by Joakim Book
The American Institute for Economic Research
Economists are strange creatures. They use odd words for everyday events; they say things that sound counterintuitive to most people; and they specialize in complicated trade-offs when what the wider public wants usually is simple answers.
We might also say that their consensus positions are only selectively picked up by the public – a trait they probably share with many other scientific fields: psychology and nutritional sciences come to mind.
While some economic topics are contentious and genuinely not yet settled – the world is a complicated place – there is also stunning agreement among professionals in the field.