Sep 3, 2020
Welcome to episode 44 of Activist #MMT. Today I talk with Texas Christian University economics professor, author, and Cowboy Economist, John Harvey. In this first of a three-part episode, John talks about how he decided on economics as a profession, despite mainstream thought doing its best to discourage him. He then elaborates on the concept of institutionalism, which he recently discussed on MMT Podcast [parts one and two], and specifically how MMT integrates its ideas.
(Here's a post containing links to every John Harvey MMT-related podcast interview, the full audio for every Cowboy Economist video, and John's full reading of every chapter in his book, Contending Perspectives.)
This part one with John is the first inspired by Fred Lee's book, The History Of Heterodox Economics. As the book makes clear, heterodox economics, which includes MMTers, Institutionalist, Marxists, and all Post-Keynesians; is resisted by mainstream economists with every fiber of their being – and the nearly infinite power that backs them. John talks about how John Galbraith told him – importantly over drinks – that mainstream economics is "dead" and "hopeless." So instead of changing the minds of people whose paychecks depend on their minds not changing, the decision was made to communicate directly with candidates, policymakers, and importantly, laypeople via interviews, blogs, and social media.
In parts two and three, John and I discuss inflation as seen through the lenses of both mainstream and Post-Keynesian economics, and of course we touch on the MMT-designed job guarantee which directly addresses much of it.
Resources
- John's book Contending Perspectives in Economics: A Guide to Contemporary Schools of Thought, original edition. New version coming out August 2020.
- A Guide to Post-Keynesian Economics, by Alfred Eichner.
- My Naked Capitalism article on the sham that is the Paycheck Protection Program.
#LearnMMT
For an overview of Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) with many reliable sources to learn more, here is a good place to start:
- My large set of resources containing many expert sources, layperson tutorials, and people and places to follow.
- On Facebook, the pinned post on Modern Monetary for Real Progressives contains a wealth of information.
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