Friends of African Village Libraries (I post regularly here)- Daytime session at Sherigu Community Library
- La deuxième journée des activités de café littéraire à la bibliothèque de Boni
- Échanges avec la nouvelle gérante de la bibliothèque de Koho
- Reprise des activités de la bibliothèque mobile Pénélope
- Sortie de la Bibliothèque Mobile Pénélope à l’école Sainte Thérèse
- Bonne nouvelle pour les amoureux de la lecture à Niankorodougou
- Bibliothèque communautaire de Zimtenga ! Les livres attendent patiemment le retour des communautés
- Bilan des activités du mois d’août de la bibliothèque de Bougounam
- Bilan des premières journées du café littéraire
- Nyariga community library, daytime activities
Author Archives: mkevane
Nathan Englander Reads John Cheever
I listen to The New Yorker fiction podcasts once a month on a long run. Generally they are wonderful. This month’s was less compelling. While Cheever was prescient about the pitfalls of an over-sharing culture, and his sentences are compelling … Continue reading
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Life experience and ebola
I was struck by this quote: Ms. Monaco and other administration officials said the government has been planning for months for the possibility that the virus might be brought to the United States by someone from Africa. And yet somehow, … Continue reading
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AIG Bailout trial underway
The first witness called by Boies, Scott Alvarez, the general counsel of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, testified about the credit terms extended by the government to financial institutions earlier in 2008 and about the terms offered to AIG.Under … Continue reading
Posted in Teaching macroeconomics
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Interesting controversy over managing government debt and interest rates, Fed vs Treasury
The Fed has sought to stimulate the economy by purchasing large quantities of long-term Treasury securities. The campaign, which is scheduled to end in October, aims to force investors to buy other kinds of debt and, in the face of … Continue reading
Posted in Teaching macroeconomics
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Two films about the rotten core of capitalism ….
The first is The Jewel, an Italian movie based on the 2003 $20 billion Parmalat bankruptcy, still apparently Europe’s biggest bankruptcy. The second in Capital, a French movie by Costa-Gavras, loosely based on the shenanigans leading up to the 2008 … Continue reading
Posted in Teaching macroeconomics
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Good and bad news from the dialogue opposition-CDP in Burkina Faso
The good news is that the talks are officially comprehensive. The bad news is no date for next meeting. How about tomorrow? « Premièrement, la question de la révision de l’article 37 de la Constitution, deuxièmement, la question de l’installation … Continue reading
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Did the New York Fed bail out Goldman Sachs via AIG?
The Starr case is starting tomorrow, and hopefully will extract and make public important testimony and evidence. Former Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner, who orchestrated the bailout from his previous perch as New York Fed president, insists that extracting these … Continue reading
Posted in Teaching macroeconomics
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What have I been reading…
Alexandra Williams, youth librarian in Alice Springs, Australia, recommended The Slap, by Christos Tsiolkas. Definitely for a mature young adult, it is an honest and searing portrait of Australian society… well, I am about halfway through. Told from multiple points … Continue reading
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Youth culture in West Africa… whatever… Kiff No Beat – Tu Es Dans Pain
The video has value as a “text” to read sociologically, maybe? It’s so humorless, it’s almost funny. The gang signs, the baseball shirts, the young women walking around as props… and at the same time the indelible West African milieu. … Continue reading
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Will the world ever run out of good-humored crime TV shows?
When I was growing up, Petrocelli, Magnum PI, Cannon and Kojak were once a week staples. Now my daughter, along with the entire 6th grade of my daughter’s school, is watching Psych. I had never heard of it. I bet … Continue reading
Posted in Personal Kevane life
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Bénéwendé Sankara talks about the Sankarist parties in Burkina Faso
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Pretty deep psychology here… worth a read, and some thought
I think back to the tailgate: the man blowing cigar smoke in my face, the man who mockingly yelled, “Thanks for letting us use your name!”, the group who yelled at us to “go the fuck home,” the little waif … Continue reading
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Modeling the psychological costs of inflation… just talking about this in macro class!
People dislike inflation. Shiller[1996] provides survey evidence that the public are greatly concerned about inflation and feel strong antipathy towards it. Inflation distresses people because they fear that rising prices will outpace wages. It also angers people because they feel … Continue reading
Posted in Teaching macroeconomics
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Regulating banks… the capture of the Federal Reserve
This does not surprise me at all. Too many institutions develop cultures of “do not ask embarrassing questions in public” and then define every opportunity to ask a question as a public occasion, and so no questions are ever asked. … Continue reading
Posted in Teaching macroeconomics
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“Schooled”? I had somehow missed the blogosphere discussion of this study of cowpea varieties in Tanzania
The paper was published in AJAE earlier this year. Abstract of paper: Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in the social sciences are typically not double-blind, so participants know they are “treated” and will adjust their behavior accordingly. Such effort responses complicate … Continue reading
Posted in Development thinking
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Are Women Better Bankers to the Poor? Evidence from Rural Microfinance Institutions
In some ways pretty surprising that the gender of MFI CEOs would matter. So before repeating to colleagues, take the time to read paper (unlike me) and determine whether methods reasonable. Abstract: Microfinance Institutions MFIs provide financial services to the … Continue reading
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What is Chikungunya? Don Vlady explains, from El Salvador, where tens of thousands have gotten it
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Nice summary of recent exchange rate movements
Some of the dollar’s recent strength has come against the euro, following a series of statements made by the European Central Bank’s president, Mario Draghi, that were interpreted by currency traders to be supportive of a weak euro. Many European … Continue reading
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The big guys, for now, decide to sit around a table and talk about what to do
Annoncée en fin de semaine dernière dans un contexte marqué par des débats « houleux » sur l’article 37 et la mise en place du Sénat, la rencontre de ce jour qu’on peut qualifier de « premier pas », jette … Continue reading
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Investor rights and environmental rights in the OceanaGold case
An Australian-Canadian mining company, OceanaGold, is suing the Salvadoran government for refusing to grant it a gold-mining permit to its subsidiary, Pacific Rim. Manuel Pérez-Rocha, a researcher at the Institute for Policy Studies, explained the situation: “OceanaGold is demanding more … Continue reading
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