To honor the community in which he was born, Economist Paul Krugman decided to put on his latest speech at UAlbany. Being an Economics major, I could not pass up the opportunity to see one of the world’s most respected Economists in my own hometown. I took the ten-minute trip over to UAlbany’s campus and walked into their auditorium in which I was taken back by the overwhelming media presence. It’s evident that news stations don’t want to miss a word that comes out of this man’s mouth. And boy was it crowded. Movement was severely constricted in the 830-person Page Hall- even the Edgerton fits 770 people and Sacred Heart is twice as small. I overheard the people around me discussing how far they came to see him speak- a three-hour trip! It made my ten-minute drive seem like a walk in the park.
After Krugman was introduced by the head of the Economics department, he strutted up to the podium sporting the typical “math teacher” look. His professor- like style must have been adopted somewhere along the lines of his years teaching at Ivy League schools. Before diving into the material, he cracked jokes left and right. I thought Economics professors were supposed to be dry but Krugman actually had a pretty good sense of humor to warm the crowd up. His speech on the European debt crisis awed the crowd. I know he could’ve used that MIT language he had in his arsenal of words, but spoke to the audience in a manner they could understand. His phenomenal delivery is his greatest attribute as a public intellectual.
Since my friend’s dad works for UAlbany’s Economics department, I was offered the opportunity to go backstage to meet Krugman. I was nervous and hoping I wouldn’t ask any questions he would think of as “stupid.” But after listening to his speech, I understood his relaxed, humorous, and approachable personality, which lowered my stress levels.
I personally introduced myself to him and his firm handshake showed his confidence. I’m sure he had twenty others waiting to meet him, but he politely didn’t rush our conversation at all. His trademark scruffy beard looked even grayer up close. After telling him I loved his New York Times column and enjoyed him destroying Bill O’Reilly on Tim Russert, he responded with a modest appreciation. In my head I questioned if he really cared what a teenager thought of his work. He must’ve because he asked me which of his columns I enjoyed the most. Getting put on the spot was the last thing I wanted to do. I thought I did pretty well to answer his questions especially since I’d consider myself conservative, completely contradicting his liberal views. After all, the last thing I wanted to do was get into a fiscal debate with Paul Krugman. Avoiding a debate, I walked to the parking lot with my pride still intact. He was the type of person you have a conversation with and just feel like you need to go home and open up a book. I then went home and proceeded to read my Economics textbook.
I enjoyed reading your post. It's interesting that you look up to Krugman even though you don't agree with him. It's important to appreciate views other than our own. Also, how you made it seem like the economist would use understandable words with his audience reminds me of what Dr. Higgins said to our class. Lastly, your attention to his physical attributes colored the scene that you were trying to paint. I thought this was well thought out and realistic since it is more likely that you would meet Paul Krugman at a lecture than at a restaurant.
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