<p>if you explain minimum wage as being bad for business then you get tarred and feathered, if you explain high min wages as causing unemployment, like in france, leading to poor minorities and dissatisfied 2nd generation immigrants, many people are completely sold, likewise if you explain aid in africa as hurting it, using 3 decades of data, as xavier sala-i-martin (very well respected) does in his macro class of 350 every year, people come around. I think columbia has changed a little from your time in this respect. People are still liberal crazy, but adam smith in my CC class was quite well respected, a lot of the implications of his ideas went over people’s heads but he was well regarded. I think it’s the econ department growing, and 400-500 kids each year studying it and realizing that they need to take their heads out of the clouds. being socially conservative is fine, but advocating socially conservative policies is still frowned upon.</p>