[chasingsparks]

I just ordered Krugman's book, so this is a premature hypothesis but: I think Krugman says things he knows to be false but thinks are worth saying in order to pull the median voter towards his line of thinking. His NYT editorials are not only written for a general audience, but are written at such a simplified level that they are absurd. However, they are instantly touted across the blogosphere by self-styled progressives. His Nobel is a big stick to carry -- I think he is using it in a utilitarian (from his perspective) way.

[jhancock]

If economists ever expect us to view them even remotely in the same league as scientists, they may want to start by dropping the approach of trying to "persuade" and move on towards "proof".

Krugman's not bad, he writes good mainstream stuff, which is hard to do. I would be far more impressed if he had spent the last 5 to 10 years writing to the mainstream, screaming his head off about the dangers of the bubble we were in. And if his answer is that he wasn't certain is was a dangerous bubble, he can hand over his Nobel to me, because I sure as hell knew.