Keynesianism Questioned By Harvard Researchers

Accuracy in Academia ^ | June 4, 2010 | Bethany Stotts

[bs9021]

Keynesianism Questioned by Harvard Researchers

Bethany Stotts, June 4, 2010

Contrary to the Keynesian theory that government spending can spark economic growth in times of recession, a new study demonstrates that pork, at least, may damage corporations within the states that receive these federal dollars. The three Harvard Business School (HBS) researchers, Lauren Cohen, Joshua Coval, and Christopher Malloy, surveyed the 232 times in the last 42 years that a Senator or Representative on capitol hill obtained a chairmanship on a “powerful congressional committee” and then measured the impact the corresponding increase in earmarks had on publicly-traded firms in that senator or representative’s district.

Their study cites Senator Richard Shelby, R-Ala., as a prime example: “…while Alabama averaged 6 million dollars less in annual earmarks than the average of other US states before Shelby’s appointment, they averaged over 90 million dollars more than other states after his appointment,” they write.

According to the 2010 Citizens Against Government Waste Pig Book summary, Sen. Shelby earmarked at least $61.6 million for “30 projects” in his position as the ranking member of the Senate CJS Appropriations Subcommittee, including,

* “$14,000,000 for the Cooperative Institute and Research Center for Southeast Weather and Hydrology at the University of Alabama;
* “$6,000,000 for six projects for the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville;
* “$1,000,000 for the Tools for Tolerance program at the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles, California; * “$250,000 for a wireless area network for the city of Hartselle (population 13,888);
* “$200,000 for the Cherokee County Methamphetamine and Marijuana Reduction program;
* “and $150,000 for Zelpha’s Cultural Development Corporation for the University of Alabama’s After-School Delinquency Prevention program.”...

[pnh102]

If it took this long for Harvard to realize that Keynesianism is bad economic model then it really says something as to the general cluelessness of Harvard’s economics department.

[Roccus]

Today in the US however, we have Kenyanesianism instead of Keynesianism

[dila813]

Look at GE, when their Government Dollars are yanked, the Company is going to collapse.

[Uri’el-2012]

Keynesianism Questioned by Harvard Researchers

Keynesianism has failed every time it has been tried.

[libertylover]

The three Harvard Business School (HBS) researchers...

I wonder is these are now former Harvard Business School (HBS) researchers?

[struggle]

Von Mises:

Governments BLOW BUBBLES that appear to be stimulus until they collapse under lesser demand. The private market provides the only real stimulus because it is based on a sustainable profit motive.

[Paige]

Why did they choose ONE SOUTHERN Senator who changed from Being a Democrat to being a Republican????

[quintr]

Finally, something that makes sense gets credit!

[Retired Greyhound]

Kenyan-ism....bwahahaha!

[Uncle Miltie]

Keynesianism has never worked, not once, anywhere.

Keynesianism is an intellectually corrupt excuse for politicians to do what they always want to do: Spend More.

[mjp]

“Our findings suggest that they should revisit their belief that federal spending can stimulate private economic development,” he said in the interview.

In fact, their study showed that companies retrench in the face of earmarked federal dollars. This conclusion was unexpected, asserted Prof. Coval in the interview. “Our original goal was to investigate how politically connected firms benefit from increases in the power of their representatives,” he claimed (emphasis added).

Liberal statists don't care if Keynesianism actually works or not. All they are looking for is an excuse to increase the size and power of government.