Review
Product Description
"Pop internationalists" -- people who speak impressively about
international trade while ignoring basic economics and misusing economic figures are
the target of this collection of Paul Krugman's most recent essays. In the clear,
readable, entertaining style that brought acclaim for his best-selling Age of
Diminished Expectations, Krugman explains what real economic analysis is. He
discusses economic terms and measurements, like "value-added" and GDP, in simple
language so that readers can understand how pop internationalists distort, and
sometimes contradict, the most basic truths about world trade.All but two of the
essays have previously appeared in such publications as Foreign Affairs, Scientific
American, and the Harvard Business Review. The first five essays take on
exaggerations of foreign competition's effects on the U.S. economy and represent
Krugman's central criticisms of public debate over world trade. The next three
essays expose further distortions of economic theory and include the complete,
unaltered, controversial review of Laura Tyson's Who's Bashing Whom. The third group
of essays highlights misconceptions about competition from less industrialized
countries. The concluding essays focus on interesting and legitimate economic
questions, such as the effects of technological change on society.
