Krugman insists that "the stock market is not the economy," and that downturns in the stock market need not portend bad economic times. But he takes the opportunity of stock market volatility to evaluate the present condition of the economy and its prospects for growth.

We respond.

Show notes for Ep. 125

Krugman thinks Bitcoin serves no good purpose, except perhaps for people who are up to no good, and is powered by libertarian fantasies and paranoia. Bob and Tom have some fun banter on this one.

Show notes for Ep. 124

Krugman complains about Trump again this week, and blames him for (among numerous other things) the loss of U.S. credibility abroad. We take a stroll down (recent) memory lane to add some perspective: there's plenty of presidential crappiness to go around.

Show notes for Ep. 123

This week we bypass Krugman's columns to discuss the different schools of Keynesianism, how and when they emerged, and what their differences are.

Show notes for Ep. 122

Krugman hits a bunch of themes in this one, among them Alexander Hamilton, Russiagate, and the claim that no president ever acted on the desire to imprison his opponents. We restore a bit of perspective by glancing back at American history.

Show notes for Ep. 121

Immediately after the 2016 election, Krugman predicted markets would "never" recover, but after a strong 2017, Krugman is suddenly reminded that presidents don't have much influence over the economy after all. But if we should need more stimulus, he says, we'll be sorry we don't have a Keynesian in office.

Show notes for Ep. 120

In this episode, Bob once again flies solo, burdening the listeners with his odd sense of humor. But along the way, he tackles Krugman's objections to Bitcoin, and also discusses the relevance of Mises' regression theorem to the cryptocurrency.

Show notes for Ep. 119

In this episode, Bob flies solo when analyzing a Krugman interview with Vox's Ezra Klein. Being close to the holiday, it's only appropriate that our Keynesian Nobelist seems to be contradicting the ghost of Krugman past.

Show notes for Ep. 118

Krugman is claiming that everything he said regarding housing and the financial crisis has been vindicated. The problem, he says, was a general collapse in "demand." Contra Krugman co-host Bob Murphy, on the other hand, has shown in his own writing that in fact the crisis was not caused by a problem with "demand" in general, but with problems in particular sectors, brought about during the inflationary boom.

Show notes for Ep. 117

Krugman is upset that more Republicans aren't speaking out against the tax bill that's been in the news. But there's one bright light for Krugman: the neocons. Lots of them have been soundly anti-Trump, and Krugman appreciates their adherence to principle. (Funny, we don't recall Krugman ever admiring Ron Paul's adherence to principle, and his led to far fewer deaths....)

Show notes for Ep. 116