Jeffrey Lin

isi-web.org/statement/st...
#bls #statistics

Opinion | The America We Knew Is Rapidly Slipping Away

Please read this piece.

“Though I am a congenital optimist, for the first time I believe that if the behavior that this administration has exhibited in just its first six months continues and is amplified for its full four years, the America you know will be gone.”

The opposite of Conservatism.

AEA Statement on Dismissal of BLS Comm.

"The independence of the federal statistical agencies is essential to the proper functioning of a modern economy. Accurate, timely, and impartial statistics are the foundation upon which households, businesses, and policymakers make critical decisions."

The National Association for Business Economics (NABE) strongly condemns the baseless removal of Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Commissioner Erika McEntarfer and the unfounded accusations leveled against the work of the agency. This unprecedented attack on the U.S. statistical system threatens the long-standing credibility of our economic data infrastructure.

NABE strongly condemns the baseless
removal of BLS Commissioner McEntarfer & the unfounded accusations leveled against the work of the agency. This unprecedented attack on the US statistical system threatens the long-standing credibility of our data

files.constantcontact.com/668faa28001/...

With government statistics, it's pretty simple. If you liked the February, March, and April numbers, then you have to accept all the next ones, too. They are produced in the exact same way, it's what the computer spits out, based on the inputs provided. You do not get to cherry pick your stats.

What to make of POTUS's attempt to fire the Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)?

Let's run down what knowledgable people are saying...

The Friends of #BLS protest the firing of BLS Commissioner Erika McEntarfer.

The rationale for firing her is without merit and undermines the credibility of federal economic statistics that are a cornerstone of intelligent economic decision-making by businesses, families, and policymakers.

“The National Association for Business Economics (NABE) strongly condemns the removal of Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Commissioner Erika McEntarfer and the unfounded accusations leveled against the work of the agency…

A totally apolitical group.

files.constantcontact.com/668faa28001/...

Erika McEntarfer is brilliant and among the best examples of a deeply committed and consistently objective public servant. She’s earned the respect and trust of everyone who’s had the honor to work with her, including me. #EconSky

Every time I teach American economic history I stress that accurate macroeconomic data is critical for our knowledge of the economy. I also tell them that we have a very high standard of data quality in our modern federal statistics. I may no longer be in a position to say this. Absolutely terrible!

The totally groundless firing of Dr. Erika McEntarfer, my successor as Commissioner of Labor Statistics at BLS, sets a dangerous precedent and undermines the statistical mission of the Bureau. For a full statement opposing this move, read:

Trump’s first BLS Commissioner, Bill Beach, calls today’s firing groundless and dangerous.
www.friendsofbls.org/updates/2025...

Everyone who helps the creation of meaningful accurate data for the good of the public: I admire your service and appreciate you
❤️🧡🤍🩷❤️

Dr. Erika McEntarfer has devoted her career to public service. She has conducted herself as BLS Commissioner with great integrity. There is no evidence whatsoever that BLS data are politically biased.

#econsky

For six months, I've said that threats to economic data have been more collateral damage than intentional harm.

No longer.

Firing the head of the BLS is five-alarm intentional harm to the integrity of US economic data and the entire statistical system.

Catch Dan’s presentation yesterday of our paper on the NBER stream (around 3:15): www.youtube.com/live/FdBUD7W...

Not all heroes wear capes!

Read the paper here: jlin.org/papers/GLMR-...

Economists can have a little benchmarking as a treat My first NBER Summer Institute talk was about how to choose the right NLP models in Economics research

Some additional thoughts on his blog: open.substack.com/pub/pleasebr...

YouTube video by NBER Innovation (PRINN), NBER Summer Institute

Watch Vitaly’s presentation of our paper at the NBER SI (timestamp 2:10): www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWUy...

Historical Housing Prices Project The Historical Housing Prices (HHP) Project at the Philadelphia Fed provides new data on the price of housing for sale and for rent over the 20th century using the real estate sections of historical n...

New release for the HHP project. We now have rent and sales price indexes for 30 cities along with rental yields, capital gains, and housing returns for the years 1890-2006. Online data viz tools and download here:

www.philadelphiafed.org/surveys-and-...

Great opportunity to join our group!

How Masa Fujita shaped the present of spatial economics and how he will inspire its future - The Japanese Economic Review We selectively review Masa Fujita’s work in spatial economics. We first show how he defined the research agenda during several decades and was at the origin of the key transitions of the field during ...

New survey of Masahisa Fujita’s foundational contributions to spatial economics by Duranton and Mori: link.springer.com/article/10.1...

💯 in terms of quantities, our paper suggests ~1/3 disamenities, 2/3 access

S4E7 - The (Express)Way to Segregation: Evidence from Chicago (Sara Bagagli) Densely Speaking · Episode

Finally got around to this fascinating episode of the superb @gregshill.com + @jeffrlin.bsky.social show & reading paper.

Both are... dense... for laymen. Basic: the history of highways bring run thru Black n'hoods is well documented—but highway construction also *created* Black-segregated n'hoods.

The Call for Papers for the 4th meeting of LACEA's Urban Economics Network is out!

FGV São Paulo, Dec 5-6, 2025
Keynotes: Gilles Duranton (Wharton) & Ingrid Gould Ellen (NYU)
Deadline for submission: Jul 15th

@urbaneconomics.bsky.social @fgvoficial.bsky.social

“When I ask Ahmed how he came to open Amazing Binz here, he said it was actually not his first choice. He wanted to open a cafe or a sweet shop, but says he couldn’t get the permits or the zoning.”

Lockdowns and Innovation: Evidence from the 1918 Flu Pandemic Abstract. Does social distancing harm innovation? We estimate the effect of nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPIs)—policies that restrict interactions in an attempt to slow the spread of disease—on lo...

Out in print -- "Lockdowns and Innovation: Evidence from the 1918 Flu Pandemic". My first experiment with a short paper!

w/ the wonderful @jeffrlin.bsky.social @ruben-gaetani.bsky.social Enrico Berkes, & Olivier Deschênes

direct.mit.edu/rest/article...

But why do workers and firms sort to these locations???

Everyone should do their @ipums.bsky.social user survey! Including questions about which historical data we want (an embarrassment of riches to choose from)

podcast out! 🎉 thanks so much @gregshill.com and @jeffrlin.bsky.social !