In a previous post, “Where to be Born,” I had written “There’s something toxic about the Indian subcontinent. (Hint: it has something to do with a desert religion.)” Addressing that point, Vickram commented —
Continue reading “Where to be Born — Follow up”
Author: Atanu Dey
Economist.
Where to be born
I had named the first blog I ever had way back in 2001 when I was at UC Berkeley, “Life is a Random Draw.” It was in recognition of the fact that the endowment we are born with (and where) is something that we have no control over; it is truly a random draw from the great big pack of cards in the sky. You are stuck with this naturally inherited set and it powerfully determines your destiny. But wait, there’s more. What you can do with your natural endowment is limited by the environment you find yourself in — that too is random.
Continue reading “Where to be born”
A few quotes from “Transforming India”
My friend JP recently sent me a list of quotes from my book “Transforming India: Big Ideas for a Developed Nation.” I thought I would put them on the blog for the benefit of those who have not read the book. Just BTW, you can download a (free) PDF copy of the book at the book site (linked above.)
Continue reading “A few quotes from “Transforming India””
A nation of sheep will beget a government of wolves
Act 1: Let me tell you a story about an old man who lived in a small village somewhere that does not matter. It all began when the man’s sons came to him and told him that some people from the neighboring village had stolen a chicken from their farm. The old man told his sons to go after the thieves and recover the chicken.
Continue reading “A nation of sheep will beget a government of wolves”
Competition and Markets — Part 2
Competition in the market and competition for the market are substitutes, as I mentioned in the previous post on the matter. When firms can freely enter (and exit) a market, it is called a free market. In a free market, firms compete with each other and the outcome of that competition is that prices are driven down to the cost of production. When we have a large number of identical firms producing a homogeneous good competing with each other we have a perfectly competitive market.
Continue reading “Competition and Markets — Part 2”
Happy Winter Solstice 2012
The precise time of the Winter solstice this year was at 3:12 AM Pacific Standard Time (which was 4:42 PM Indian Standard Time) today, Dec 21st. I was up and awake busy tweeting. The first day of Winter finds the weather here cloudy but not wet. The past few days have been pretty and sunny. Anyway, just wanted to say Happy Winter Solstice. The Christian version of the Saturnalia is coming up in the next few days. I loves me a good carnival. Happy Christmas and happy holidays.
Narendrabhai Modi — What’s Next
Narendrabhai Modi won for the third consecutive time the Gujarat State assembly elections. Like in the earnings report of a corporation that analysts expect to be the outcome, the market already incorporates into its calculations the results and therefore it does not alter the stock prices, the outcome of the Gujarat elections don’t throw up any surprises. When there are no surprises, there’s little of interest. But what’s going to happen next is an interesting question because there will be surprises.
Continue reading “Narendrabhai Modi — What’s Next”
Recent Tweets – 1
Click on the image below to go to my twitter time line. The chaprasi referred to in here is Manmohan Singh. I like the Tao. Don’t you feel the overflowing love that Muslims have for Jews and Christians?
Continue reading “Recent Tweets – 1”
On Competition and Markets
From a broad philosophical perspective, competition is encoded in the basic DNA of the universe. At every level of analysis, competing forces seek domination. At the largest inanimate scales, gravitational and electromagnetic forces constantly compete in stars. At the smallest scales, inside an atom, nuclear and electromagnetic force compete. In the biological world, living things compete all the time. It’s a constant battle between and among botanical and zoological species. Humans, as part of the animal world, are past masters of the game. We, like all other living organisms, are all descendants of ancestors who were successful in that competition at least long enough to have survived to reproduce.
Continue reading “On Competition and Markets”
12-12-12
Today is 12-12-12. I suppose none of us reading this will be around for the next 12-12-12 when it rolls around in 100 years on 12th December 2112. It is a sobering thought. We’ll all be dead. You and I, and everyone we know will be dead by then. Sorry to rain on your parade. I wonder what it will be like in 100 years — and I am sure that no one knows today what it will be like, just as the people living in 1912 could not have imagined what it would be like to live in 2012.
Continue reading “12-12-12”
Atanu Dey : Life is a Random Draw 