It would have been more honest for Fogle to say they wanted him to speak because of his role in Ferris Bueller because he’s a better actor than an economist and he’s not in any meaningful sense an actor.

Can’t people who have been wrong in a single subject for decades (say, Stein and the economy) stop being accorded respect for their “expertise” in said subject? Is there any way possible for them to be discredited in the eyes of people who pretend to be academics?

Here’s one example.

And here’s a nugget from an Oct. 21st 2008 column (h/t “nakedcapitalism.com”):

The economy is basically in fine shape. Not perfect, but darned good. Almost all mortgages are not in default. Almost all workers in the labor force who care to work are not unemployed. The largest percentage ever of American household units, what were called “families” in the old days, own their own homes.

And he’s a liar too.

You know, a committed academic like Fogle might try and figure this out.