Yeah Paul, who could’ve possibly foreseen that open borders and massive trade/tariff disparities (with the U.S. always getting the short end of the stick) and the outsourcing of millions of American jobs could’ve led to massive trade deficits and the ...loss of millions of American jobs? Hmmm...
But it was “settled science” !
Worst economist ever. He understands nothing.
Was this gut born stupid or just takes a lot of drugs?? the whole idea behind globalism was to Knock America Down to third world status and enrich the Masters of Socialism Worldwide.
The Muslim did a pretty good job and Hillary would have finished us off. THANK GOD FOR TRUMP!!!
Ross Perot saw it coming in the 1990’s. He called it the “giant sucking sound”
Don’t know why this is such a surprise, Krugman!
Ross Perot told you back in the early 90’s to expect the ‘Giant Sucking Sound’.
Bingo. Just like the crowd that is stunned China has become a major threat after decades of pumping them with Western $$ and technology. It was just IMPOSSIBLE for foresee.
Krugman, though, writes that he and his fellow free trade economists “had no way to know”
Yep, NOBODY saw that coming.
“The pro-globalization consensus of the 1990s, which concluded that trade contributed little to rising inequality, relied on models...This was, I now believe, a major mistake “
“Relied on Models”, hmmm....where have I heard THAT before.
Did he get some bad news from his Doctor or something?
The article, Krugman and commenters here keep tossing around the term “free trade” as if that is actually what has been happening.
The problems haven’t come from the FREE trade. They have come from UNFAIR trade.
He’s right. Idiots had “no way to know”.
translation: The Democrat Party is going all-in on the Lizzie Warren campaign and her left-wing brand of populism.
Krugman is a NEVER-TRUMPER?? Duh.........
Between globalization and Obama’s domestic policies the American middle class has taken the biggest hit in the history of the country.
Yeah, it was impossible to see, huh Paul, you ignorant twit.
Many of us saw it, with far less formal schooling. It wasn’t rocket surgery.
I had many heated exchanges here at FR over similar issues.
For Krugeman, there was no way to know, because he is incapable of opening his mind rather than talking down to people with different opinions.
The key question is WHY Krugman was forced to issue this “mea culpa”.
My guess is he’s convinced Trump will have another 5 years in office as China is getting ready to sign a deal with Trump.
Pretty soon, Krugman figured, his attack on Trump’s policies could not be sustained without losing readership.
Better to eat some crow now and still remain a popular columnist in 2021.
One would have to be a complete idiot to not know what would happen with free trade between nations where one nation’s labor costs were 10% to 20% of the other’s.
Globalists have lied about this to the American public for decades. This admission from Krugman is really surprising, and suspicious.
I learned “free trade” from day one as an Econ/business major.