New Documentary Movie

Today I learned of a new movie while reading an op-ed piece by Kathleen Parker in the Washington Post online. It is Inside Job and is critical of Washington insiders, Wall Street players and even academia.

Needless to say, I am more than a bit skeptical of the "powers that be" and their motives. Reading articles and books that attempt to explain resons for our recent macroeconomic woes, has increased my desire for more information that doesn't come from "experts" but from "fresh eyes".

As I write this, I must confess that there is profit motive at play here also. Afterall, this documentary is a commercial venture. That must be kept in mind, since the film makers must have a hook to reel in paying consumers. I will want to keep my eyes and ears to the ground to find objective reviews of this film. It is difficult to find parties who will not benefit in one way or another from a specific perspective on this issue.

In fact everyone benefits from knowledge. Full knowledge is a major assumption in most basic economic models. The main problem here is lack of full knowledge by all but those who seem to have exploited their knowledge edge. Then again isn't that the means for creating profit. Profit being the primary motivator in our capitalistic model.

It all comes down to what we want from our system. Are we in fact getting exactly what we want? Or are only a few getting what we all want? Is there enough to go around? Good questions to ponder for the study of US macroeconomics! Remember: economics is "the study of how society manages its scarce resources" (Mankiw glossary).