On Dec 3, 9:55*pm, Hawke wrote:



By the way, most economists disagree with their thesis.

Got any _facts_ to back up that assertion, Dave?

Why, yes I do, Johnny!

In a survey of economic historians conducted by Robert Whaples,
Professor of Economics at Wake Forest University,
Whaples sent out anonymous questionnaires to members of the Economic
History Association. Members were asked to
either disagree, agree, or agree with provisos with the statement that
read: "Taken as a whole, government policies
of the New Deal served to lengthen and deepen the Great Depression."

But Professor Whaples survey said " Taken as a whole " . I would have
disagreed with that statement as some of the government polices served
to shorten the Great Depression and taken as a whole the government
polices did not serve to lengthen and deepen the Great Depression.
However some of the government policies probably caused the recession
of 1937 - 1938. See bit copied from WIKI

In June 1937, the Roosevelt administration cut spending and increased
taxation in an attempt to balance the federal budget.[88] The American
economy then took a sharp downturn, lasting for 13 months through most
of 1938. Industrial production fell almost 30 per cent within a few
months and production of durable goods fell even faster. Unemployment
jumped from 14.3% in 1937 to 19.0% in 1938, rising from 5 million to
more than 12 million in early 1938.[89] Manufacturing output fell by
37% from the 1937 peak and was back to 1934 levels.[90] Producers
reduced their expenditures on durable goods, and inventories declined,
but personal income was only 15% lower than it had been at the peak in
1937. As unemployment rose, consumers' expenditures declined, leading
to further cutbacks in production

If Wiki says this, then it looks as if most economist agree with
Harold L. Cole
and Lee E. Ohanian.

Dan