The IPA and Per Capita: Two Peas in a Pod.

Yesterday Alan Kohler published a piece calling to end the debt and deficit fallacy. He is -- as I am -- worried about all the talk of paying the debt. Not just that, in that column he makes a positive reference to MMT and to Stephanie Kelton’s new book “The Deficit Myth”. And, get this, that appeared in the pages of The Australian, flagship of the Murdoch presstitute.

The panic scorn from COALition bigwigs was as predictable as it was quick to come. First in order of seniority in the federal Government was Mathias Cormann (the Arnie Schwarzenegger soundalike, who is -- or might have been -- a lawyer in his native Belgium):

“The worthlessness of Venezuela’s currency is the result of inflation, 46,000% a year, which in turn is largely caused by the printing of money to finance the government’s deficit of 30% of GDP.“ #wrongdirection #budgetrepairmatters @TimWilsonMP https://t.co/15kMNkd8uW https://t.co/AXPy800uW0

— Mathias Cormann (@MathiasCormann) June 22, 2020

Second in order of seniority, but first in chronological order, was Tim Wilson (who has a Masters of Diplomacy and Trade and a Graduate Certificate in Energy and Carbon Management):

Quick question: is that how @AlanKohler runs his personal finances? Doesn’t worry about deficits and just increases his access to cash through personal loans?

— Tim Wilson MP (@TimWilsonMP) June 21, 2020

Lastly, was James Paterson (who has no post graduate education, but who, like Wilson, is an alumnus of the Institute of Public Affairs: that, I suppose, more than makes up for Paterson’s lack of credentials):

The ABC shouldn’t be advocating wacky economic theories that have been proven to fail https://t.co/nnd556t4Bn

— James Paterson (@SenPaterson) June 22, 2020

(Jimbo -- like Timbo -- evidently knows better than to bite the hand that feeds him: he does not chastise The Australian for “advocating wacky economic theories that have been proven to fail”).

To their credit, the heads of the COALition freak show, Scotty from Marketing and Josh Frydenberg, chose to keep a safe distance, as did Labor pollies: it’s always sensible to stay away from fights one is unprepared for.

Alas, it seems, nobody gave Stephen Koukoulas that advice. So, yesterday he was writing:

I was a little bit worried that my contempt for MMT was misplaced - but the more I read about it, the more confident I am about my assessment.

— Stephen Koukoulas (@TheKouk) June 22, 2020

The Kouk (as he is popularly known), like Paterson, has no post graduate education, and like Wilson and Paterson has a history of being a think tanker (but not from the currently far right -- once upon a time Keynesian -- IPA, aka COALition, but from centre-Left, aka Labor, Per Capita), which evidently entitles him to feel contempt for what he does not understand.

But a few hours later, rather surprisingly, this is what he was saying:

A fantastic description of good old fashion Keynesian economics from @StephanieKelton on @RNBreakfast She was spot on about the importance of pro active fiscal policy in supporting growth and jobs.

— Stephen Koukoulas (@TheKouk) June 22, 2020

The real Kook please step forward.

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Right and centre-Left: same shit from different piles two peas in a pod.