----------------- HES POSTING ----------------- 
There seems to be some concern about the use of "thin" and "thick" as descriptions of
stylistic approaches in the history of economics thought so let me explain my use of the
terms.
 
I do not use them in any pejorative sense, but simply as descriptive terms. To me "thin"
simply means "interested first in the forest, not the trees", and "thick" simply means
"interested first in  trees, not the forest". There are lots of different mixtures of the
two approaches, and doing one in no way  rules out doing the other. In my view the
history of thought should include both. In fact the same study could include both thick
and thin aspects.  Perhaps hedgehog histories and fox histories would be   better
nomenclature.  I happen to like the "thin"/"thick" division--both could be pejorative--I'd
hate to be called thick, and at the moment, as I struggle with a diet, I like to be called
thin. So I don't see them as at all pejorative. I reserve my pejorative categories to good
and bad. There is good history and there is bad history; I support good history of
economic thought and oppose bad history.
 
I can support thin histories in the same way that Kevin might support "data mining."  It's
not bad data mining that is supported; it's good data mining, in the sense of pulling the
most information on can from the data with full
recognition of the limitations that imposes on relating that evidence to theory in a
formal sense. However, in a recent presentations in which I have been pushing data mining,
I discovered that for many economists the term "data mining" had a bad connotation, and it
doesn't for me.  I've discovered the same bad connotation with the term art in my work
trying to reintroduce J.N. Keynes' art/positive/normative distinction back into economics.
Somehow, a lot of economists interpret art as being bad and positive as being good,
whereas for me they are simply descriptors.
 
I see myself as a thin, artistic, positive, data miner who is sometimes rather thick.   I
hope that clarifies issues.
 
Dave 
 
------------ FOOTER TO HES POSTING ------------ 
For information, send the message "info HES" to [log in to unmask]