Blowing bubbles - Letters

Washington Monthly, Dec, 2001 by Steve Schear

The productivity conclusions reached by Karen Kornbluh in her article ("Disconnect: How Bush and Michael Powell Are Killing the New Economy and How to Turn it Around," October 2001) are questionable. Although the overall economy is faltering, it is not clear that productivity is falling. In fact, quite the opposite may be true.

At the tops of bubbles, people with less marketable skills become employed, lowering productivity. These same people are often the first to lose their jobs when the economy turns south, but these losses actually improve productivity, since these workers generally have the lowest individual productivity.

STEVE SCHEAR
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