Op Ed from Krugman, Wisdom from Buffett

I have a small confession to make. I never took economics in college; finance just wasn't cool in the 60s. That’s unfortunate, because there's a lot of counterfeit economic thought emanating from both sides of the political spectrum, and some of it is downright dangerous. If you don't have the proper economic background, you and your nation may prove highly susceptible to these dangerous viruses.

Paul Krugman is the highly enjoyable cure. If you've never come across him, you're in for a treat, and if you have you'll be delighted to know that this MIT econ prof now writes a semiweekly column for the New York Times. You'll have to register (free), but it's well worth it. (As a bonus, you can catch the likes of Tommy Friedman and Maureen Dowd on the same page.) I sweep this archive at least once every few weeks.

It’s also a kick in the pants when you possess heretical notions about security characteristics (in my case, that the expected future returns of stocks are in the 6% range), and find that Warren Buffett agrees with you. The Sage of Omaha doesn’t often discuss the equity markets in the general case; this interview in Fortune from last fall is classic Buffettaica.

Copyright © 2000, William J. Bernstein. All rights reserved.