The New York Times has done an amazing thing: they have tasked their columnists with writing confession. So, Paul Krugman's is, I Was Wrong About Inflation; David Brooks' is, I Was Wrong About Capitalism (I've read Dave's twice and am not sure which wrong he is confessing about); Thomas Friedman's is on Chinese Censorship, Bret Stephens' on Trump Voters, and Michelle Goldberg was wrong about Al Franken.
Of course some are more confessional than others but the exercise is sui generis in bringing humility to the sometimes hubristic, of prompting reflection, and in establishing some accountability. How often have you read a Nobel Economics laureate confess error in his field?
Maybe the greatest compliment I ever received was from a girlfriend who told another person "He always admits when he's wrong." It's compliment to these columnists and to the Times to do this.
