wanniski, krugman, samuelson

[T. C. Frank]

But is Samuelson the real thing? Sure, he talks a lot about economics, and
he throws the weight of his expertise around a good deal (mainly in order
to discredit his detractors), but certain of his remarks lead me to doubt
his bona-fides. Does he really have a Ph.D.? When did he get it and from
where? The reason this is important is that "genuine," fully accredited
economists use the Ph.D. or lack thereof to disqualify commentary by
people like me and Doug; Samuelson does the same thing -- acting just like
an economist in this respect -- but somehow he doesn't seem to have the
goods. Economists are in some ways one of the last scholarly groups to be
able to hide with almost complete impunity behind their professional
expertise; it is intriguing that non-economists seek to shelter there with
them. Another offender in this regard is the irritating Meredith Bagby of
Third Millennium fame, who both insists that economists are the leading
geniuses of our age and then claims actually to be one, simply by virtue
of her interest in matters monetary.

TCF