Paul Krugman thinks the Obama administration is doomed: "Stimulus, bank rescue, China, foreclosure; it applies all along. At each point there were arguments for not acting; but the cumulative effect has been drift, and a looming catastrophe in the midterms. Or to put it another way, the administration has never missed an opportunity to miss an opportunity. And soon there won't be any more opportunities to miss."

"OK, so the Kocherlakota dispute followed K's very clear statement that the Fed's current policy of low rates is deflationary. That's sheer nonsense." READ MORE

We've all been there, Paul: "If you don't understand a brief post like this one, CLICK ON THE LINKS. I'm not putting them there for decorative purposes."

"Europe is often held up as a cautionary tale, a demonstration that if you try to make the economy less brutal, to take better care of your fellow citizens when they're down on their luck, you end up killing economic progress. But what European experience actually demonstrates is the opposite: social justice and progress can go hand in hand," writes Paul Krugman in today's Times. It is indeed contrary to the narrative you usually hear concerning Europe, and it reminded me of these recent remarks by Tony Judt: "It would be pleasing-but misleading-to report that social democracy, or something like it, represents the future that we would paint for ourselves in an ideal world. It does not even represent the ideal past. But, among the options available to us in the present, it is better than anything else to hand." (And if you haven't already, do read Judt's essay on living with ALS. Make sure you have time to devote your full attention to it, as it is something you should read completely free from distraction.)

Any time Paul Krugman uses the phrase "I'm feeling optimistic" in his first sentence is cause for celebration. That's what he does in today's op-ed about the climate summit in Copenhagen. (More cause for celebration: free sex for all attending diplomats!) By the end of the piece, he's really eating happy pills. "Let's hope my optimism about Copenhagen is justified. A deal there would save the planet at a price we can easily afford-and it would actually help us in our current economic predicament." Great! But shouldn't that be, "a deal might, maybe, possibly save the planet, if we are very, very lucky, and probably not?"

"All the wise heads will tell us that 8 or 9 percent unemployment – maybe even 10 percent – is the 'new normal', and that only irresponsible people want to do anything about the situation. So what I see is years of terrible job markets, combined with political paralysis." READ MORE