Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Birthday Anniversary Frederic Bastiat

The American Economic Association's Economist Calendar, lists yesterday as the anniversary of Frederic Bastiat's birth. But the Bastiat Society indicates it is today. I will bow to the Bastiat Society on this one.

Bastiat was a French economist. And while there are no great theorems or laws associated with him, he is renowned for his ability to take economic ideas and make them understandable. His Petition of the Candlemakers is a wonderful example of satire mixed with economic understanding, and worth using in almost any classroom where economics is being taught. And you can find it in numerous places on the web.

If you are interested in learning more about this engaging thinker, look here and here. For a collection of some of his sayings, which are great for kicking off clasroom discussions, try here.

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