I’m convinced
that drummers would make marvellous economists. I don’t see any reason why they
shouldn’t. They are used to dealing with a lot of variables at the same time.
Anyone who can handle tom-toms, a floor tom, a bass drum, a snare drum and a
variety of cymbals should laugh in the face of hypothetical constructs like treatment
effects. A good drummer is as precise as a good economist, if not more. They
also appear to find joy in pursuing something that was considered an
accompaniment, and have gradually taken centre stage, becoming an indispensable
part of the paradigm that created them. Additionally, drummers have a certain
charisma that economists could really use.
Given my track
record in economics, what would happen if I tried my hand at drumming? Well it’s
a relatively easy forecast for a seasoned pseudo-economist like me to make. At
first, I would appear almost prodigious, “a natural” at what most people find
difficult. Then suddenly it would dawn upon everyone that I lack some skill
that is essential for drumming, say timing. Then I’ll reject the principles of
drumming and call them counterintuitive. And finally I’ll wind up as a
technically flawed “intuitive” pseudo-drummer. I think I’d be all right with
that. Just as the most appealing part of an economist to me is eloquence, the
thing I value most in a drummer is panache. I read my fairytales carefully and
I know appearances wouldn’t appear if they didn’t matter.
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