Dimitri B. Papadimitriou

Dimitri B. Papadimitriou contends in the following viewpoint that the government should act as the "employer of last resort" by providing public service jobs for every person willing and able to work. Government job creation will lead to full employment by bringing into the labor market the millions of people who remain unemployed even during periods of economic expansion, in Papadimitriou's opinion. According to the author, full employment can be achieved without causing inflation and will counteract the negative effects of unemployment. Papadimitriou is president of the Jerome Levy Economics Institute of Bard College, a public policy research organization.

As you read, consider the following questions:
1. How did William Beveridge define "full employment," according to Papadimitriou"
2. What is the "natural rate of unemployment" and how does it contribute to a "forgotten army...