Paul Craig Roberts

Restrictive Versus Permissive Money: Two Is-Lm Views of Pure Fiscal Action

Analyzing pure fiscal actions in an IS-LM setting is a common exercise in current macromonetary textbook literature. As far as the role these analyses Abstract assign to the monetary sector is concerned, this literature offers two contradictory portrayals. One describes thefiscal actions initial impact on aggregate demand as independent of monetary adjustments. The monetary sector in this view is relegated to a secondary restrictive role. The other view depicts the initial impact of the fiscal action as being grounded in a simultaneous and supportive monetary disequilibrium. This disequilibrium, moreover, is seen as persisting throughout the multiplier process. Little attention has been directed to this contradiction, even though fundamentally different perspectives on the role played by monetary adjustments are involved. This paper contains an outline of the nature of the contradiction and a discussion ofthefactors important in its resolution.

Intravenous administration of Basergen during the third stage of labor

The preparation used by us was Basergen,’ a water-soluble tartrate of ergonovine, C,,H,,O,N,. As quickly as possible after delivery of the baby 1 cc. (0.2 mg.) of the drug was given intravenously, usually by the anesthetist. Although the lapse of time between the completion of the second stage and the administration of the basergen varies, the interval rarely exceeded one to two minutes. Within one minute after the injection, expression of the placenta was attempted. An occasional delay of one or two minutes occurred whenever there was no assistant available to tie the cord. While it was necessary in most instances to express the placenta by compressing the anterior and posterior surfaces of the uterus, spontaneous expulsion within two minutes after the administration of basergen was by no means uncommon. In a control series of 200 patients no attempt was made to expedite the separation of the placenta. In this group, the placenta, after spontaneous separation, was expressed by pressure on the fundus, and the patient was then given an injection of 1 cc. each of ergone and posterior pituitary extract. The time of placental expulsion as well as the loss of blood were recorded for comparison. Both groups comprised a consecutive number of patients regardless of the method of delivery, cesarean sections being excluded.

More on the Monetary Sector's Role in Pure Fiscal Actions

In a recent article in this journal, we pointed out that the IS-LM literature contains two contradictory descriptions of the monetary sector’s role in pure fiscal action (Roberts and Van Cott, 1978). One describes the fiscal action’s initial impact on aggregate demand as independent of monetary adjustments. The monetary sector in this view is relegated to a secondary, restrictive role. The other view depicts the initial impact of the fiscal action as being grounded in a simultaneous and supportive monetary disequilibrium. This disequilibrium is seen as persisting throughout the multiplier process. In his comment on