Heterodox Economics Newsletter

 http://l.web.umkc.edu/leefs/htn16.htm

From the Editor

Dear Colleague,

This issue of the Heterodox Economics Newsletter marks its first anniversary (as well as 32nd wedding anniversary). I have been quite surprised and pleased at its reception by heterodox economists around the world. I have been told many times by heterodox economists that the Newsletter is their link to the heterodox economics community. As the Newsletter begins its second year, I hope that it continues to contribute to the building of heterodox economics.

Aside from the numerous interesting conferences, job postings, heterodox newsletters, journals, etc. there are two items I would like to particularly draw to your attention. The first is that the Association for Social Economics seeks a new editor or editorial team for the Forum for Social Economics to begin in 2006. The Forum is a refereed economics journal published twice a year. The current editor is Patric Welch of Saint Louis University. The Association seeks an individual or individuals who have a vision for the journal, and seek to develop it as a heterodox social economic voice. Proposals and inquiries should be sent to John Davis ([log in to unmask]) and Patric Welch ([log in to unmask]) by January 1, 2006.

The second item is from Jane Clary, the Program Secretary for the Association for Social Economics (ASE). It concerns two very IMPORTANT issues regarding the ASSA meetings:

1) ASSA has changed the pre-registration fees so that AEA members pay one rate ($60) and non-AEA members pay a higher rate ($75). The on-site registration is the same for AEA members and non-members ($125).
2) ASSA is changing the way it calculates revenue shares for the 6 associations which were founders of ASSA and which share in the revenue.ASE is one of those six, along with AEA, AFA, AAEA, Am. Agricultural Economics Association, the Econometric Society, and Labor & Employment Relations Association.
Here is what John Siegfried had to say in his letter:
"The AEA Executive Committee approved the discount for AEA members at its April 22, 2005 meeting in order to provide a modest benefit to those individuals who underwrite the annual ASSA meetings through their dues." And "The new discount for AEA membership may cause registrants who are members of more than one of the six participating (in net revenue) associations to claim the AEA as their primary membership so as to be eligible for the discount (when they had previously checked anotherassociation). Because this would change revenue shares to the disadvantage of the associations other than AEA, the Executive Committee also voted to change the method of calculating shares. In 2006 and beyond, registrants will be asked to indicate all of the participating associations of which they are a member. Shares will be computed on the basis of each association's membership among registrants relative to thesum of all the registrants' memberships in the participating associations."

What he does not tell us is that everyone who marks "OTHER" or who marks NOTHING and LEAVES THIS BLANK is counted as AEA membership for the calculation of monetary shares. The most recent numbers I have, from the 2002 meetings, are:

ORG           % of Registered Participants          Net Proceeds

AEA                  .688                                            $78,770

AAEA                .020                                             $ 2,295

AFA                  .142                                            $16,245

ASE                  .018                                            $ 2,033
 
ES                    .080                                            $ 9,159

IRRA                 .053                                            $ 6,059


As you can see, nothing is allocated to "other" and to "blank" and ASSA tells me that it all goes to AEA.
The implications of this for heterodox economists are the following:

(1) if you tick "other" or not tick anything at all, you are giving your net contribution to the AEA AND THIS IS NOT SUPPORTING HETERODOX ECONOMICS.

(2) if you want to support heterodox economics then you should tick the box for ASE even if you are not a member. MORE STRONGLY, IF YOU ARE A MEMBER OF URPE, AFEE, IAFFE, CSE, AHE, EAEPE, ETC. OR ARE A FREE STANDING HETERODOX ECONOMIST, THEN YOU SHOULD TICK THE ASE BOX. SUPPORTING THE ASE IS SUPPORTING HETERODOX ECONOMICS.

There is one final item—which is my recent Conference on Radical Economics in the 20th Century: Radical Economics and the Labor Movement. Many of the papers presented at the conference as well as conference pictures etc. can be found at http://cas.umkc.edu/econ/iwwconf/. Additional conference papers will be added over the next couple of weeks.

Fred Lee