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The fastest way to learn economics
This might be useful to some others too:
Question I was asked:
Hi Sanjeev,
I figured that if I have to ever lead India correctly I should get my economics under control.
Since you a subject matter expert here what do you reckon my plan of action be?
I started with the http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/economics/14-01sc-principles-of-microeconomics-fall-2011/index.htm
Any course of action you want to suggest to me based on your experience?
Thanks!
My response:
Dear X
The most important thing is to understand the price system and how property rights lead to economic efficiency. Just four things are enough to understand everything of value in economics:
a) Hayek's The Use of Knowledge in Society
b) Coase's The Problem of Social Cost
c) Demsetz's The Problem of Social Cost: What Problem?
Thereafter I'd recommend Julian Simon's The Ultimate Resource II.
All these are available freely online.
Of course, there is no harm in doing proper course in economics, and everything to gain from doing it. Make sure, though, that you fully understand micro-economics before 'studying' 'macro-economics'. The problem of bad policy in society essentially arises from people (like Paul Krugman and Amartya Sen) who don't understand micro-economics but pretend to do macro-economics.
Macro-economics must not be seen as an aggregate that is larger than the sum of its parts. That might well apply to a car engine, where the engine is greater than the sum of its atoms, but not in the case of human society. This aggregation of things that cannot be aggregated (since all useful human knowledge is LOCAL) is the fundamental mistake that Keynesian macro-economists (and socialists) make and so land up in deep errors of thought.
s
Read more at Sanjeev Sabhlok’s Occasional Blog-Economics
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