No Free Lunch: Economics for a Fallen World: Third Edition, Revised

Chapter Seventeen: A Short History of Macroeconomics 420 WHO’S RIGHT? Proverbs 18:17 The one who states his case first seems right, until the other comes and examines him. Even when we are wrong, we are still individuals created Imago Dei . So it ought not be too surprising that we can make pretty compelling cases for our own points of view. But others likewise have good perspectives, as expected from fellow image bearers. So what are the implications of this for economics? First, we need to be very careful in examining a case that others may tell us. We should be Bereans, testing an explanation against scripture and subsequently assess an argument’s own internal logic. Even then, the first good explanation may be incorrect. So second, we should be willing to evaluate other perspectives with the same framework (consistency with scripture and internal logical consistency, to include empirical data where appropriate). In this chapter, we’ll see how economics has gone back and forth over the years to try to explain the overall macro economy.