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Mankiw Enrolls in Expos 40 to Overcome Fear of Public Speaking

Well, something's gotta happen when there aren't any guest lecturers.

Cambridge, MA – Harvard professor and conservative economist N. Gregory Mankiw announced via his blog, Greg Mankiw’s Blog, that he will be enrolling in Expos 40: Public Speaking Practicum to overcome his fear of public speaking.

Throughout decades of serving as course head for Economics 10a and 10b, students frequently reported that Mankiw could not deliver an entire lecture without fleeing the stage in distress, forcing a guest lecturer to speak in his place.

Kavita Sharma ’19 told reporters that she hopes “Maybe after this, he’ll get over his fear and actually show up to lecture. That’d be a big improvement.”

In his blog post, Mankiw explained the economic incentives driving his decision to enroll. “The demand for my expertise has far exceeded the supply I can provide just through text,” said Mankiw in a written statement, after declining to comment in-person. “You can put a very high price on my textbook, but you can’t put a price on my beautiful voice!”

Mankiw, who served under former President George W. Bush as chairman of the President’s Council of Economic Advisers, was reportedly seen pacing around his office, dabbing at his face with a monogrammed handkerchief just hours before the first required recitation. “M-m-my passions is… are…. no include!…. m-maxmizing utility…” he was heard muttering nervously.

Maxwell C. Cumberbundt ‘20 claims to see little improvement in Mankiw’s performance. “Yeah he actually was on stage for like 2 minutes today, but it was kind of hard to figure out what he was saying. It sounded like he said we all needed to buy a brand new copy of the 188th edition of his textbook, but that can’t be right!”

At press time, Mankiw was heard rescheduling his golf match with politician Ted Cruz to avoid his second unexcused absence.

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