Stiglitz: the Government and Housing Policy, and the Tablet of History

Every country has an industrial policy of some sort, ranging from active mercantilism to laissez-faire. Even no policy is a policy. But through its tax code, regulations, investments, and monetary activity each country shapes to a great degree the posture of its economy vis-à-vis the rest of the world.

For at least the last thirty years the industrial policy of the US has been to stimulate