Essays
Europe: Technocrats versus Democrats – in The Globalist
, 06/11/2013
The following piece was published in The Globalist on 5th November 2013, extracted and edited by Stephan Richter (thanks Stephan) from my Sydney talk The Dirty War for Europe’s Integrity and Soul. Click here for The Globalist’s page or…
On ABC Radio National's 'Big Ideas' program: 'The Dirty War for Europe's Integrity & Soul'
, 30/10/2013
ABC Radio National’s ‘Big Ideas’ program has now broadcast my talk entitled The Dirty War for Europe’s Integrity & Soul (original broadcast: 30th October, 20.05 Sydney time). [Click here for details of the lecture.] For the complete transcript click here – please note that the ABC (to fit in both the talk and the discussion the […]
Jobs, Investment, and Rebuilding America: Economic and National Security Issues – Workshop in Washington DC, 12th November
, 30/10/2013
Economists for Peace and Security is organising a workshop on Jobs, Investment, and Rebuilding America: Economic and National Security Issues. It will take place at the Hyatt Regency, Washington DC, Capitol Hill. The keynote speech will be delivered by Jason Furman, Chair of the US Council of Economic Advisers. My involvement will concern the economic and financial […]
Can the Eurozone Be Saved?
, 27/10/2013
European Political Leaders and Policy Experts to Meet for Two Days in Austin to Discuss The LBJ School of Public Affairs of the University of Texas at Austin will host a two-day conference on the fate of the Eurozone on Nov. 4 and 5. “Can the Eurozone Be Saved?” will convene European political leaders and […]
The Dirty War for Europe's Integrity and Soul
, 25/10/2013
Inaugural ‘Europe Public Lecture’, UWS, State Library of New South Wales, Sydney On 23rd October 2013, I was honoured by the Department of History of the University of Western Sydney with an invitation to deliver their inaugural Europe Public Lecture. The event took place in the State Library of New South Wales, in Sydney. The […]
The US Debt Ceiling Strife from a European perspective
, 17/10/2013
Cooled down in the proverbial 11th hour, at least until it is brought back on the boil next January, the US debt ceiling clash puzzles Europeans and gives them an opportunity to re-asses their own leaders’ shenanigans.
Interviewed by Geraldine Dooge (ABC Radio National) on Greece's Wartime 'Loan' to Germany. Plus a simple proposal for killing two birds with one stone
, 15/10/2013
On Saturday 12th October, I was interviewed by Geraldine Dooge for the ABC Radio National’s program ‘Saturday Extra’ on the theme of Greek claims on Germany for wartime reparations and on a strange ‘loan’ that was extracted from the Greek government by the Nazi authorities. You can hear the interview here: Read on for […]
Professor Fama's 'Nobel' Prize toxic theory explained
, 15/10/2013
Readers have requested a summary of the Efficient Market Hypothesis, which is in the news again as a result of the ‘Nobel’ Prize award to Professor Eugene Fama – see this instant reaction on the matter). In what follows the reader can peruse very brief presentations of the triad of toxic theories that undermined macroeconomic […]
Economics 'Nobel' 2013: An instinctive reaction
, 14/10/2013
The moment I heard that Fama and Shiller (together with Hansen) were awarded the latest pseudo-Nobel in Economics, my initial thought was: What next? A Darwin Prize to some Arch Creationist? The Award for Top Seamanship to the Titanic’s captain? But then I quickly changed my mind. Awarding this ‘Nobel’ to both Fama and Shiller was […]
The flow of trade, the flow of capital and the Eurozone: Guest post by Klaus Kastner
, 12/10/2013
A few weeks ago, I began doing something which I hadn’t done since my College days – I did some reading of and about John Maynard Keynes. Among others, I am just finishing the book “The Battle of Bretton Woods” by Benn Steil. And I am amazed! Two principal issues dominated the negotiations lead by […]
Game Theory: An assessment of the theory that aspires to unify the social sciences
, 10/10/2013
Audio is now available here: . Listen in conjunction with the slides available here. The talk was delvered on Thursday 10th October 2013, 12:15 to 1:30p at the Lyndon B. Johnson Graduate School of Public Affairs (SRH 3.219/3.216), University of Texas at Austin, Austin
Johnny (Paulson) Got His Gun (and is aiming at some grim, Greek pickings)
, 07/10/2013
“Did anybody ever come back from the dead?”… “Put the guns into our hands and we will use them. Give us the slogans and we will turn them into reality.” Dalton Trumbo, Johnny Got His Gun “We think Piraeus and Alpha, two banks we have a position in, are now very well capitalised and poised to recover… They have […]
What Merkel’s Third Term Means for Europe
, 28/09/2013
(This article was commissioned by The New Left Project – click here for the NLP’s site) A few days before the German federal election, the American commentator Bob Kuttner called upon German Chancellor Angela Merkel to use the election victory that was clearly in the making to change tack regarding the European Periphery. Focusing on […]
No signal: an intimate, personal history of ERT
, 25/09/2013
Regular readers will recall my pieces on the closure of the Greek public broadcaster. A longer and more comprehensive version, in which I took the time and the space to unfold my memories of ERT’s presence in our collective Greek experience, became our third contribution to Witte de With’s Review. For the WdW Review site, click […]
Alexis Tsipras at the Kreisky Forum, Vienna (the complete speech/address to Austrian social democrats)
, 24/09/2013
Last week, Alexis Tsipras (SYRIZA’s chair) gave a talk at the Kreisky Forum, in Vienna. In it he addressed Austrian social democrats, in Bruno Kreisky’s old residence. I post Tsipras’ speech here for two reasons: First, because it sends an interesting message to central European social democrats (Austrian and German in particular). Secondly, because this […]
Hollande and Merkel: Where Left is Right – guest post by Stuart Holland
, 22/09/2013
Rather than the claim of German finance minister Wolfgang Schäuble that the rest of Europe needs austerity to be able to compete (The Guardian, July 19th), François Hollande was right to say in an interview with Le Monde (September 3rd) that Europe should stop apologising for the Eurozone crisis and its failure to recover growth and […]
Nazi Murders – and what to do about them (radio interview plus a short article)
, 20/09/2013
When anti-racist rapper Pavlos Physsas was stabbed to death by Nazi thugs in the streets of working class Keratsini, near Athens, Greek society was forced to acknowledge that the serpent’s egg had not only hatched but that it had produced a venomous snake intent on taking a terrible toll. No longer content to bash migrants […]
The Modest Proposal as a Trojan Horse for the dreaded transfer union: Guest post by Hubert Marcks
, 17/09/2013
To all those who can’t help but feeling that an external surplus recycling mechanism as described in the modest proposal would just be an appeasing technical term for the dreaded transfer-union and that it would condemn the deficit countries into eternal servitude, I would like to point to an example within the mother of all […]
Why asymmetrical monetary unions are bound to fail (unless they feature an effective, extra-market surplus recycling mechanism)
, 15/09/2013
Asymmetrical monetary unions, wherever and whenever tried in combination with free trade and deregulated capital movements, ended up in tears and retribution. The Gold Standard, the various pegs between domestic currencies and the US dollar (S.E. Asia, Argentina, Mexico etc.), the ERM (European Exchange Rate Mechanism), the Eurozone that followed the latter’s collapse etc. they […]
Greece an "island of stability"? On CBC radio
, 14/09/2013
I live in hope that, one of these days, I shall be in a position to say something positive and cheerful upon being asked by a journalist after my views on the latest ‘Greek Success & Recovery’ story as put forward by Greece’s Prime Minister. Unhappily, I am not able to do so presently.
Interviewed by ARENA PUBLICA: Estados Unidos ha destruido la economía social
, 06/09/2013
(For the ARENA PUBLICA’s website click here)
Interviewed by Carmen Aristegui, CNN Mexico, on Mexico's financial and energy sector reforms
, 05/09/2013
Click on the photo or here
Klaus Kastner replies (adds) to my Mexico City talk
, 05/09/2013
When in Mexico City last week, I argued in favour of financial sector reforms (see previous post) that impose minimum equity limits on the TBTF banks (or SIFIs) while treating very differently (almost motherly) small, local banks, helping establish a rich ecology of local capital recyclers. Klaus Kastner, who has contributed variously in this blog, […]