I support Paul Krugman!

[CTyankee]

Of course, they're piling on this morning, but from the clips I've seen Paul did well, he just didn't yell as much as Scarborough. I hope someone will post the entire debate from Charlie Rose's show last night.

Most disappointing was the appearance of Jeffrey Sachs essentially supporting Joe (Sachs should know better). I suspect Sachs gets a nice payout for his frequent appearances on MJ. But he's ruining his reputation in the process. It is one thing to disagree as an academic economist. It happens all the time in academia, no surprises there. But Sachs has always struck me as a thoughtful guy, if somewhat too far right for my taste. This was just sucking up to the paymaster.

Mika, for one, ought to know better. Her own dad is an academician who was mercilessly raked over the coals for his work in the Carter Administration. I hope he's giving her a very hard time privately for her role in all this. He knows the difference between academia and lightweight show biz.

The rest of the MJ crew was just moronic. Even Eugene Robinson didn't say very much. Nobody was on to support Paul. It was a disgrace...

[spedtr90]

1. It was a contrast in substance vs method

Krugman being the substance. Joe put his years as a politician to good use instead.

They came to the table with different purposes.

It was disappointing to see Krugman's mentions of the revenue problem (tax cuts) and the question of what kind of society we want to be - do we want to dismantle the New Deal - get brushed aside. Once again, a chance to look at the entire problem focused just on Medicare, Medicade, and Social Security.

[malaise]

2. Krugman versus Joe Scum

That's a fugging no brainer!!! I turned them off after Mica (who knows as much about matters economics as Joe Dumb (aka Scum)

Who cares if its M$NBComcast versus Krugman - Krugman still has the PhD in Economics and the Nobel Prize.
They should interview folks from Econ. departments today but that is not in their interest.

[CTyankee]

3. well, I don't know about folks from econ depts. they all disagree all the time.

I feel like Paul brought a knife to a gun fight. He explained in his blog today at the NYT that he was tired and cranky and felt he had just had his "Denver" moment and then added that that turned out all right "just ask Mitt Romney."

[malaise]

7. In terms of style perhaps but only Krugman had the facts

Fugg Joe Scum

[CTyankee]

12. I was SO disappointed in Dr. Sachs, tho. What a sellout!

Of course, what we may not know is whether Sachs and Krugman have had an adversarial academic background to start with, perhaps made worse by professional jealousy when Krugman got a Nobel Prize and Sachs has not gotten one.

People get very jealous when others in their field outshine them. No one as brilliant as Krugman can go through a career without having his colleagues act out of spite towards him. It's just part of the game: "he thinks he's so smart! well, I'll SHOW him..." as they cry in their beer. I think that was most evident when Richard Haas hissed at him "You're right up until the time you're wrong." That was so stupid! I was amazed that someone of his "stature" would stoop to that level...

[malaise]

15. Sachs can't disappoint me

He was one of the biggest neo-liberals on the planet until after he fugged up Russia and Eastern Europe - then he suddenly morphed into something else.

[Cha]

20. Yeah, "the Denver Moment" sure did turn out all good.. where

"substance vs method" had mittLies, on steroids, the "winner".

[Mass]

4. Krugman said he did poorly. This does not mean he was wrong on the facts,

but Scarborough was more prepared than he was for the performance. I will take Krugman at his word for that.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/2013/03/scarboroughd.php?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Talking-Points-Memo+%28Talking+Points+Memo%3A+by+Joshua+Micah+Marshall%29

This said, of course, I support Krugman.

[CTyankee]

9. Scar is slippery, like Krugman said in his blog. He comes out with these statements that he never

made before and says he said it before...like his "opposition" to the Iraq War, when of course there is video of him going on Jon Stewart and saying just the opposite ("door to door survey in Iraq showing support of the Iraqi people for the U.S. war). Now alluva sudden he says he's for infrastructure funding! Where is the proof, Joe?

[Mass]

11. This is why these debates are not a good thing.

The same thing happened to John Stewart against O'Reilly. They are ready to debate the guy that shows up everyday on TV, and it is another person who shows up. Short of being very uncivil and calling them out for their lies, there is no way for us to come winners out of these debates.

[TheKentuckian]

14. Which is why one must be "very uncivil" and call them on their lies

There comes a places where phony "civility" becomes covering for the lies in all practical effect and we passed that place many years ago.

[CTyankee]

19. but Krugman said that Scar was using ad hominem attacks and Scar just asserted that he

was only giving "facts."

[JHB]

18. See my #17 below

Creationists have exploited this mismatch between academic debating and rhetorical duel for decades to bestow an air of legitimacy on themselves. This is simply the same thing with a different field: bad information driving out the good due to the limitations of the set-up.

[JHB]

17. Krugman fell for the "debate a creationist" trap...

...i.e., thinking that knowledge of the subject and experience with academic debate would work in a forum where you simply don't have the time to break down the flaws of the other guy's argument, so bad information wins the "debate".

[kelliekat44]

5. Really folks, all this was about was "

now blaming it all on the President. By charging that Krugman's 15-year old statements about the deficit and the debt they think it will show that the left also lies about policies and political positions. It's their attempt to draw attention away from their own duplicity by saying..."look over here...in 1997 you said ..." This kind of behavior by the GOP and their RW media puppets always follows news about their being caught in a lie. It's their false equivalency attempts. Just check the record and see how many times this has happened.

[Baitball Blogger]

6. Joe Scarface was hilarious.

I tuned in just as he was saying something to the effect, okay, so what if you're right most of the time. It's the one time you're wrong when we'll get into a mess.

Damn. If Krugman's success ratio is that high, hire him!

[JaneyVee]

8. I hate these false equivalences in the media. As if Joe Scar is even on the same level as Krugman

when it comes to economics. Lets stop paying attention to the morons who shout nothing and start listening to the geniuses who win Nobel Prize's in economics instead.

[rhett o rick]

10. Well said. nm

[MannyGoldstein]

13. I think people like Biden may be more appropriate for Scarborough

It calls for mastery in containing bullshit and rhetorical gimmicks rather than mastery of reality.

[mountain grammy]

16. Who is Morning Joe? I'm watching Steph on Current.