Beth Popp Berman, an Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Michigan and author of "Thinking Like an Economist," discusses the rise of economic reasoning in U.S. public policy since the 1960s. She delves into how concepts like competition and efficiency have reshaped the Democratic party’s approach to inequality and education. Berman contrasts the rigid economic framework of Democrats with the Republicans' flexibility, highlighting the implications on education policy and community engagement.
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insights INSIGHT
Rise of Economic Reasoning
Economic reasoning, emphasizing efficiency and trade-offs, grew in US policy between the 1960s and 1980s.
This seemingly neutral approach, focusing on incentives and cost-benefit analysis, shaped how problems were defined.
insights INSIGHT
Education's Delayed Adoption
Economic reasoning permeated policy areas like welfare and health but was slower to impact education.
Attempts to apply it to education in the 1960s faced political obstacles and timing issues.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Education as Human Capital
The US lacks a federal right to education, unlike many nations that recognize it as a human right.
The US focused on education's human capital value and economic efficiency, not its inherent value.
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How Efficiency Replaced Equality in U.S. Public Policy
Beth Popp Berman
Beth Popp Berman's "Thinking Like an Economist" explores the pervasive influence of economic reasoning on American public policy from the 1960s to the present. The book traces how concepts like efficiency, incentives, and trade-offs became dominant in policy debates, often overshadowing considerations of equality and social justice. Berman argues that this shift had significant consequences, particularly for the Democratic Party, limiting its policy options and constraining its ability to address social inequalities. The book offers a critical analysis of the limitations of an exclusively economic approach to policymaking, highlighting the need for a broader perspective that incorporates social values and ethical considerations. Ultimately, it encourages a re-evaluation of how we frame and approach policy challenges.
Left Behind
A Novel of the Earth's Last Days
Tim LaHaye
Jerry B. Jenkins
Left Behind is the first book in the Left Behind series and narrates the story of the Rapture and its immediate aftermath. The novel follows characters such as Rayford Steele, a pilot, and Buck Williams, a journalist, as they navigate a world where millions of people, including all children and babies, have suddenly vanished. The story delves into Christian eschatology, particularly dispensationalism and premillennialism, and introduces the character of Nicolae Carpathia, who is revealed to be the Antichrist. The book sets the stage for the seven-year Tribulation period and the formation of the Tribulation Force, a group of Christians resisting the Antichrist's reign.
Jack and Jennifer are joined by sociologist Beth Popp Berman, author of the new book Thinking Like an Economist. Berman chronicles how economists and their style of reasoning (think ‘competition,’ ‘choice’ and efficiency’) took over one domain after another beginning in the 1960’s, constraining Democrats’ policy visions in the process.
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