European Union, to investigate Microsoft's business practices regarding its Office suite of software, including Word and Excel. The Redmond, Wash., tech giant, which has already faced sanctions in the United States and Europe for misusing its monopoly power, countered that its competitors are simply complaining about its superior products. 'ECIS is a front for IBM and a few other competitors who constantly seek to use the regulatory process to their business advantage', a Microsoft spokeswoman said in an e-mail. When faced with innovation, they choose litigation."
Friday, March 24, 2006
THE EURO. A SKEPTICAL VIEW ON THE EUROZONE EXTENSION
. Desmond Lachman: "Europe's Economic Fantasy", TCS
Desmond Lachman, a scholar at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), argues that the idea of extending the eurozone to include countries from the former Soviet bloc amounts to an economic time-bomb:
"Not content with the idea of having the current 12 member countries participate in the euro, European leaders keep alive the pipedream of having another 15 countries, mainly from the former Soviet bloc, join the hitherto exclusive club. Yet pursuit of this dream runs the very real risk of accelerating the unraveling of the present currency union, which is already straining under the weight of its internal contradictions".
Read the whole thing. Lachman, by the way, is on the record for comparing Italy's current economic performance to that of Argentina during the second half of the 1990s. Not a very reassuring prospect...
. Desmond Lachman: "Europe's Economic Fantasy", TCS
Desmond Lachman, a scholar at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), argues that the idea of extending the eurozone to include countries from the former Soviet bloc amounts to an economic time-bomb:
"Not content with the idea of having the current 12 member countries participate in the euro, European leaders keep alive the pipedream of having another 15 countries, mainly from the former Soviet bloc, join the hitherto exclusive club. Yet pursuit of this dream runs the very real risk of accelerating the unraveling of the present currency union, which is already straining under the weight of its internal contradictions".
Read the whole thing. Lachman, by the way, is on the record for comparing Italy's current economic performance to that of Argentina during the second half of the 1990s. Not a very reassuring prospect...
EU ECONOMY WATCH. THE LISBON AGENDA SCOREBOARD
. Aurore Wanlin. THE LISBON SCORECARD VI: Will Europe's economy rise again? London: Center for European Reform, 2006
In this Center for European Reform pamphlet, Aurore Wanlin assesses the progress of the various member-states in terms of the Lisbon Agenda goals. Here's a list of her findings:
- The pace of reform has remained slow in the big European economies, but increasing competition from the East is "turning up the heat" on the slow growing core economies of France, Germany, and Italy.
- In spite of "a new spirit of national proteccionism", a wave of cross-border mergers suggests that the single market is making an impact.
- Rankings of economic performance show Denmark topping the list, with Sweden and Austria not far behind. The UK, the Netherlands, Finland and Ireland also score highly, while the Mediterranean countries (Italy, Portugal, Spain) score poorly on many indicators.
- Due to its lack of product market competition, and to its complicated tax system, Poland is the "villain" of the CER's 2006 scoreboard.
. Aurore Wanlin. THE LISBON SCORECARD VI: Will Europe's economy rise again? London: Center for European Reform, 2006
In this Center for European Reform pamphlet, Aurore Wanlin assesses the progress of the various member-states in terms of the Lisbon Agenda goals. Here's a list of her findings:
- The pace of reform has remained slow in the big European economies, but increasing competition from the East is "turning up the heat" on the slow growing core economies of France, Germany, and Italy.
- In spite of "a new spirit of national proteccionism", a wave of cross-border mergers suggests that the single market is making an impact.
- Rankings of economic performance show Denmark topping the list, with Sweden and Austria not far behind. The UK, the Netherlands, Finland and Ireland also score highly, while the Mediterranean countries (Italy, Portugal, Spain) score poorly on many indicators.
- Due to its lack of product market competition, and to its complicated tax system, Poland is the "villain" of the CER's 2006 scoreboard.
