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Fall 2017

ISSN 0890-913X

Volume 32, Number 3

Categories: Fall 2017 | Economic Education

Don't Be a "Jibbering Idiot": Economic Principles and the Properly Trained Economist

Peter Boettke, George Mason University

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TheJournalofPrivateEnterprise32(3),2017,9–15Don’tBea“JibberingIdiot”:EconomicPrinciplesandtheProperlyTrainedEconomistPeterBoettke∗GeorgeMasonUniversity______________________________________________________AbstractEconomics,properlyunderstood,makessenseofthecomplexwebofhistoricalrelationsthatconstitutesrealitybyutilizingeconomictheory.Economicswithoutpricetheoryisnoteconomictheory,andmeasurementwithouttheoryisn’tempiricallymeaningful.However,graduatestudentsarebeingincreasinglytrainedinsophisticatedproceduresofoptimizationandstatisticaltestingwhileremaininglargelyignorantofeconomictheoryasatoolforunderstandingeconomichistory.Thisaddressisarenewedcallformyfelloweconomiststoinstillintheirteachingandtrainingthebeautyofeconomictheory,theempiricalimportanceofeconomichistory,andanunderstandingofeconomicforcesatworktoprovideagoldenkeythatunlocksthedeepestmysteriesofthehumanexperience.Withoutlearningthegoverningdynamicsofhumanactionandthemechanismsthatproducesocialcooperationunderthedivisionoflabor,moderncivilizationwillbeleftundefendedagainstthefallaciousclaimsthatmarketprocessesareexploitative,monopolistic,andunfair.______________________________________________________JELCodes:A22,A23,B41Keywords:economicteachingandtraining,pricetheoryIamnotheretodaytoinsultmyfelloweconomists,buttohopefullyinspiretheyoung,aspiringeconomicsteachersamongyoutolearnyourcraftandtodoyourjob.Teachingisamostworthyvocation,andtheteachingofeconomicsisespeciallyneededtodaygiventheplethoraofpopularfallaciesthatoccupythepublicimaginationandthepublicpolicycommunity.Buttheproblemisevendeeperbecauseourprofessionhasfallenshortinitsjobofteachingthebasicprinciplesofourdiscipline.Graduatestudentsaretoooftentrainedinthetechnicaltoolsofoptimizationandinderivingthetheorems∗Theseremarksweredeliveredattheforty-secondannualmeetingsoftheAssociationforPrivateEnterpriseEducation,April10,2017,inLahaina,Hawaii.Minoreditorialchangeshavebeenmadetoadaptthespeechforprint.

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Metadata [hide]

Title	Don't Be a "Jibbering Idiot": Economic Principles and the Properly Trained Economist
Authors/Creators:	Peter Boettke, George Mason University
Year:	2017
Volume:	32
Number:	3
Pages:	9 - 15
Publisher:	The Association of Private Enterprise Education
ISSN:	0890-913X
Document Type:	Articles
Keywords:	economic teaching and training, price theory

Citation:
Boettke, Peter / 2017. "Don't Be a "Jibbering Idiot": Economic Principles and the Properly Trained Economist." The Journal of Private Enterprise, 32(3): 9-15.