YELLEN: Would More Diversity Among Economists Have Helped Prevent The Financial Crisis?

[NACBA]

Janet Yellen, the first female chair of the Federal Reserve, is giving welcoming remarks Thursday morning at the Fed's National Summit on Diversity in the Economics Profession in Washington.

In her speech, Yellen noted that both economics and finance recognized that diversity was fundamentally important to good outcomes, and that the Fed was "committed to achieving further progress, and to better understanding the challenges to improving diversity throughout the economics profession."

The meat of Yellen's speech is at the end, when she focuses on how and why the economics profession fails to recruit a more diverse population in college and graduate schools, and whether better recruitment could have prevented some of the major failures of the profession (failure to predict the financial crisis, for one) in recent years. Here is the key passage (emphasis ours):



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/janet-yellen-on-diversity-2014-10#ixzz3HeRslgcY

 

[CaptUSA]

Their definition of diversity is only about skin color. It has nothing to do with a diversity of thought.

 

[Acala]

Perhaps with more brownish keynesians, the laws of economics will change?

 

[Brian4Liberty]

Sometimes it is hard to decipher the code in these statements. The left loves to accuse their opponents of using code words. Does this generalization about bankers and economists mean that Janet Yellen is anti-Semitic?

 

[Occam's Banana]

Perhaps with more brownish keynesians, the laws of economics will change?

I can just see it now - here comes the "Melanin Theory of the Business Cycle" ...

 

[juleswin]

Dunno about you guys but diversity cured my fever one time. Its like a very potent herbal medicine, it has uses for just about anything medical, financial, spiritual, you name it.

True story guys, you have to believe me.

 

[NACBA]

Their definition of diversity is only about skin color. It has nothing to do with a diversity of thought.

Exactly

 

[NACBA]

Their definition of diversity is only about skin color. It has nothing to do with a diversity of thought.

I don't really get the "reputation" thing. I tried to give this post some but forum says I must spread it around.

 

[Zippyjuan]

You need to "rep" a couple other people before you can give more to the same person again.

 

[anaconda]

Their definition of diversity is only about skin color. It has nothing to do with a diversity of thought.

I naively thought Yellen was referring to diversity of thought in economic theory. I should have known better.

 

[anaconda]

I can just see it now - here comes the "Melanin Theory of the Business Cycle" ...

More melanin should allow for more sunshine on central bank activities. The outcome for the Fed could be very dark.

 

[Kotin]

Lol wut?

 

[Carson]

Earlier today I read some really good post in this thread.

I think many of you nailed the meaning of the diversity thing. I can't help wonder if they are going to find some sheep to fill some slots as their house of cards fall.

I've heard in the olden days that the punishment for counterfeiting was sometimes drawing and quartering. It seems pretty drastic in this day and age. On the other hand these people that have been getting away with counterfeiting don't seem to be able to reason. Maybe once you get the taste of being able to print up whatever amount of counterfeit you want, it is just to hard to go back to working like everyone else does. Maybe it is an addiction?

 

[2young2vote]

She is claiming that there is a lack of diversity in the field of economics, yet two of the leading modern economists who promote free markets are Thomas Sowell and Walter E. Williams...

 

[thoughtomator]

I'm more interested in exploring the Banker Privilege Hypothesis in Critical Finance Theory.

 

[thoughtomator]

She is claiming that there is a lack of diversity in the field of economics, yet two of the leading modern economists who promote free markets are Thomas Sowell and Walter E. Williams...

They are not disabled veteran lesbians - their points are invalid.

 

[anaconda]

...