Where Else Mankiw Should Lecture (No, Not Sanders Theatre)

Are we allowed to cross-register for courses at Brown? It’s too bad that Ec 10 students were stuck taking a midterm on Wednesday, because that day their professor N. Gregory Mankiw was over in Providence delivering a lecture to students there (he managed to fit that in when he’s only scheduled to lecture in his intro economics course about six times this semester).

If he hasn’t decided to join the Brown faculty full-time (whatever “full-time” is), Flyby came up with a list of other places where Mankiw could guest lecture.

1. The Oval Office

Mankiw should feel quite at home here, having already served as an economic advisor to former President George W. Bush, as well as Mitt Romney’s 2012 presidential campaign. It sounds as though he now has some advice to offer President Obama: According to the Brown Daily Herald, he said Wednesday that he doubts that the U.S. “can substantially reduce health care costs in this economy without significantly reducing the quality of care.” Wait, never mind. Keep him away from the Oval Office.

2. China

At Brown, Mankiw also reportedly said that “we have to get China on board” to fight climate change. We recommend sending him there on a mission to convince the Chinese government to help us fight climate change. We’re unsure how his position against a lot of government intervention in markets will be received in China, but we imagine that he must be very persuasive since he somehow manages to get hundreds of eager freshmen to buy his textbook each fall.

3. A gas station

As you’ll remember if you’ve taken Ec 10, Mankiw is a big supporter of increasing gasoline taxes. To start implementing this on the ground right away, we’d like to see Mankiw deliver a lecture on this to gas station customers while he attempts to charge them the extra money.

4. Goldman Sachs

All joking aside, though, it’s clear that Mankiw’s true calling, perhaps the pinnacle of his career, would be to deliver a lecture at the Goldman Sachs headquarters. From his defense of the wealthiest one percent to his arguments against regulation, we’re sure he’d be received with a standing ovation. Plus, it’ll remind them all of their own days at Harvard and in Ec 10.