Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Jude Wanniski, Man Who Coined the Term "Supply-Side Economics," Passes Away
Polyconomics ^ | 8/29/2005 | ReagansRaiders

Posted on 08/29/2005 6:52:02 PM PDT by ReagansRaiders

click here to read article


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-34 last
To: ReagansRaiders
Here is the bio of the late great Jude Wanniski, from his website. I'm sure many Eastern Europeans, as well as Americans, will note his passing with sadness, and with gratitude for what he accomplished.

Jude Wanniski, founder and chairman of Polyconomics, Inc., is a world-renowned political economist whose 1978 book The Way the World Works was named one of the 100 most influential books of the 20th Century by the editors of the National Review. At the heart of the book is his 1978 discovery of the cause of the 1929 stock market crash, a discovery that vindicates the classical economics, which had been blamed for the Crash and the Great Depression. It was during his tenure as Associate Editor of The Wall Street Journal – 1972 to 1978 – that he coined the phrase "Supply-side Economics," which puts classical theory into modern garb. He was an advisor to Ronald Reagan from 1978 to 1981, and designed the Reagan tax cuts that propelled the U.S. economy out of stagflation and led to the great stock market boom that followed. He has counseled Democrats as well as Republicans in the years since, pro bono, and has developed pro-growth strategies for several governments. A key to his singular success has been his use of the dollar/gold price fluctuations in understanding the risk variables that influence investment decisions. Mr. Wanniski, 67, founded Polyconomics in 1978 to advise corporate and financial strategists on the impact political events would have on the stock and bond markets and on the domestic and global economy. He and his team of analysts in Parsippany, NJ, counsel Wall Street clients who collectively manage trillions of dollars, using a unique analytical framework, that has evolved in 25 years of dramatically successful forecasting. Polyconomics was alone in attributing the Crash of 1987 to monetary errors by the Reagan Treasury and the Federal Reserve, and has been alone in warning since 1997 that the U.S. economy was suffering a rare variety of monetary deflation. Mr. Wanniski appears frequently in the broadcast and print media, and also writes weekly commentary for the Polyconomics website. His daily "Memos on the Margin" appears at Wanniski.com, and he also presides over a free, virtual "Supply-side University," which has 3000 registered students around the world. Trained in political science and communication, he brings a unique meld of experience in journalism, academia, politics and business to his audiences, demonstrating an uncommon facility in imparting efficient and profound information on the unfolding political economy. Mr. Wanniski holds a B.A. in Political Science and and M.S. in Journalism from UCLA

21 posted on 08/29/2005 7:31:30 PM PDT by SupplySider
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: sheltonmac; billbears

I am really upset about this. Jude was a great man and I, along with so many others, learned so much from him. God bless him.


22 posted on 08/29/2005 7:51:59 PM PDT by ValenB4 ("Every system is perfectly designed to get the results it gets." - Isaac Asimov)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 19 | View Replies]

To: ReagansRaiders
I once published an article with a tangential passage about a currency crash in a particular country. The journal editor thought very highly of it, making it the lead article. Shortly after it came out he passed on an e-mail he received from Jude Wanniski (who, like most supply-siders, was a fan of fixed exchange rates, which I am not). He didn't just rip my diagnosis of this particular crash, which he attributed to the country's failure to defend its currency, but dismissed me scornfully as "undoubtedly smart as a button," but talking beyond my competence.

I read it with a smile, and couldn't get mad at it, or him. Part of it was because I felt there was no such thing as bad publicity. But part of it was because the message was written in the manner of someone regretting a silly mistake and hopeful that the young, inexperienced author would someday see the error of his ways, rather than in the manner of a bitter scold (in the manner of, say, a Paul Krugman).

He had eccentric, often unpredictable views beyond economics, but was interesting to read. And he mattered. I still have the e-mail, and am sad to hear this.

The Money Tree.

23 posted on 08/29/2005 8:03:54 PM PDT by untenured (http://futureuncertain.blogspot.com)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: sheltonmac; billbears
JW was one of the very few who, before the Iraq, predicted that no WMD would be found. He had a vast network of contacts all over the world who kept him informed about "The Way the World Works" - pardon the pun. He had to be informed because if he wasn't, his clients would lose money. I admired him for sticking his neck out like that and going against the grain, yet expected him to be proven wrong. He wasn't wrong about that and he was right about most other things.

The important lesson to learn from him is that we should all be wary of what we hear in the media, and that there are two sides, or even more, to every story. And always be willing to learn.

It's a real shame that he met with disapproval and was informally shunned by the right. But without him, there wouldn't have been a Reagan administration. He forever changed the Republican economic strategy to one where tax cuts take precedence over "fiscal responsibility" - which voters correctly assumed to mean tax increases. He was a great man and he deserves to be remembered fondly. Goodbye, Jude.

24 posted on 08/29/2005 8:06:15 PM PDT by ValenB4 ("Every system is perfectly designed to get the results it gets." - Isaac Asimov)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 19 | View Replies]

To: ReagansRaiders
I thought Milton Friedman coined the phrase, "supply side economics".

RIP Mr.Wanniski.

25 posted on 08/29/2005 8:07:19 PM PDT by Reagan Man (Secure the borders;punish employers who hire illegals;halt all welfare handouts to illegals.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Reagan Man
It was during his tenure as Associate Editor of The Wall Street Journal – 1972 to 1978 – that he coined the phrase "Supply-side Economics," which puts classical theory into modern garb. He was an advisor to Ronald Reagan from 1978 to 1981, and designed the Reagan tax cuts that propelled the U.S. economy out of stagflation and led to the great stock market boom that followed.

See Wanniski.com


26 posted on 08/29/2005 8:13:52 PM PDT by Reagan Man (Secure the borders;punish employers who hire illegals;halt all welfare handouts to illegals.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 25 | View Replies]

To: ReagansRaiders
Very Sad

Wanniski was cogent, insightful, and a blast to read. I liked him precisely for the reason that many in the conservative movement passed him by. He wasn't cowed by the prevailing orthodoxy and afraid to speak. He wrote and published regularly on LewRockwell.com (a libertarian anti-war site). He was an economic genius, and although I disagreed with him on lots of issues, I would have feared to have to debate him on those very issues. He always had my respect, if not my agreement.

RIP. We lost a good man.

27 posted on 08/29/2005 8:14:12 PM PDT by chronic_loser
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: ReagansRaiders

This is a sad day for America. He had a great influence on Jack Kemp's economic philosophy who in turn converted Reagan to supply side thinking. His book "How The World Works" should be read alonside "The Wealth of Nations".


28 posted on 08/29/2005 8:20:52 PM PDT by bayourod (Blue collar foreign laborers create white collar jobs. If they come they will build it.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: rdb3
His favorable opinions of Louis Farrakhan made me stop reading him after a while, though.

He should've stuck to economics because he was wholly appeasement minded and idiotic when it came to geo politics.

And I just read his revolting comments about Minister Farrakhan. Just because he is dead does not give him a pass. If Paul Craig Roberts were to pass on also, he would not get a pass either!

29 posted on 08/29/2005 8:31:57 PM PDT by Stepan12
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: Paleo Conservative
I just found his last column that he published. It was on AlJazeera.net.

It's too bad that late in life Wanniski drank the Lugnut Rockwell kool-aid. Let this not sully his legacy as an economist.

30 posted on 08/29/2005 8:34:24 PM PDT by BlazingArizona
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: ReagansRaiders

I'm sad to hear this news. His thought-provoking writings will be missed.


31 posted on 08/29/2005 9:26:20 PM PDT by HAL9000 (Get a Mac - The Ultimate FReeping Machine)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Paleo Conservative
I just found his last column that he published. It was on AlJazeera.net.

How fitting. The antisemitic bastage. May he rest in peace.

32 posted on 08/30/2005 3:45:49 AM PDT by Shalom Israel (Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: rdb3
The man was as sound as sound could be on economics.

Actually, not that sound. His views did help counter the Keynesian nonsense that was so prevalent (and still is), but it wasn't the end-all be-all. Austrians have made some very cogent critiques of the supply-siders.

33 posted on 08/30/2005 3:48:14 AM PDT by Shalom Israel (Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 16 | View Replies]

To: Dog Gone

I fully agree with Jude Wanniski's supply side ideas. Especially a simple tax system, a rising tide lifting all boats, and his crusade to return to the gold standard.

My problem with him is his continued apology for the likes of Yaser Arafat ( calling him a good man ), Saddam Hussein ( Wanniski to his dying day still maintains that Saddam never gassed the Kurds and never indulged in WMD development and was a benign dictator ), and of course, the raise baiting of Louis Farakhan.

Had he sticked to his specialty ( economics ), he would have been a hero to me. As such, his opinion record is a mixed bag.

May God rest his soul.


34 posted on 08/30/2005 8:58:09 AM PDT by SirLinksalot
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-34 last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson