John, the term "liberal activist" is in the article; so I used the 
author's words and those with which Roy Weintraub is presumably 
comfortable. Liberal means left in ordinary terminology. Thus, my 
question is whether the Center is becoming political.

I don't know why Humberto published your post. But I feel it is worth 
telling you and him that, as I read it, it seems both rash and uncivil. 
It is little more than nasty name calling. And it is certainly a 
misunderstanding of the thrust of my questions.


On 1/26/2011 9:43 AM, John Brown wrote:
> My initial response to the CHOPE posting was that it was certain to 
> inspire a Pavlovian response from the followers of Glenn Beck who have 
> been indoctrinated to believe that George Soros is the source of a 
> progressive conspiracy.  I was disappointed that Pat Gunning whose 
> voluminous postings on this list I have respected if not always agreed 
> with chose to frame the Soros' donation in these terms.  There is much 
> that could be said, but that would devolve into an ideological debate 
> not suitable for this forum.  Thus I confine myself to two observations:
>
> 1) Something really significant happened in the world economy about 30 
> months ago.  The existing orthodoxy about the behavior of market 
> economies failed utterly.  Thus some new thinking would seem to be 
> indicated.  To paraphrase Abraham Lincoln, the doctrines of the quiet 
> past are not useful for the turbulent present.
>
> 2) Since Soros was a child during the Nazi occupation of Hungary, and 
> also experienced life under Communism, he probably has no sympathy for 
> the authoritarian central planning systems both societies employed.  
> Ascribing such motives to him is at least unfair.
>
> On Tue, Jan 25, 2011 at 9:17 PM, Pat Gunning <[log in to unmask] 
> <mailto:[log in to unmask]>> wrote:
>
>     This message deserves to be scrutinized, it seems to me.
>
>     ...[t]he produce of the whole labour of the society is so great,
>     that all are often abundantly supplied, and a workman, even of the
>     lowest and poorest order, if he is frugal and industrious, may
>     enjoy a greater share of the necessaries and conveniencies of life
>     than it is possible for any savage to acquire.
>
>     "The causesof this improvement, in the productive powers of
>     labour, and the order, according to which its produce is naturally
>     distributedamong the different ranks and conditions of men in the
>     society, make the subject of the First Book of this Inquiry."
>
>     "To explainin what has consisted the revenue of the great body of
>     the people, or what has been the natureof those funds, which, in
>     different ages and nations, have supplied their annual
>     consumption, is the object ofthese Four first Books. The Fifth and
>     last Book treats of the revenue of the sovereign, or commonwealth."
>
>     (Adam Smith, Wealth of Nations, Introduction)
>
>
>     Steve Hartsoe writes of the "Global Effort to Boost Economics
>     Education" that the core mission of economics is that of "guiding
>     and protecting society."
>
>     "Guiding and protecting society" was hardly the traditional
>     mission of economics. What makes it the "core" mission? If the
>     people at the center agree with this core mission on the basis of
>     their knowledge of the history of economic thought, it seems to me
>     that true students of the history of economic thought should shun
>     this center. Would George Soros, liberal activist, have financed
>     the mission that is implicit in the "Wealth of Nations?"
>
>     How is society likely to be guided and protected, whatever that
>     means, by studying "the history of economics," the "history of
>     economic thought," history, and "economic history?" Is it to be
>     guided by the study of active monetary policy and discretionary
>     fiscal policy, regulations, price controls, restrictions on "the
>     natural distribution" etc.? Is it to be protected by the study of
>     environmental protection, consumer protection and government
>     control of healthcare, old age, disability, and unemployment
>     insurance? Is it to be protected against foreign competition,
>     unfair competition, unjust prices, unjust incomes, unjust culture,
>     bad luck? And what does economics have to say about the guiders
>     and the protectors?
>
>     Can the core mission be accomplished by studying the "the
>     teachings of venerable economists Friedrich August Hayek and John
>     Maynard Keynes? Well, no and yes, it seems to me.
>
>     Does anybody from the Center have good answers to the general
>     thrust of my questions? Or, in different terms, has Soros funding
>     turned the "Center" to the left?
>
>
>     On 1/25/2011 10:04 AM, E. Roy Weintraub wrote:
>
>         Duke Joins Global Effeort to Boost Economics Education
>
>         Project funded by George Soros will allow Center for the
>         History of
>         Political Economy to expand programs
>
>         By Steve Hartsoe
>
>         Monday, January 24, 2011
>
>         (Duke News Service)
>
>         DURHAM, NC -- As part of a larger effort to better understand the
>         global economic meltdown, Duke’s Center for the History of
>         Political
>         Economy is among a handful of schools looking to change the way
>         economists are educated.
>
>         Behind this push is The Institute for New Economic Thinking
>         (INET), a
>         foundation launched in 2009 with an initial $50 million pledge
>         from
>         billionaire financier and liberal activist George Soros.
>
>         Overall, more than 50 grantees from 11 countries are involved in
>         finding solutions for the challenges of the 21st century by
>         returning
>         economics “to its core mission of guiding and protecting society,”
>         according to a news release from INET.
>
>         The institute has awarded a three-year grant of $750,000 to
>         the Duke
>         center, which will serve as one of only four initial task forces
>         selected by INET.
>
>         The money will allow the Duke center to expand its programs, which
>         include a fellowship and visiting scholars program, workshop
>         and lunch
>         series, a summer teaching institute, a speaker series, and annual
>         conferences.
>
>         An expanded summer institute will begin this summer, with
>         classes held
>         at Duke and aimed at Ph.D. students from the top economics
>         programs
>         throughout the country. The added funding will help support more
>         visiting fellows as well as Ph.D. students enrolled at Duke who
>         specialize in the history of economics.
>
>         “There’s much to be learned from the history of economics,”
>         says Bruce
>         Caldwell, an economics researcher at Duke and founder-director
>         of the
>         center, which was established in 2008 with a mission of
>         promoting and
>         supporting the teaching of, and research in, the history of
>         economic
>         thought.
>
>         “While a better understanding of history provides no silver
>         bullets,
>         it does provide perspective and insight.”
>
>         The teachers trained through programs at the Duke center “will
>         be key
>         assets in restoring the history of economics as a fundamental
>         part of
>         economic training and academia,” Robert Johnson, executive
>         director of
>         INET, said in a statement.
>
>         In addition to awarding a grant to the Duke center, INET has named
>         Caldwell to its advisory board, which includes five Nobel
>         laureates in
>         economics.
>
>         Caldwell says the teaching of the history of economics has been in
>         decline across economics departments worldwide.
>
>         “As historians of thought retire, they are not being replaced,” he
>         says. “Too many economists fail to recognize the importance of a
>         knowledge of how their discipline developed, and, lacking that
>         knowledge themselves, they do not realize that many of the
>         questions
>         being debated today in fact have long histories.
>
>         "We are trying to change the way that economists think about their
>         discipline. It is a big assignment, but a vitally important one.”
>
>         The recent economic crisis has sparked a renewed interest in
>         economic
>         history, especially the teachings of venerable economists
>         Friedrich
>         August Hayek andJohn Maynard Keynes, according to Caldwell.
>
>         INET’s Inaugural Grant Program received more than 500 applications
>         from around the world, and selected 34 initiatives to be awarded
>         grants totaling $7 million. The grant program will continue
>         with two
>         similar grant cycles annually, the next one beginning this spring.
>
>         “It’s great for the center, and it’s great for Duke, which has
>         for a
>         long time had a stellar reputation in the field,” Caldwell
>         says. “This
>         recognition has reaffirmed its place within the international
>         community.”
>
>         Since its inception, the Duke center has received grants from a
>         diversity of sources, including the John W. Pope Foundation, the
>         National Endowment for the Humanities, the Earhart Foundation,
>         and the
>         Thomas Smith Foundation.
>
>
>
>     -- 
>     Pat Gunning
>     Professor of Economics
>     Melbourne, Florida
>     http://www.nomadpress.com/gunning/welcome.htm
>
>
>
>
> -- 
> *An optimist, often disappointed, but still hopeful.*
>
> John Howard Brown, Ph.D. *Physical Mail*
> Associate Professor                                           P.O. Box 
> 8152
> School of Economic Development                        School of 
> Economic Development
> Georgia Southern University                                Georgia 
> Southern University
>                                                                          
> Statesboro, GA 30460
>
> *Telephone* (912) 478-0896           Fax (912) 478-0710
> *
>
> *

-- 
Pat Gunning
Professor of Economics
Melbourne, Florida
http://www.nomadpress.com/gunning/welcome.htm