Nobel Laureate: "Ramseyer's Paper Reminiscent of Nazi Massacre Denial" (Summary)

Game Theory Authorities Milgrom and Ross Criticize Ramseyer

(Source: NYT)

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] Two American economists who won the Nobel Prize in Economics criticized a paper by Harvard professor Mark Ramseyer, who claimed that Japanese military comfort women were prostitutes, saying it reminded them of Holocaust denial by Nazi Germany.

On the 28th (local time), Paul Milgrom, a professor at Stanford Graduate School of Business who won the Nobel Prize in Economics for game theory, and Alvin Roth, a professor at Harvard Business School, issued a joint statement saying, "Professor Ramseyer's historical interpretation of the Japanese military comfort women cannot be overturned by a simple game theory model."

The two professors also revealed that they had discussed Ramseyer's paper and said, "It reminded us of Holocaust denial by Nazi Germany. It was extremely painful."

Professor Milgrom is recognized as an authority in various fields of economics including auctions, incentive theory, industrial economics, economic history, and game theory, and last year he jointly won the Nobel Prize in Economics for auction theory, which studies the characteristics of auction markets and human behavior.

Professor Roth also jointly won the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2012 for his research in market design along with game theory.

As Nobel laureates in economics continue to criticize Professor Ramseyer, the logical flaws of the paper titled "Sex Contracts in the Pacific War," published in the International Review of Law and Economics (IRLE), are expected to become more prominent.

Professor Ramseyer, who majored in law, used economic game theory in this paper to rationalize the contracts of Japanese military comfort women. He argued that considering the risks of prostitution on the battlefield and the potential damage to honor, women demanded large advance payments, and thus the contracts were rationally concluded.

Elsevier, the Dutch publisher of IRLE, is reportedly planning to publish a printed version of Professor Ramseyer's paper soon.