There are many reasons why costs in higher education have been rising faster than inflation for many decades. A fundamental reason is because education is so labor-intensive and (so far) has been resistant to improved productivity via capital investment or technology. This is called Baumol's Cost Disease. But there are other reasons too. One is … Continue reading Oligopoly and the Costs of Higher Education – Journals Edition
oligopoly
The GM Tale
Earlier this week General Motors, the new post-bankruptcy GM, issued it's Initial Public Offering. Initial signs are very encouraging in several ways, which I'll describe. But first let's take a note. Only 20 months, less than two years, The conservatives and tea party types were howling for GM to go bankrupt and for the government … Continue reading The GM Tale
Where’d my job go dude?
One of the greatest untold economic stories of the last 2-3 decades (there are so many) is how the economy (both US and global) has consolidated. In industry after industry, there's just not the level of competition or entry or innovation that we formerly had. This is significant for many reasons. One, historically the Great … Continue reading Where’d my job go dude?
