Bratfall

David Brat, AP photo via.

From excitable Tyler Durden, writing his own piece for a change, facts about "the anti-big business, anti-Wall Street, anti establishment Goliath-slayer" Dr. Brat:

He describes himself as a budget expert on his campaign website, saying he "presents a major problem for liberals who try to continue increased government spending by discrediting conservatives." 

Unless, you know, some ruthless wonk like, you know, Chuck Todd starts asking some of those unfair-type hardball questions nobody's ever thought about before like, "Should we raise the minimum wage?"

ARGUED RELIGION PLAYS ROLE IN ECONOMIC GROWTH RATES

Brat has in published work found fault with a 2001 paper by Ben Bernanke, who would later become chairman of the Federal Reserve, that said long-term growth was mostly determined by variables such as saving rates, population growth and levels of education. Brat said that Bernanke had overlooked the role of Protestantism, which he said created conditions conducive to strong economic performance.

I guess Bernanke hasn't had time to read The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism yet. For goodness' sake, the English version didn't come out until 1930. What's that you say, it doesn't work? The numbers don't pan out unless you remove the religious dimension? The work ethic thesis is wrong? The hell you say! Not what they taught us at Princeton—that is (h/t Prof B in LA, who has read Dr. Brat's dissertation),

Princeton Theological Seminary (PTS), which is in Princeton, New Jersey -- though it's not part of Princeton University. On the campaign trail, he said he stood up to "liberals" when he was "in Princeton."

Stood up to that Unitarian economics, huh? And those goddam demand-sider Methodists. Got any more, Tyler?

Dave Brat, suddenly among the most famous House nominees in the country, has preached an economic policy message rooted in capitalism and Christ, fearing in his writings that a weak society could produce the next Hitler, or that one party could try to monopolize morality.

Alert! Alert! Condition Godwin!

Read Nietzsche. Nietzsche’s diagnosis of the weak modern Christian democratic man was spot on. Jesus was a great man. Jesus said he was the Son of God. Jesus made things happen. Jesus had faith. Jesus actually made people better. Then came the Christians. What happened? What went wrong? We appear to be a bit passive. Hitler came along, and he did not meet with unified resistance. I have the sinking feeling that it could all happen again, quite easily. The church should rise up higher than Nietzsche could see and prove him wrong.

Sorry, Dr. Brat, but I tried to warn you. You know what happens when you go there, with those Christians being "a bit passive".

I guess the first rule of Economics Club is that, as Driftglass would say, you're not in it.