More from Rodrik

Here is an article written by Dani Rodrik for Business Day. It is written very much along the lines of his book's theme, and emphasizes the need for adaptability in development policies. At one point he says, "The best-designed policies are always contingent on local conditions." This emphasis on adaptability is obviously not something that the neoclassical model has to offer because of its simplicity. He further states,

As international bureaucracies with a penchant for “best practices” and common standards, these institutions are poorly suited to the task of seeking innovative, unique pathways suited to each country’s particular circumstances.

Anyways, the real reason I found this article post-worthy was one little under-the-radar comment that Rodrik makes at the end: "economics has become richer, too...political economy has become mainstream." It is interesting, because events like the split of the ND department and such tell us that we have mainstream over here, with its neoclassical theory (whatever that means), and heterodox over here, with its political economy. Is this line of thought just a construction? Or are mainstream and heterodox economics utterly unreconcilable? Based on this article, and those discussions of a books, it seems Rodrik would likely say the former is true. It seems like this is a good point of discussion, though, as we tread the murky waters of economics.