Clive Crook
Clive Crook is a senior editor of The Atlantic Monthly, a columnist for
National Journal and a commentator for the Financial Times. He was
formerly
on the staff of The Economist, latterly (from 1993 to 2005) as deputy
editor. A graduate of Oxford and the London School of Economics, he has
served as a consultant to the World Bank and worked as an official in
the British Treasury. He lives in Washington, DC.
His latest writings can be found on the Clive Crook blog.
Recent articles by Clive Crook
Small World
Market crashes are inevitable, but financial innovation and globalization have massively increased our vulnerability to them. Unless we make big regulatory changes—changes on a global scale—we should prepare for more years like this one.
Sins of Emission
Kyoto was a sham and a failure—so how has it become a model for future anti-warming efforts?
The End of the American Exception
Economically speaking, America could soon be more European than Europe.
Oil Shocks
Clive Crook warns that it may soon be time to panic about the price of oil.
Housebound
Why homeownership may be bad for America.
Beyond Belief
Some economists are beginning to doubt the benefits of free trade. What’s wrong with them?
Cashing Out
Is private equity just another bubble, or a sign of sickness in America’s public stock markets?
Beyond Trade Adjustment Assistance
Workers who lose their jobs because of trade are no more deserving than workers whose jobs disappear for other reasons.
How Rove Charmed a Clinton Crowd
The real star of the show at last week's Aspen Ideas Festival wasn't Bill Clinton. It was Karl Rove.
Fact and Fiction in Health Care Reform
The crux of health care reform is to give consumers real choices. This can happen only if employers are largely taken out of the equation.
Rags to Rags, Riches to Riches
Maybe it’s time to stop calling America the “land of opportunity.”.
A Small Scandal and a Big Question
Paul Wolfowitz has only made things worse at the World Bank. He has irretrievably lost control.
The Baffling Politics of Immigration
Disagreement over immigration cuts through every ideological alignment, setting brother against brother, and activist against activist.
Still Baffled by Immigration
The immigration deal will not work, and it's hard to believe that the Senate negotiators honestly think otherwise.
When the Buck Stops
The age of the dollar has been great for America—but it may end soon.
The Skeleton Coast
A safari by air over Namibia’s haunting sands [Web only: "Above Namibia ." A narrated photo essay.]
Global Warming: Winners and Losers
Scientific evidence does not affirm Al Gore's most alarming hypotheticals about global warming or the costly changes in policy he recommends.
Mistaking a Miracle for a Crisis
We are witnessing a transformation of the world economy. The implications of the upheaval are not widely appreciated or understood.
The Phantom Menace
What war on the middle class?
A Political Comedy of Errors
What does an awful film starring Robin Williams have to do with America's economic prospects? More than you might think.
Wall Street's Housing-Market Makeover
Stock market declines have drawn attention to the housing market and especially to the condition of subprime mortgage lenders.
The Ten-Cent Solution
Cheap private schools are educating poor children across the developing world—but without much encouragement from the international aid establishment.
Don't Think I'm Defending Bush, But ...
Once Bush is gone, not every idea that Bush has defended will be regarded as wrong merely for that reason.
The Message in the Budget
The alternative minimum tax is a nuisance, but the Bush administration is relying on it to balance the budget.
No Easy Exit From Iraq
"Bad as the situation in Iraq may be, a precipitate retreat would make things worse"
A Glimmer of Purpose in the Pantomime
Democrats ought to pass President Bush's health care proposal without delay, and demand that he sign it into law.
The Rancor Dividend
The new Democratic Congress just might help the White House mend the country’s broken fiscal policy.
On Milton Friedman's Unfinished Work
Despite Milton Friedman's best efforts, economic liberty is widely regarded as very much a second-class kind of freedom.
Ordinary People
A remarkable celebration of unremarkable lives deflates pat social theories of both the right and the left.
A Matter of Degrees
Why college is not an economic cure-all.
A Wrong Turn in the War on Terror
The compromise struck between Congress and the White House on interrogating suspected terrorists is a serious setback in the war on terror.
Prizing Independent Thinking
Edmund S. Phelps, the latest Nobel laureate in economics, has never commanded the attention outside the economics profession that his brillance warrants.
The Neglect of Libertarians
People who are conservative on economics and liberal on social issues have a hard time identifying with either major political party.
The Fruitful Lie
Trade agreements have always been greased by deception about who benefits. Now they’re failing because leaders have come to believe their own lies.
Is a Recession Around the Corner?
The chances of a recession appear to be rising, namely because housing prices are dripping in many markets, and household new worth along with them.
Is It War, or Business as Usual?
Democrats will be making a great mistake if they seem to downplay the seriousness of the security issue by deploring "alarminst" talk of war.
The Height of Inequality
America’s productivity gains have gone to giant salaries for just a few.
Two Wrongs Don't Make a Right
Twinning a radical cut in the estate tax with an increase in the minimum wage isn't just a cynical political ploy. It's bad policy--on both counts.
The Lure of Education
We know how to improve education, and, politics aside, it is not even that difficult: It's clear that competition among schools raises standards.
A Clear-Cut Case of Incompetence
What a price the world, especially the poorest part of the world, will pay for the collapse of global trade talks.
A Confederacy Of Eunuchs
What a lousy time for the leaders of the world’s economic powerhouses to be gripped by political weakness.
The Politics of Global Warming
We know what has happened to the climate so far, and we know why. Working out what is going to happen to it from now on is much more difficult.
The Massachusetts Experiment
The Achilles' heel of the new Massachusetts health care plan could be its failure to address rising costs.
Shock Absorption
For America, energy security lies closer than you might think.
John Kenneth Galbraith, Revisited
For all his attributes, John Kenneth Galbraith was not what the American Left believes him to have been: a font of economic truth.
John Kenneth Galbraith, Revisited
For all his attributes, John Kenneth Galbraith was not what the American Left believes to have been: a front of economic truth.
The Benefits of Brutality
Why America's immigration outlook—current grumblings notwithstanding—remains so much healthier than Europe's.
Shameless Gougers
Year in, year out, the median pay of top executives rises much faster than wages and salaries overall. It's time for shareholders to demand an end to the gouging.
Poison Pill
Big, politically ugly changes to America's health-care system are unavoidable—consumer-driven health care may be the least-bad option.
A Third Industrial Revolution
A fascinating new article by former Fed Vice Chairman Alan Blinder argues that offshore outsourcing is potentially the timid beginning of a third Industrial Revolution.
Capitalism: The Movie
Why Americans don’t value markets enough—and why that matters.
Greenspan Era Not Quite Over
The Alan Greenspan era is not over yet. His bubbles may yet come home to burst.
The Brits May Be Onto Something
The success of Britain's The Economist may hold some lessons for American publications.
A Seasonal Shot of Necessary Gloom
The risks to the U.S. economy are a lot bigger than most people, and most governments, seem to believe.
Ford's Rough Ride
In a couple of ways, government policies helped Ford's managers and unions make the mistakes they did.
Executive Privilege
The CEOs of too many public companies enjoy the power and rewards of ownership without the risks.
A Chill In Montreal Despite The Hot Air
The dabate over global warming is marked by blithe complacency on one side and quasi-religious zealotry on the other. No wonder not much is happening.
Our Faith-Based Future
The White House remains unperturbed by the growing prospect of economic calamity.
How Good Is Bernanke? Here's Hoping We Never Find Out.
Would Ben Bernanke, President Bush's choice to succeed Alan Greenspan at the Federal Reserve, keep his cool in a crisis? We may be unfortunate enough to find out.
Disenchanted With Politics? Who in The World Is Not?
Strong leadership is definitely in short supply. When did the governments of the big Western democracies last look this feeble—and all at the same time?
Real-World Economics: Still a Battlefield
The biggest economic issues—the ones where the most is at stake, in terms of individual liberty and economic well-being—are as bitterly contested today as they ever were.
The Slippery Economics Of Health Care
Is it really true that health care costs put American industry at an international disadvantage, as General Motors and other companies say?
Does Oil Have a Future?
Even the industry has its doubts.
An America I Never Expected to See
The incompetence—the sustained, systemic, outrageous incompetence—that marked the government's response to Hurricane Katrina is genuinely hard to believe.
Katrina and the Economy: a Toxic Combination
Katrina is causing the budget deficit to explode while also inflicting a supply-side shock on the economy. This is an especially toxic combination.
Beijing Has Budged on the Yuan. It Doesn't Really Help.
Both China and the United States need to remember that good economic policy starts at home.
Britain, Its Muslims, and the War on Terror
For years, British politics has preferred to ignore the issues posed by the unassimilated Muslim minority.
The G-8: How to Make a Success Out of a Stunt
The G-8 summit in Scotland will qualify as more than a political stunt if the gathering spurs an increase in well-designed aid to Africa.
The New New Economy Will Be All About Energy
With a gentle push from the federal government, America's dependence on oil will shrink much faster than people think. And it would be good if it did.
After 'Non' and 'Nee,' Where Does Europe Go Now?
In rejecting the new European constitution, voters in France and the Netherlands have done themselves and their fellow citizens of the European Union a great favor.
How France Might Astound Europe—and Do It Some Good
It appears that French voters are going to reject the new European Union constitution. What will that mean for Europe?
Why Does Capitalism Get Such A Bum Rap?
The idea that capitalism is the enemy of social progress calls for an impressive resistance to some large and pretty obvious facts.
Shock and Awe Come to the World Bank
The Bush administration's critics at home and abroad are astounded, scandalized, and reeling from the decision to name Paul Wolfowitz the next head of the World Bank.
Blair Is Unpopular. He Will Win Anyway.
Blair, once so popular, once so trusted, is now regarded by voters as a hollow waffler.
A Strange Twist in the Politics of Northern Ireland
Recent developments in Northern Ireland offer some sobering lessons for those who would negotiate with terrorists.
America's Economy: More Fragile Than It Looks
Steps to curb the budget deficit would make the U.S. economy, and the world economy, much safer.
Iraq's Election, and What Comes Next
The U.S. can still redeem its misadventure in Iraq, despite all the administration's mistakes.
Are America and Europe Now Friends? Maybe Not for Long
What separates the U.S. and Europe is not just differences in style, but differences in substance—some that are intractable.
Rethinking the Case for Helping Poor Countries
The U.N. report puts moral pressure on whoever reads it to demand action of their governments.