Goldilocks, American Precious Metals and the Rise of the West

The contribution of American precious metals to West European growth is estimated at an accumulative 40%. This means that it account for somewhat more than two-thirds of the early greater divergence between Western Europe and East Asia during our sample period. We have the neutrality of money, the resource, curse. We've now got a finding that before didn't really exist in economics, and we've got pirates as well.