J. Bradford DeLong’s thirteen-year old son is working his way through Greg Mankiw’s Principles of Economics.

“You mean that back before civilization economics was much simpler?" asks the Ten-Year-Old.

“Yes,” says the Thirteen-Year-Old. “Back then, Principles of Economics books were really simple. They said: ‘(1) Find a rock. (2) Throw the rock to kill some small furry creature. (3) Eat the small furry creature.’ That was it. But then things became more complicated. People invented farming, and some people became peasant farmers who grew the crops.”

“And other people became workers who made pots,” says the Ten-Year-Old. “And other people became blacksmiths who made spears.”

“And,” says the Thirteen-Year-Old, “then the people who got the spears told the peasants and the workers to give them half their crop — or else!”

“But,” says the Ten-Year-Old, “the peasants and the workers made an alliance with the small furry animals. And then one night while the spear-chuckers were all asleep they raised the banner of revolution!”

“Now wait a minute,” I say. The economics I teach is not the Materialist Interpretation of History crossed with the Chronicles of Narnia.

Aw, Dad, you’re no fun any more.