Month: September 2004

A Modest Proposal for Making India 100 Percent Literate within Three Years

~ Atanu Dey ~ 19 Comments

In yesterday's musings on whether education promotes development, I had promised to outline a proposal for making India 100 percent literate within three years. Here is the modest proposal. First, the government of India must credibly commit to paying every literate and numerate person Rs 5,000 (about US$100). Second, ensure that every person who wants … Continue reading A Modest Proposal for Making India 100 Percent Literate within Three Years

Does Educational Spending Promote Growth?

~ Atanu Dey ~ 6 Comments

Back in February I had examined the matter of why education is underprovided in India. My insistence that basic education was a necessity for development prompted Alok Mittal to ask about the connection between economic development and education. Specifically, he quoted these lines from my post -- Economists are deservedly known to disagree on many … Continue reading Does Educational Spending Promote Growth?

The Power of M-type Arguments

~ Atanu Dey ~ 1 Comment

Suhit Anantula forwarded an open letter to Krugman from Arnold Kling. In it, Kling told Krugman that he (Krugman) was using too many M type arguments (M for "motivation") and not enough C type arguments (C for "consequence") when Krugman argues for or against certain policies. I think that Kling's letter is worth reading. And … Continue reading The Power of M-type Arguments

Why, oh why, are they so materialistic?

~ Atanu Dey ~ 11 Comments

Prashant has raised a very interesting point. And one of the more important statements he makes is "... several religions of the world preach that material belongings are unimportant." Indeed material belongings are unimportant. If several religions of the world make that point, they are indeed right. But if they don't go to the next … Continue reading Why, oh why, are they so materialistic?