tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2830084253401570472.post3689528593231676748..comments2024-03-28T09:22:36.967+13:00Comments on Offsetting Behaviour: Public intellectualsEric Cramptonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15831696523324469713noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2830084253401570472.post-28673789006496180912015-02-18T14:01:12.017+13:002015-02-18T14:01:12.017+13:00Exactly!!! Shit you should never do.Exactly!!! Shit you should never do.Paul Walkernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2830084253401570472.post-46694172135706167872015-02-18T13:59:03.060+13:002015-02-18T13:59:03.060+13:00"I tend to agree with Deputy"
I don'..."I tend to agree with Deputy"<br /><br />I don't believe I just read that!! I need to go and have a lie down.Paul Walkernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2830084253401570472.post-2654997478440455032015-02-18T13:57:37.479+13:002015-02-18T13:57:37.479+13:00Oh sure.
And imagine how much worse it would be ...Oh sure.<br /><br /><br />And imagine how much worse it would be if universities started setting KPIs for their press people targeting mentions of academics' names. Heck, they might even start asking economists to write press releases on the economic importance of, say, jandals.Eric Cramptonhttp://offsettingbehaviour.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2830084253401570472.post-17657161549823164542015-02-18T13:46:29.214+13:002015-02-18T13:46:29.214+13:00Much though it pains me to say it, I tend to agree...Much though it pains me to say it, I tend to agree with Deputy. Too many of those quoted in Matthews' article are characterised by a willingness (indeed, eagerness) to speak out on matters that are a million miles from their areas of intellectual expertise. That's not being a public intellectual---public loudmouth would be a better description.Glenn Boylenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2830084253401570472.post-50888811487628887122015-02-18T11:43:28.982+13:002015-02-18T11:43:28.982+13:00You know nothing, Paul Walker. It also requires a ...You know nothing, Paul Walker. It also requires a willingness to answer the phone or reply to emails.Eric Cramptonhttp://offsettingbehaviour.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2830084253401570472.post-34916348960088410432015-02-18T10:41:13.151+13:002015-02-18T10:41:13.151+13:00Denis Dutton’s Arts & Letters Daily was a dail...Denis Dutton’s Arts & Letters Daily was a daily read for me also - it was great.VMCnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2830084253401570472.post-51380410709694531852015-02-18T10:16:17.748+13:002015-02-18T10:16:17.748+13:00As I as I can tell the requirement for being a &qu...As I as I can tell the requirement for being a "public intellectual" is the belief that you have a comparative advantage in everything. A sad assumption, especially from people like Paul Krugman who really should know better. As a Mr Smith pointed out many years ago, specialisation and the division of labour underlies growth and this applies as much to knowledge as any other economic good. But it does mean that we know more about less and thus we are able to talk, based upon actual knowledge, about very little. A point that runs counter to the very idea of being a "public intellectual". I can't help thinking that much of the public debate on topics would improve if "public intellectuals" remembered this point.Paul Walkernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2830084253401570472.post-82821459552279417702015-02-18T08:15:32.129+13:002015-02-18T08:15:32.129+13:00Makes sense to me, but it'll never happen. Th...Makes sense to me, but it'll never happen. The ICC, like all bureaucracies, has zero understanding of incentives. Why use a gnat (that works) when a sledgehammer (that doesn't) is available?Glenn Boylenoreply@blogger.com