The Economics of Paying for Disaster Relief

1. Paul Krugman discusses.


2. Steve Landsburg responds.

Glaeser on Mortgage Modification

Ed concludes,

A massive refinancing effort is likely to have little impact on the economy or foreclosures or housing prices. What it would do, however, is hurt our government’s already precarious balance sheet by reducing the payments on its vast mortgage portfolio.

Alan Krueger to chair CEA

Congratulations, Alan.  An excellent choice by President Obama.

Update: Some comments of mine on CNBC:

Finally, some good economic news

Manufacturers of Downward Arrows Post Record Profits

Auctioning Public Parking Spaces

A student alerts me to this article about a new app that connects suppliers and demanders of public parking spaces. 

How to interpret this story?  The student points out that it is a "fun example of technology making markets more efficient."  True enough.  But it also suggests that cities are underpricing public parking.  With many cities facing financial difficulties, a good way to raise revenue would be to increase the price of parking closer to the market-clearing level.

An Animated 4-Minute History of Econ

Jeff Miron on Capitalism