JE'87

Harvard vs. Yale, Economic Edition, 1980: A Tribute to John Train

Re: "Harvard is known as 'the Kremlin on the Charles' for a reason: its school of economics is decidedly Socialist...and we all know Socialism *does* *not* *work*!!"

I'm not sure which Yale you attended, but when I learned economics at Yale, it was from the likes of James Tobin, Arthur Okun, William Nordhaus, and others who collectively represented what was then called the "Yale School." The Yale School represented ardent Keynesians, some of whom were proudly responsible for pushing through the first (quite successful) tax cuts and deficit spending in response to early signs of a recession during the Kennedy administration. The medicine worked, and the prescribers widely praised.

I don't recall there being a "Harvard School" in those days; it seemed that our primary competition came from Chicago and MIT. But in ranking the support for a hands-on government approach to guiding the macroeconomy, I don't think anyone would have put Harvard's economists in front of Yale's.

Since those days, we have learned a lot more about monetary policy and international funds flows, but the fundamental laws of Keynesian economics have yet to be repealed. From the writer's screed, it would appear that the fundamental flaws in Yale's admissions process continue to persist as well.