Brad DeLong's Semi-Daily Journal (2004)

It would be interesting to find out how much of the real exchange rate appreciation in poor countries is due to currently high and rising commodity prices. My hunch would be most of it.
If so, then rapid Asian growth suggests that the weakening of the Samuelson/Balassa effect could be with us for a while.

Anand

It's also a sign that the ability of developed nations to extract cheap commodities through market means in exchange for a relatively small share of their production is also weakening. That would mean that an economic convergence or at least closing of the gap is likely. If poor countries were actually able to get together and collectively bargain in the World Trade forums, then we'd see some serious changes. That's the last obstacle I think, which is why developed nations are being so nasty about agricultural subsidies.

I think it would be interesting to see how much of the change is due to the relative trade value in commodities over which developed nations have power via ag subsidies or trade barriers versus how much in commodities over which they do not. The latter category would include crude oil, and... what else?

I have wondered about this for quite a while, particularly since I first saw inflation rates around the world on www.cia.gov. Do you think, Dr. DeLong, that perhaps if most "Third-World Countries" had had, since WWII, Treasury Secretarys as protective against inflation and as anti-government debt as Rubin was and a central bank chairperson as anti-inflation as Volker (circa 1981) that they might not be so "Third-World"? Or does their per capita buying power, and general standard of living reflect availabality of natural resources? Or are different cultural factors in play, like Weber's "Protestant ethic"?

Downloaded the paper. Wow... not easy to derive the series is it? All I can see that I can understand right off is figure 3A!

Here are two things from the Progressive to consider adding to your list. Progressive is way too lefty for me, but I couldn't resist checking it out right now. But the point of interest is not the Progressive's editorial content -which I find self righteous and whiney. But the content. Contrast these too passages and ask yourself who is lying.

http://www.progressive.org/webex04/wx051004.html

http://www.progressive.org/webex04/wx0510a04.html

It is tasteless to say this on this thread, but in my opinion, the gloves off attitude that has been adopted is not only very wrong, in the long run it is very ineffective, and in fact counterproductive.

One productive strategy would be to try to get a handle on international terror financing and hidden trade in nuclear material. But we know what the attitude of the Bush admin is towards those two potnetially productive strategies. The fact that the US has -what... three or four times as many people monitoring rinky dink Cuban travel and trade bans than Al Qaeda financing has been splashed all over the place, so I won't spend time finding the link. Ditto the unbelievable sloppiness in securing nuclear sites in Iraq, and maintaining nuclear monitoring and control programs elsewhere.

And here is a link that shows that even *friendly* armies are not safe from abuse. If it is true, of course... I will be interested in following this story. If it is true, a coalition of the chumps... er, willing, if you can keep it.

http://www.juancole.com/

US Ordered Spanish to Bring in Muqtada 'Dead or Alive'
Spanish Command predicted "Large-Scale Military Response"

The new Spanish Minister of Defense, Jose Bono, is drawing the curtain from some of the events of early April when the US authorities in Iraq decided to attempt to arrest Muqtada al-Sadr in the wake of his self-identification with Hamas. It appears that at first the Coalition Provisional Authority and the US military command approached the poor Spanish about carrying out the arrest of Muqtada. The Spanish were in charge of Kufa and Najaf, where Muqtada is based.
...
This whole episode strikes me as shameful and cowardly on the Americans' part. It seems obvious that Bush, who must have made the decision to launch the largely unprovoked attack on Muqtada, was hoping to make the Spanish the fall guys. (Two pieces of evidence point to Bush: 1)We now know he was the one who ordered that "heads must roll" at Fallujah, so these major military campaigns are his idea; and, 2) the phraseology "take him dead or alive" is distinctively his.)

oops wrong thread. How'd that happen? Sorry. See post below with many this's below.

Interesting! Puts the offshoring/globalisation phenomenon on a quantitative basis. Remember that one assumption (the most important?) in the Balassa-Samuelson is that workers don't compete over national borders (other than via tradeable goods).

Now competition seems to increase (and/or stuff is getting more tradeable), if this is the right way to read the diagram.

Phentermine

BTW, is anyone able to help me with a dilema? I need to get some medications online and found these great prices Discount Drugs. Does any body have any experience with buying RX products online? If you do, the items I am interested in are some of their generic Viagra impotence treatment blue pills for my pop,

Phentermine

Omega Fatty Acids

Fish Oil

Body Piercing, Body Jewelry Catalog

Omega3 Fatty Acids

Nice site. Glad to visit it. I represent a company that sells International Phone Cards. LOWest prices ever!

Fish Oil Supplement

Omega Fatty Acid Fish Oil

Hi there! Nice site of yours, thanks! Visit our most complete body piercing catalog http://body-jewelry.reestr.net/body-pircing/

Most complete body piercing satisfaction. Belly Button Rings Belly Button Rings,

Online Casino Directory

Thank you for sharing that with us!

I am truly astonished!

Does love equal hell?

Very nice and interesting posts. Thanks again!

Ars sine scienta nihil est - Art without science is nothing (I would also claim that the opposite is true.)

Sequens mirabitur aetas - The following age will be amazed

Diabolus fecit, ut id facerem! - The devil made me do it!

Lectio brevior lectio potior - The shortest reading is the more probable reading

Thanks - thought provoking blog

Materiam superabat opus - The workmanship was better than the subject matter. (Ovid)