Mar 13, 2022
Welcome to episode 112 of Activist #MMT. Today's part two of my two-part conversation with Asad Zaman, on the 2001 edition of Karl Polanyi's 1944 book, The Great Transformation. This is also the final part in a larger four-part series on the book. Parts one and two are with Jackson Winter. Jackson and I are two smart layperson MMTers trying to come to terms with the depth of what we just read, and connecting it to our lives and MMT. Parts three and four are with Professor Zaman, who is a PhD economist with many lectures, papers, and posts on the topic (all of which you can find in the show notes to part one with Professor Zaman).
(A link to all four parts in the series can be found near the top of this post: A summary of Polanyi's Great Transformation (with many sources to learn more). A list of the audio chapters in this episode can be found at the bottom of this post.)
Part one also contains a summary of the book. You think you understand the foundation of our economy and society, but as described in The Great Transformation, there's another foundation beneath it.
If you like what you hear, then I hope you might consider becoming a monthly patron of Activist #MMT. Patrons have exclusive access to several full-length episodes, right now. A full list is here, each with a brief highlight. Patrons also get the opportunity to ask my academic guests questions (including my recent episode with Warren Mosler). They also support the development of my large and growing collection of learn MMT resources, and the course with Professor Zaman. To become a patron, you can start by going to patreon.com/activistmmt. Every little bit helps a little bit, and it all adds up to a lot. Thanks.
And now, let's get right back to my conversation with Asad Zaman. Enjoy.
Audio chapters
- 4:11 - Mercantilism
- 8:10 - Fascism is not something in and of itself, rather it's something to fill in the vacuum left by the wreckage of the self-regulating market
- 10:58 - The ideology and religion of greed
- 12:22 - Jane Austen- The poorest AMONG THE ARISTOCRACY (the movie Ever After)
- 15:43 - The importance of history to the study of economics.
- 22:28 - Those who benefit most from of capitalism want us to focus on the imaginary, not history.
- 24:08 - Entanglement- The methodology of Polanyi (history shapes our ideas which shapes history)
- 29:17 - "Government is bad", but the self-regulating market requires even more government to suppress the protestations of those suffering at the hand of the self-regulating market
- 34:47 - Average people serve as gatekeepers for the exploiters (protecting privilege)
- 39:21 - What do I tell my kids?
- 48:43 - Goodbyes
- 52:38 - Duplicate of introduction, but with no background music