Authors to debate morality of market economics

Author: Erik Runyon

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Co-authors of the new book “Is the Market Moral? A Dialogue on Religion, Economics and Justice” will debate the issues of morality, justice, productivity and freedom as applied to the economic market in a presentation at 7 p.m. Thursday (Oct. 7) in Room 126 of DeBartolo Hall at the University of Notre Dame.p. Sponsored by Notre Dames Department of Economics and Policy Studies , the event is free and open to the public.p. “Is the Market Moral?” is a series of opposing essays written by Rebecca M. Blank, dean of the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy and professor of economics at the University of Michigan, and William McGurn, speechwriter for the media conglomerate News Corp. and weekly columnist for the New York Post. Blank served as senior staff economist with the Council of Economic Advisers in the first Bush administration and was appointed to the council by President Clinton. McGurn, a 1980 Notre Dame graduate, previously served as chief editorial writer and editorial board member for the Wall Street Journal.p. As a Catholic, McGurn applies his economics expertise to the teachings of the Church and argues that markets are almost implicitly moral. Blank, on the other hand, contends that markets, by themselves, are not adequate to supporting a Christian life. The two economists will offer differing views on the issues of equality and efficiency, productivity and social justice, individual achievement and personal rights in the workplace, and the costs and benefits of corporate and entrepreneurial capitalism.p. “Is the Market Moral” is part of the Pew Forum Dialogues on Religion and Public Life series – short volumes that bring together the voices of scholars, journalists and policy leaders engaged simultaneously in the religious and policy realms.p.

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