Essays
The Economists Who Stole Christmas – Project Syndu
, 30/12/2017
How might opposing schools of economic thought – from neoclassical and Keynesian to Libertarian and Marxist, view Christmas presents? Levity aside, the answer reveals the pompousness and vacuity of each and every economic theory. ATHENS – To welcome the New Year with a cheeky take on the clash of economic ideologies, how might opposing camps’ representatives […]
Bitcoin, Blockchain and the Future of Europe – Interviewed by Tom Upchurch for WIRED
, 25/12/2017
In an exclusive interview with WIRED, Yanis Varoufakis discusses Bitcoin’s bubble, the fantasy of apolitical money and the opportunities for the blockchain to reform Europe. By TOM UPCHURCH Saturday 23 December 2017 When I first met Yanis Varoufakis in the summer of 2014, he was a highly respected but relatively obscure economist. Back then, the price […]
NYT: “What to Get Theresa May for Christmas?” Answer: Adults in the Room!
, 25/12/2017
LONDON — If Santa is listening, here’s a suggestion about what to deliver Prime Minister Theresa May of Britain and David Davis, her chief Brexit negotiator: a copy of Yanis Varoufakis’s “Adults in the Room.” Mr. Varoufakis is the former Greek finance minister and his book sets out in excruciating detail the story of the 2015 […]
The High Cost of Denying Class War – Project Syndicate op-ed, 8th December 2017
, 12/12/2017
ATHENS – The Anglosphere’s political atmosphere is thick with bourgeois outrage. In the United States, the so-called liberal establishment is convinced it was robbed by an insurgency of “deplorables” weaponized by Vladimir Putin’s hackers and Facebook’s sinister inner workings. In Britain, too, an incensed bourgeoisie are pinching themselves that support for leaving the European Union […]
One Schulz does not a federation make: Comment on Martin Schulz’s belated federalist speech
, 08/12/2017
Isn’t it remarkable how establishment European politicians speak common sense once they have lost power and are about to begin their long slide into oblivion? Martin Schulz just copied that pattern with his passionate federalist speech and his pronouncement that “the EU cannot afford another four years of German European policy à la Wolfgang Schäuble”. Pity that […]
A Life in the Day – Sunday Times, 26th November 2017
, 07/12/2017
On the occasion of the publication of ‘Talking To My Daughter about the Economy: A brief history of capitalism‘, the Sunday Times published this interview, in the context of their series ‘A Day in the Life of…’ Apologies for the lifestyle-like style and content… Interview by Gabriel Pogrund Best advice I was given A statistics professor […]
Carry On Brexit: Is the long haul just beginning? – The Spectator podcast (audio)
, 07/12/2017
Yanis Varoufakis on EU negotiations, Sam Leith on Brexit language and Harry Mount andSophia Money-Coutts on the Glamocracy. Click here
A Tale of Two Faltering Unions (UK and EU); and what DiEM25 proposes in response – Address at the Oxford Guild, Oxford University, 28/11/2017 (Audio + Full Transcript)
, 04/12/2017
Yanis Varoufakis, co-founder of DiEM25, former Minister of Finance for Greece and high profile economist, academic and writer, addressed The Oxford Guild on Tuesday 28th November in the Said Business School Amphitheatre. He discussed the state of the European Union, of the United Kingdom, the political landscape globally and the political/economic/social agenda of DiEM25 across the […]
Keynote on ‘Europe and its Neighbours’, Chatham House event at the Royal Society of the Arts, London – 20th November 2017 (audio), followed by conversation with Quentin Peele
, 02/12/2017
“Britain is a great democracy imperilled by the delusion that it is a great power. The EU is a great power imperilled by the delusion that it is a great democracy. To stabilise our common neighbourhood, in the East, the Middle-East and Africa, both Europe and the UK must overcome their delusions and work toward simulating […]
My ‘Talking to My Daughter About the Economy: A brief history of capitalism” reviewed by Ireland’s finance minister
, 25/11/2017
It is not often that one’s book is reviewed by a sitting finance minister. But these are strange times. On 4th November Ireland’s finance minister Paschal Donohoe took the trouble to review my ‘Talking to My Daughter About the Economy: A brief history of capitalism” for The Irish Times. To my utter surprise, he had some […]
Discussing ‘Adults in the Room’, Europe & Trump on SALON TALKS
, 25/11/2017
CLICK HERE (or on the photo above) FOR THE VIDEO
Europe, Greece, Trump & the need for American and European progressives to unite – in conversation with Nomi Konst on TYT
, 24/11/2017
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_EUb0XDVg_w
New York Times review of ‘Adults in the Rooom’, by Justin Fox
, 23/11/2017
“A gripping tale of an outspoken intellectual’s sudden immersion in high-stakes politics,… an attempt to divine why smart, seemingly decent politicians and bureaucrats would continue pushing a pointlessly cruel approach long after its pointlessness had become clear.” “Varoufakis wasn’t always trying to make waves. And he seems to have approached his chief task with great seriousness.” Why […]
Discussing ‘Adults in the Room’ on ‘This is Hell!’ – Radio/Audio
, 18/11/2017
The disintegration has already begun: Austerity politics at the end of Europe. Episode 978: Debtor’s Prism After 2008, all you ended up with is functionaries of the deep establishment, minding their own interests, propagating their own careers, looking after their mates in the financial sector, and practicing the fine art of the revolving door – with […]
On the neo-Nazi Resurgence in Europe and why “ISIS Loves Donald Trump” – in conversation with Amy Goodman
, 18/11/2017
AMY GOODMAN: You heard in this introduction the tax plan that has been put forward. And you’re here in this country, and this is your specialty. You’re an economist. You taught at what? University of Texas, Austin? YANIS VAROUFAKIS: That is right. AMY GOODMAN: And you’re at University of Athens now in Greece. You’re the finance minister, former finance minister in […]
DiEM25 tritt als Bewegung bei Wahlen an – der Freitag
, 14/11/2017
Europa zurückholen Mit Europa steht es nicht zum Besten. Die Bewegung DiEM25 will via Demokratisierung zu einem Europa der Menschen anregen. Statt zuzusehen, wie es “über die Klippen geht” Als die GriechInnen „Oxi“, nein, zu den europäischen „Reformen“ gesagt hatten und darob von den „Institutionen“ noch schlimmer gedemütigt worden waren, schrieb ich: Europa ist gestorben (dazu […]
UK needs ‘Norway-style’ deal post-Brexit, says Varoufakis – The Irish Times
, 12/11/2017
The UK should stay within the single market for five years after Brexit and Northern Ireland beyond that under “nominal” control from the UK, former Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis has said. Speaking on a visit to Ireland, Mr Varoufakis, who was Greece’s finance minister in 2015, said Britain should apply for a five-year transitional […]
How Trump rose to power (in 2’33”) – Business Insider video
, 09/11/2017
Yanis Varoufakis, former finance minister of Greece and author of “Adults in the Room: My Battle with the European and American Deep Establishment,” explains that the rise of Donald Trump and the alt-right is a symptom of the failure of the establishment and liberal capitalism. Following is a transcript of the video. Yanis Varoufakis: My name is Yanis […]
“BREXIT: What must be avoided and what must be done, now!” – Speech at the Royal Society, London, 7 NOV 2017
, 08/11/2017
No venue is better suited for a detoxifying discussion on Brexit than The Royal Society, whose motto (Nullius In Verba – On No One’s Word) ought to be the foundation of all rational debate. I was, thus, moved and deeply honoured by the EEF’s (*) invitation to deliver their annual lecture on Brexit in The Royal Society. […]
On Catalonia, the Muslim Ban and a Sustainable World Order
, 03/11/2017
We continue our conversation with economist and former Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis. His new book is entitled Adults in the Room: My Battle with Europe’s Deep Establishment.
On Nazi Resurgence in Europe & Why ISIS Loves Donald Trump – On Democracy Now tv
, 03/11/2017
We speak with former Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis about the rise of the far-right Golden Dawn party in his country and how their policies “have infiltrated the mainstream” in European politics, including anti-immigrant measures similar to those proposed by Trump. Varoufakis says Trump’s vow to crack down on immigration after the attack in New […]
On Global Capitalism & How Trump’s Tax Plan is Class War Against the Poor – On Democracy Now tv
, 03/11/2017
President Trump and House Republicans have unveiled their long-promised proposal to reform America’s tax code, with Trump calling it a “big, beautiful Christmas present” for the American people. Critics say the gift is a tax cut for the richest Americans. We discuss the proposal with economist and former Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis, who argues, […]
Puerto Ricans Deserve an Escape from “Permanent Debt Prison” – on Democracy Now tv
, 03/11/2017
As the White House finally agrees to release FEMAdisaster aid with more flexibility to try to help rebuild Puerto Rico’s devastated power grid and other infrastructure, we speak with economist Yanis Varoufakis, former Greek finance minister, about the history of the island’s debt crisis and what to do as it recovers from Hurricane Maria.