While economists seem to virtually never agree on anything, I have heard that a number of economics textbooks all begin with ten points on which there is wide agreement. Can anyone briefly summarize these?
I have no idea about the ten they all agree on, but would assume things like
- the benefits of free trade outweigh the drawbacks
- corporate taxes are not a good way to have progressive taxation
- rent control doesn’t work to create affordable housing
Apparently there is broad consensus among economists on key issues like the effectiveness of stimulus packages or bank bailouts, and considerable scepticism over popular political ideas like the claim that tax cuts will boost the economy. One thing almost all economists agree on is that policy should be based as far as possible on sound evidence.
A bit of googling turned up this “table of propositions to which most economists subscribe, based on various polls of the profession” and this short Atlantic article: 4 Politically Controversial Issues Where All Economists Agree.
You’re likely referring to Gregory Mankiw’s ten Principles of Economics:
- People face trade-offs
- The cost of something is what you give up to get it
- Rational people think at the margin
- People respond to incentives
- Trade can make everyone better off
- Markets are usually a good way to organize economic activity
- Governments can sometimes improve market outcomes
- A country’s standard of living depends on its ability to produce goods and services
- Prices rise when the government prints too much money
- Society faces a short-run tradeoff between Inflation and unemployment.
Dammit, wrong link. This is the link I meant to post: Greg Mankiw's Blog: News Flash: Economists Agree
(It’s from Greg Mankiw’s blog, whom I now see that Bear_Nenno is referencing.)