Michael mentioned the book here. -----Original Message----- From: pen-l-boun...@lists.csuchico.edu [mailto:pen-l-boun...@lists.csuchico.edu] On Behalf Of Eugene Coyle Sent: Monday, July 16, 2012 7:01 PM To: Pen-l Pen-L Subject: [Pen-l] Education: Last refuge of scoundel economists and their clueless acolytes
Education as the solution for unemployment, poverty, and inequality is espoused by many economists. A good, relatively new book, CLASS DISMISSED, by John Marsh has gone unnoticed on Pen-l. Or at least I don't recall a mention of it. Monthly Review Press, 2011, and edited by Michael Yates. The subtitle: "Why we cannot teach or learn our way out of INEQUALITY." Marsh is an English professor who puts economists to shame with his analysis. In the book, though not in the subtitle, he adds poverty to inequality as something that education won't cure. This isn't a book review but I will add that the writing and story telling are fine. Marsh shows that education, education, education, is NOT the answer to poverty and inequality. This post is triggered by the appearance today of an opinion piece by Larry Summers, asserting that education is the answer to inequality. Marsh, on page 14, identified Larry Summers of 2004 making the assertion Summers repeats today. On the same page Marsh names other economists, including Bernake and Tyler Cowen, along with opiners of every stripe who assert education is the panacea for inequality and poverty. And in the book Marsh destroys their arguments. Some are scoundrels, some are clueless, all are damaging. In addition to Summers, whose Reuters piece today, "Inequality Of Opportunity A More Important Focus Than Income Inequality" can be found at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/16/larry-summers-inequality-of-opportunity_n_1675564.html?utm_hp_ref=business Others of note include Claudia Goldin and Lawrence F. Katz of Harvard, with views found in "The Future of Inequality" in the Miliken Review, 3rd quarter of 2009. To be found at http://www.milkeninstitute.org/publications/review/2009_7/26-33mr43.pdf Gene _______________________________________________ pen-l mailing list pen-l@lists.csuchico.edu https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l _______________________________________________ pen-l mailing list pen-l@lists.csuchico.edu https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l
