The MIT Press

3 total works

Macroeconomics

by Robert J. Barro

Published 1 January 1984

Barro uses a unique market-clearing approach to analyze and explain macroeconomic theory. This edition has been reorganized to cover applications alongside the appropriate theory, focusing on the latest advances in economic growth. New software is included with the text.

Getting it Right

by Robert J. Barro

Published 11 April 1996

Since 1991, Robert Barro has been a contributor to the "Wall Street Journal" and other popular financial media. "Getting it Right" brings together, updates and expands upon these writings that show Barro's agility in applying economic understanding to a wide array of social issues. Barro, a "conservative who takes no prisoners", and a self described libertarian, believes that most governments have gone much too far in their spending, taxation and regulation. The dominant theme in these wide-ranging essays is the importance of institutions that ensure property rights and free markets. The discussion deals especially with the appropriate range of government: which areas represent useful public policy and which are unnecessary interference. The first section of the book considers these questions in the context of the determinants of long-run economic growth. In addition to basic economics, Barro assesses related political topics, such as the role of public institutions, the optimal size of countries, and the consequences of default on foreign debt. The second section deals with the proper role and form of monetary policy.
Barro argues that government should provide markets with a stable nominal framework and then stay out of the way to best allow for price stability. Writings in the third section cover fiscal and other macroeconomic policies. Topics include the distorting influences of taxation, especially taxes in capital income; infrastructure investment and other government spending; and the consequences of public debt and budget deficits. In a final section, Barro looks at more micro issues such as cartels, tax amnesties, school choice, privatization, cigarette-smoking regulation, endangered species regulation, the market for baseball players, and term limits for politicians.

Nothing is Sacred

by Robert J. Barro

Published 9 September 2002

Essays by the influential-and controversial- macroeconomist Robert J. Barro.

Since the 1970s, Robert Barro's academic research has significantly influenced macroeconomic theory. For more than a decade, his writing has also enlivened the pages of publications such as the Wall Street Journal and Business Week. In Nothing Is Sacred, Barro applies his well-honed free market arguments to a remarkably diverse range of issues. These include global problems such as growth and debt, as well as social issues such as the predictive value of SAT scores, drug legalization, the economics of beauty, and the relationship between abortion rights and crime reduction.The book opens with a series of essays on famous economists, past and present, and other prominent figures whose work has economic implications, including Joe DiMaggio and Bono. In the book's second part, Barro discusses the economics of social issues. In the third part, he considers democracy, growth, and international policy, and in the final part he examines fiscal policy, monetary policy, and the macroeconomy. Throughout, he shows that even the most widely held beliefs are not sacred truths but are open to analysis.