It’s been around a week since the first weekly brief was posted on the ISET blog and it’s time for some new links.
1. Courtesy of Michael Fuenfzig we have a quite interesting info on the new initiative of the Georgian government in relation to the Georgian diaspora and some diverse opinions on whether it will or will not work.
2. For all of you who love football (real one, not the egghand) – The Economist Free Exchange blog explains the economic reason behind the Spanish domination of recent years. And we thought it was down to just little Leo Messi!
3. The same blog tells us that the inequality in the US is rising compared to its pre-Great Depression highs.
4. The Worthwhile Canadian Initiative has an interesting thought that illiquidity and price stickiness are correlated. It certainly is a valid point – at least, if you pray by late baron Keynes (may he rest in the long run).
5. The EconRevival has a very unusual idea of eliminating political parties. A somewhat belated answer to Margaret Thatcher, who had jokingly proposed abolishing economists.
6. The EconBrowser explains why the current increase in oil prices will not have a particularly adverse effect on the US economy.
7. On their blog, Gary Becker and Richard Posner discuss whether the digitization and Internet will eliminate traditional bookstores and libraries. Just as an aside – in the 1920's, major opera houses and concert halls complained that the then-new recording industry would render them unnecessary. Didn’t turn out quite like that, did it?
8. Varian Perception discusses the current situation in the Eurozone.
Comments
I'll take the first half of the posts here
I've only a purely methodological interest in their works.
1. Just like Mr. Tsereteli I am also skeptical that the initiative would do anything to attract financial resources from Georgian immigrants. However, in the long(er) run it might be a worthy step from the government side.
2. Come on, nobody really thought it was only Messy. That would not really explain their success in other sports (Basketball, Cycling, Tennis and apparently Rugby). Economist's reference to Beckham was also an unfortunate, after all he just moved to France under the real Threat (and capitalized T is not a typo) of 75% tax rate at the top.
3. Scary trend indeed.
4. I hope the long-run-dead-baron joke(?!) was not aimed at me after advising on Leijonhufvud and posting Krugman's last blog entry.
I would actually welcome the renewed emphasis on engaging the diaspora. Two points. First, "permanent emigration" is really a thing of the past. In the 21st century, migrants are an excellent bridge between their home countries and abroad, promoting trade, sending back money, jobs and technology, borrowed values. Many, including children of migrants, rediscover their roots because knowledge of another culture and language provides an important comparative advantage in a globalized world. Second, I find it particularly encouraging - and quite consistent with the experience of ISET graduates - that only 7% of Georgians plan to permanently migrate abroad. This means that Georgia is making progress and people can associate their future and the future of their children with their homeland.
2. Zak, trust me, most of the newer generation of Barcelona fans really, really believe it's only Messi. And not only them.
) Just a general joke attempt 
As for Beckham - with his wealth, one can afford not to care about the taxation rate.
4. No, of course it wasn't
Now the second half:
5. A very interesting point. The drawback of course is this would eliminate the competition in the system, which no sane economist can support.
6. "There is a good deal of statistical evidence that an oil price increase that does no more than reverse an earlier decline has a much more limited effect on the economy than if the price of oil surges to a new all-time high." Seriously? We need a statistical evidence to demonstrate that larger price increase will have worse effects than the smaller one?
7. A very old question indeed.
8. Yes, situation has been improving in Eurozone. However, what is not clear is how can this stop to the deterioration of economic performance can be transformed to growth.
5. Austrians would call it a natural monopoly
)
6. I'm not sure their point is as simplistic as that, though.
7. I, for one, don't believe in all that hype about death of the old-style books. And of course eliminating paper media will not save a single tree, much as greenpeace would like us to believe it.
Not that I am saying it will work or it will not work, but here is an article from The Economist about Diaspora bonds
http://www.economist.com/node/21526324