János Kornai, the Allie S. Freed Professor of Economics Emeritus at Harvard, was honored for “his life achievement and internationally acknowledged results in researching the theory and performance of economic systems” in Hungary on March 15 2010. Photo: File Jon Chase/Harvard Staff Photographer

Okategoriserade János Kornai. What has happened to Hungary in so short a time?

The Hungarian János Kornai is one of Europe’s most respected economists. His name is often mentioned in speculation about the […]

Published on balticworlds.com on January 11, 2011

The Hungarian János Kornai is one of Europe’s most respected economists. His name is often mentioned in speculation about the Nobel Prize in Economics. His work Economics of Shortage (1979) is considered a classic in the study of planned economies. During the time of Kadar’s regime, he belonged to his country’s internal opposition.

We should listen very carefully to what he now has to say about last year’s change of system in Hungary. The article we are linking to here appeared in the daily newspaper Népszabadság on January 6. It is critical of many of the Orban regime’s interventions in the economy, as well as of the regime’s way of thinking about the economy in general. He believes that the regime’s proposals, which are one-sidedly focused on tax cuts for an economic upper class, will have a deleterious effect on consumers, pension accounts, and domestic and foreign investors.

Read the article: http://nol.hu/gazdasag/janos_kornai__taking_stock

Anders Björnsson