English Chess Forum

Interesting interview with Ken Rogoff on BBC World Service: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p0 ... _dont_mix/ at 11.20.
"A Harvard Professor on his chess addiction and why he had to give up the game." (He became a grandmaster in 1978.)

Never mind about chess and economics, just read Ken Rogoff's economics. I strongly recommend his recent masterpiece, This Time Is Different, a truly brilliant analysis of the current global crisis

http://amzn.to/z7M8ve

The book is a survey of financial crises back to the 13th century, supported by immaculate and lucid datasets. If all this sounds like hard work, fear not. The book is written for the intelligent layperson, yet is completely free of the condescending populism of many other (American) books on this subject. I cannot recommend it too highly for anyone who would like to understand why we are where we are just now, economically.

And while I'm on the subject, another recently published masterpiece on economics is Daniel Kahneman's Thinking, fast and slow

http://amzn.to/xO5X1k

You might imagine, given the title, that this book might have some bearing on chess. Indeed it does: chess gets plenty of mentions, as you'd expect in a book on skill development, choices and decision-making. A readable and accessible book, although a little tough-going in places

I'm no expert in the subject, but I just wonder: why didn't he show the same brilliant insight when holding a top job at the IMF and likely taking part in the economical decisions leading to the current downturn?

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I don't want to belong to any club that will accept people like me as a member.

In fairness to Rogoff, I think he was at the IMF only a short time, 2001-2003; and then, 'only' as Director of Research. I'm ill-placed to defend his general take on economic policy because I don't favour the stance generally taken by the IMF. But nevertheless, his recent book remains outstanding.

Even as a director of research and even if he was not responsible for setting the policies, his outstanding insight and his access to any relevant information should have allowed him to foresee what was coming.



Well, then I'm looking forward reading the upcoming book from the captain of the Costa vessel about first hand feedback and recommendations about how to drive your vessel and what to do when your vessel is sinking: he probably has a lot of interesting things to say

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I don't want to belong to any club that will accept people like me as a member.