Last Week's Mexican Immigration Lecture

On Thursday last week, students filled the J.C. Cinema at noon to listen to Professor Douglas Massey speak on Mexican immigration. Professor Massey gave an hour long lecture on the history of Mexican migration into the United States. I post my notes here. For my view on the lecture click read more.
The lecture was extremely fascinating. Immigration is a hot topic of today. You could tell by the large turnout. Yet even when the lecture ended, I was left with the conclusion Dr Massey did not give the right answer on solving the problem of migration.
The entire lecture gave one hit after another against U.S. government regulations on the border. He pointed out that Mexican illegal migration only declined when more were allowed to enter legally. The entire lecture depicted the government's failure in trying to stop migration.
Some may blame it on the Mexican migrants, yet as Dr. Massey pointed out there was a demand for laborers. He continued to bring in the subject of what any government regulation on the border caused... a change only on how you hire someone.
By creating a wall, militarizing the border, deputizing the police force to deport illegal immigrants the government never decreased the amount of immigrants entering; they only created a high cost for nothing. A waste of resources that could have been used by the taxed citizens who had to pay for an inefficient policy.

Immigrants are here for one reason, there is a demand. All workers are just a factor of production that we call labor. By placing a quota on the labor allowed from Mexico , the government has changed nothing but what we call those who migrate from Mexico to the U.S.

Dr. Massey had pointed towards all this , but ended his lecture on what he believes would help cure the problem of migration. He stated government should just increase its quota from Mexico. Yes, applaud Dr. Massey for knowing we should allow more from the neighbor below who holds the comparative advantage of hard labor, yet for his view in use of government we should just shake our heads. Only the market through the price system allocates resources. Wage is only the price of a laborer. Thus allow the market to work. Open the border and allow the Mexican migrants to not only enter but exit the country freely. The price system has worked since trade began in allocating resources, why should we change that for a government system that must be decided and set by man who does not hold the infinite amount of knowledge that applies to the allocation of the factors of production such as labor.

Thank you for your research Dr. Massey, but there is no need for a guest worker program. Many immigrants will enter and many will leave each by their own will on their own time frame. There is no need for the government to decide for them. The market will give them the incentives to make the choice on their own.

J.C. Bradbury and his Home Run at Mason

Here is the beginning of my post. And here is the rest of it.

On Sunday The Boston Red Sox won the World Series after they wiped out the Colorado Rockies for a 4 to 0. Right after the final game of the series, I remember how great was to hear J.C. Bradbury on the subject of baseball (of course with an economics insight)

J.C. Bradbury is one of us. He obtained hi Ph.D. (Economics) George Mason in 2000, and he did his undergrad at Wofford College, South Carolina in 1996. Currently Bradbury is an Associate Professor of HPS at Kennesaw State University, Georgia.

Young and with a great charisma Bradbury started by remembering what was it like to be at George Mason. Then he began to speak to the crowd about some of the fascinating subject on his book “The Baseball Economists.” These topics unveiled the true game of baseball. For the people who were not able to attend here are some of the topics that Bradbury touched; why are there more hit batters in the AL? What happened to the left-handed catcher? How have steroids affected the game? What are the best/worst managed organizations in baseball? What are players worth? Is MLB a Monopoly?

The GMU Economics Society wants to express its gratitude to J.C. Bradbury for considering and giving his lecture at George Mason University. The Society wants to also thank the people who attended the event.

Who else got the books?!

OK, everyone knows I'm a huge econ nerd...added to that, I am one of those few who actually do all the class reading assignments cause I ENJOY THEM (oh yeah, im a lost cause). So, I have to confess professors Boudreaux and Boettke made my day when I got "the package" in the mail with no less than Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged, Russ Roberts An Economic Romance and two short essays by Pete Boettke and Vernon Smith.

Do I hear AWESOME? So BIG thanks to the Mason Econ Department for an incredibly thoughtful gift and for those who didn't get to receive it this year, be sure to e-mail us your information so we can include you in our databases and make sure you're in the Masonomics radar.

By the way, two short, very exciting announcements:
1. Daniel Rivera is joining our Blog! He is an Economics and Global Affairs Junior at Mason, originally from Costa Rica and an active member of the Econ Society.

2. Austrian (K)nights is coming together! (They are Austrian...they meet at night...get it? haha fine, I'm just saying cause it wasn't THAT obvious to me at first :) ). Ian and Jaime are finally coordinating the last details to start a reading/discussion club (yes, you heard right, we are actually gonna read on our FREE time). I'm not sure what we are gonna start with, but I do know it's gonna be really fun and that you don't have to be an Austrian to join and enjoy (i.e. yours truly still has not admitted to be an Austrian). So, if you want more info (so far, I think we are agreeing on Monday nights?) just e-mail us to gmueconsociety@gmail.com or join the Facebook Group!

And of course...do not miss our upcoming event, the free screening of THE CALL OF THE ENTREPRENEUR (trailer) on Wednesday 7, November at 6pm in Lecture Hall. We're getting popcorn, chocolate and all sort of candy, sodas and, on request, a pillow for your viewing enjoyment.

Talk about emerging Markets!

Markets emerge everywhere... Costa Rican High Schoolers pay a company to solve homeworks for them!
Even though the news link is in Spanish, it's really straight forward: An entrepreneur established a company that solves math, chemistry or physics problems for money.
Now, obviously, people want to regulate this kind of activity, making it illegal or charging the students with plagiarism if they get caught. We all know how well regulation works, so is there a better way to make students do their homework? Even though the news link is in Spanish, it's really straight forward: An entrepreneur established a company that solves math, chemistry or physics problems for money.
Now, obviously, people want to regulate this kind of activity, making it illegal or charging the students with plagiarism if they get caught. We all know how well regulation works, so is there a better way to make students do their homework?

So Good I had to Post It

A boy was crossing a road one day when a frog called out to him and said, "If you kiss me, I'll turn into a beautiful princess." He bent over, picked up the frog and put it in his pocket. The frog spoke up again and said, "If you kiss me and turn me back into a beautiful princess, I will stay with you for one week." The boy took the frog out of his pocket, smiled at it, and returned it to his pocket. The frog then cried out, "If you kiss me and turn me back into a princess, I'll stay with you and do ANYTHING you want." Again the boy took the frog out, smiled at it and put it back into his pocket. Finally, the frog asked, "What is the matter? I've told you I'm a beautiful princess, that I'll stay with you for a week and do anything you want. Why won't you kiss me?" The boy said, "Look, I'm an economist. I don't have time for a girlfriend, but a talking frog is cool."

Hat tip to JokEc

More Stuff to look up on JC Bradbury

A Tyler Cowen style post.

His blog his here. His book is here. He also developed the statistic PrOPS, available from the Hardball Times here, and explained here. Here's his article on Leo Mazzone. And for a more recent bit, here's Bradbury on HGH.

And definitely come to Enterprise 80 tomorrow to hear him talk.

Caplan - Wittman Debate notes

During the debate earlier this semester, the officers of the GMU Econ Society had taken notes to the best of their ability. I know that everyone has been waiting impatiently, but as the video is a large file it is difficult to find an online source that will carry the size of the file without breaking the video into pieces. In the mean time, here are the notes to the debate. Enjoy.

Landsburg at GMU Econ Society

It was a great event with light refreshments before the event and appetizers following the event. Landsburg spoke for almost an hour, enough said hit 'read more' for our preview video. Here is the preview as promised, click the title for to download the whole video. Yes you will have to download VeohTV first. Apologies but was the only way we could get the entire video online. Enjoy.
(Just a tip...for some reason you need to click on the play button a couple of times before the preview starts)

Online Videos by Veoh.com

The Baseball Economist

J.C. Bradbury

author of

The Baseball Economist

The Real Game Exposed

Why are there more hit batters in the AL? How good is Leo Mazzone?

What happened to the left-handed catcher? How have steroids affected the game? Is MLB a Monopoly? What are players worth? Do big cities really dominate small cities? What are the best (and worst) managed organizations in baseball?

To learn all of this and more, come to Enterprise 80

On October 24, 2007

From 6:00 p.m. – 7:20 p.m.

Refreshments and Pizza Provided

WHO SAYS ECONOMICS IS ALL ABOUT MONEY & POLITICS?

More info:

gmueconsociety@gmail.com & gmueconsociety.blogspot.com

Summer Seminar series: Mises University

The last week of July entering into August and I found myself in the busy Atlanta airport waiting for a ride into Alabama; Auburn, Alabama for the annual Mises University. The event I was impatiently waiting for since I first heard about it a year ago. Mises University is held by the Mises Institute in Auburn, Alabama. The weather is hot and sticky, but the beautiful building of the Mises Institute is worth the travel and the summer Alabama weather. You enter in after a short ride from a shuttle or from a brief 15 minute walk from the dorm and you find a gush of air conditioning welcoming you. A few offices when you pass through the front doors, but amazement fills you as you see the extensive library the building holds. Perhaps I am revealing my complete and utter fascination with books, but I knew that this is what I hoped I could have one day.
Was the library that extensive? It filled two rooms looking more like a small public library than a personal collection. If you could not tell, I was impressed and felt almost at home browsing with the other attendees through the book shelves in aw of the books we found.
I will quote their about page to describe their goal:

It is the mission of the Mises Institute to restore a high place for theory in economics and the social sciences, encourage a revival of critical historical research, and draw attention to neglected traditions in Western philosophy. In this cause, the Mises Institute works to advance the Austrian School of economics and the Misesian tradition, and, in application, defends the market economy, private property, sound money, and peaceful international relations, while opposing government intervention as economically and socially destructive.

The question that is perhaps in some readers minds is the same one when they took the poll on the left side; 'What is Austrian Economics?' to which I link to the Mises Institute for their explanation

The first few days of this week long seminar were spent on introducing economics and Austrian thought to those who never had any training in economics. To those who know microeconomics, you will find the first few days somewhat redundant as everyone must participate in these classes, but the following days were filled with excitement. The schedule of classes are released and you pick and choose which event you wish to participate in. Sometimes finding that two great lectures are occurring at once. Between lectures you can find many browsing through the library or the Mises Bookstore.

The evenings at Mises University are spent after dinner with a chance to discuss with fellow students or professors. Refreshments are provided and you find yourself relaxing with a great crowd until late evening. The local area is welcoming allowing for everyone to move to any of the bars nearby.

The lectures are diverse and to add to the incentive of taking notes and understanding the material, Mises University has an oral exam on the final day of the seminar with the chance to win scholarship money. It is free to take the exam therefore all should; there is a written exam first to diminish the amount of test takers in the oral exam.

This is by far one of the most exciting seminars you can attend. Not only for the individuals you will meet and new friendships you will make but for the lectures as well. On a side note, you may not agree with all you hear during the lectures as the Mises Institute is viewed as a group of radical libertarians but stay open minded and you can understand why they hold such views even if you do not agree.

My view, any GMU economic undergraduate student, should attend this event. I give this seminar a 4 out 5 for many reasons. One is the Austrian perspective denied to students in most learning environments. Another reason, the seminar is well planned not only allowing you to choose which lectures you wish to attend but developed so that you want to be there. What do we learn? Choice is everything and at Mises University you are not only taught that but are able to choose for yourself.

The Stand-Up Economist

Some of you may have already run into this guy, if not, I'm happy to bring to you some dorky econ humor I found while doing my english homework (go figure...)

I actually think I read about this guy in Greg Mankiw's blog a while ago...anyways....enjoy!

Link to youtube