Dione Alexander does a wonderful job identifying non-Western cultures’ attitudes about money and how that resonates in their giving. The next question is: if Western societies revolves around wealth-driven capitalism, what does that say about their giving?
The field of “economics” is growing more and more popular according to bestseller lists (Freakonomics), heavily-followed blogs (Tyler Cowen) and must-read columnists (Paul Krugman). Lotsa interesting and thoughtful stuff happening among these thinkers (plus an entertaining dose of snippy in-fighting to keep things lively). I like reading all these guys (and yes they are pretty [...]
Tags:capitalism·Freakonomics·gift economy·Paul Krugman·Tyler Cowan
If you’re seeking to choose a charity to support, would you rather choose from among thousands of charities, or a mere half-dozen? My gut instinct is to go with the many-options path. I’d feel that there would be something inherently better about a nonprofit if I’ve picked it out of 5,500 rather than from a [...]
While most people make charitable donations for the connection with friends who asked or family members affected or communities involved, that small but important percent are focused on how their gifts have an impact. And perhaps, to have the highest-impact, they should not be giving toward charity at all. In today’s Washington Post, Ezra Klein [...]
Tags:health care·obesity·policy
Theories are lovely. They are neatify the world, project order on to a myraid of disparate behaviors, allow educated guesses at what the future holds. But there is no theory, ever, that explains everything that it claims it does. Some square-shaped action will not fit into that round-shaped reasoning. When this happens, proponents of the [...]
Politicians are recipients. And like any recipient, they will likely feel inclined to give back to contributor that helped get them elected. This is why it’s absolutely critical that campaign donations be not only public but easily accessible information.
Economist and (maddeningly) prolific blogger Tyler Cowen recently commented on how an argument used by one political blogger will be used by someone from the other side of the debate to stir up the opposition’s base. He says: Sometimes I think of the political blogosphere as a huge commons. An individual blogger can gain in [...]
Tags:arguing·politics·Tyler Cowen
I have no experience in publishing, writing sales, or crystal-ball reading. Therefore I am perfectly credentialed to predict the future of books. And it will be like this:
