Author Archives: mkevane

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About mkevane

Economist at Santa Clara University and Director of Friends of African Village Libraries.

I wish more people would read Frans de Waal

Increased respect for animal intelligence also has consequences for cognitive science. For too long, we have left the human intellect dangling in empty evolutionary space. How could our species arrive at planning, empathy, consciousness and so on, if we are … Continue reading →

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UC Santa Cruz to vote whether to cut NCAA program

Students wiser than administrators?  Look at the last line of the section reproduced here. Two years ago, campus Provost Alison Galloway informed the athletics office that it would need to transition from central campus funds to a funding model that … Continue reading →

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Am I only one who has noticed that “Memorial” by Michael Nyman is based on Inti Illimani’s “Canto a los Caidos”?

Probably they are both based on some earlier piece. But what an interesting connection. Listen to “Canto a los caidos” starting at 2:35:   Then listen to “Memorial” starting at 1:00:

Posted in Politics | Comments Off on Am I only one who has noticed that “Memorial” by Michael Nyman is based on Inti Illimani’s “Canto a los Caidos”?

A song to drive to work with: Emily Wolfe, White Collar Whiskey

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Nice summary of the Puerto Rico debt issue from Politico

But I have one objection: many of those quoted in the article probably have conflicts of interest because they are lobbyists or consultants to the various parties.  Journalists should ask and report these potential conflicts. To those creditors, the draft … Continue reading →

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Sidwaya interview with Burkina Faso President Roch Marc Christian Kaboré

Very interesting for its overview of national policy issues.  I will summarize some of the points relating to economics.  Some interesting political issues addressed were the Guillaume Soro and Yacouba Zida “scandals”.  The full interview in Sidwaya is here. Government … Continue reading →

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What about the faculty salaries to teach those newly recruited basketball players?

This … the Sendek hiring … is the first major test of Engh’s commitment: Sendek is receiving a substantial raise over his predecessor, Kerry Keating. That’s partly to be expected because of his resume — Keating was a UCLA assistant … Continue reading →

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Yes I agree with my colleague’s assessment of Trump

A bad egg. From Bill Sundstrom’s Blog: Based on his words and behavior as a candidate, if Trump were a kid in my son’s seventh-grade class, he’d be the kid my son would have to send (repeatedly) to the office … Continue reading →

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Piketty => Trump => back to engravings?

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So interesting: The mortality consequences of distinctively black names

Race-specific given names have been linked to a range of negative outcomes in contemporary studies, but little is known about their long-term consequences. Building on recent research which documents the existence of a national naming pattern for African American males … Continue reading →

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Autor on trade with China effects

Well I finally went on a long run and so got to listen to the 72 minute long podcast of Russ Roberts talking with MIT economist David Autor.  Disappointing. Mostly the blame falls on Russ Roberts, and he basically admits … Continue reading →

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Michael Nyman – Water Dances

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Trump: Low-cost fuel for bloviating

How long can people keep repeating the exact same analysis, as if there was someone who didn’t understand why 30% of the Republican Party votes for Trump?  It is not a mystery.  Nor is there a mystery about how likely … Continue reading →

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Why is Hillary Clinton so vulnerable….? Jeff Greenfield from Politico sums it up.

It doesn’t matter if you think it is true, untrue, fair, or unfair… what matters is that practically everyone agrees that indeed, these are the vulnerabilities.  There is no similar agreement about Sanders, I think.  He has vulnerabilities, but his … Continue reading →

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China, trade, and income distribution issues in the U.S.

I will definitely be listening to this on my next long run! Russ Roberts interviews David Autor on China and labor markets. Scott Sumner has asked a few times why Autor’s work is so important. I think it shows that … Continue reading →

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What are Sanders’ economic policies?

I am finally starting to ask the questions, as friends and colleagues start taking positions and debate the substance of Clinton versus Sanders.  His website with economic positions is here.  I have quoted for most, and added a little bit … Continue reading →

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The Geography of Trumpism

What sometimes surprises me sometimes about my very liberal friends is how much they seem to care about this marginalized population, to the extent that they want a whole set of trade and competition-regulating policies to protect and support them, … Continue reading →

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Pinkshinyultrablast – Comet Marbles

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Roch Marc Christian Kaboré after two months as President of Burkina Faso

This opinion piece reviews the first two months of the new Burkinabè administration.  Notable is that every “fact” is an action by some actor other than the government.  Not a single “act” by the government in the first 60 days … Continue reading →

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Who is killing the donkeys of West Africa for their skins?

The prices of donkey skins have soared.  Nobody is quite sure. But China seems to be the destination for the skins. A tulip market? Increased real as opposed to speculative demand? Aéroport international de Ouagadougou, début février 2016. Des dizaines … Continue reading →

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