Politics and Economics
Where is Global Capitalism Going? My discussion with Ammar Ali Jan on the occasion of the 1st Anniversary of the Progressive International
, 27/05/2021
Honouring the one-year anniversary of the Progressive International, Council members Yanis Varoufakis and Ammar Ali Jan engage in a wide-ranging debate about the direction of global capitalism in a turbulent age of crisis, pandemic, and political unrest. Ammar Ali Jan is a historian and member of Haqooq-e-Khalq Movement in Pakistan. Yanis Varoufakis is Member of […]
Austerity’s hidden purpose – Project Syndicate/Katmandu Post
, 20/05/2021
Back in the 1830s, Thomas Peel decided to migrate from England to the Swan River in Western Australia. A man of means, Peel took along, besides his family, ‘300 persons of the working class, men, women, and children,’ as well as ‘means of subsistence and production to the amount of £50,000.’ But soon after arrival, […]
8 Answers to 8 Questions on Economic Theory, Economic Policy, Humanity & Capitalism – interviewed for The Age of Economics
, 16/05/2021
In this extensive interview, for the good people at The Age of Economics, I try to answer eight large questions ranging from “Why does economics matter?” and “What are the differences between economics and natural science or engineering?” to “Is capitalism a natural system, given human nature, for serving humanity’s purposes?”. 1. Why does economics […]
From the peculiar failure of economic theory to capitalism’s transition to technofeudalism: A discussion with Ilan Pappé
, 16/05/2021
We met to discuss economic theory’s curious failures, how they relate to neoliberalist ideology, the manner in which the Crash of 2008 gave rise to the transition of capitalism to technofeudalism, and the prospects of international solidarity to give humanity a chance to escape both technofeudalism and the climate emergency. However, we spent the first […]
Debating the EU with Douglas Murray on UNHERD – video
, 16/05/2021
“The EU has had a difficult pandemic. A slow procurement of vaccines, followed by a botched rollout, and blame-shifting by its leaders has drawn together critics from all politics stripes. Two of unlikely bedfellows from very different political traditions, Douglas Murray and Yanis Varoufakis, joined Freddie Sayers for a discussion about the bloc at an […]
Football Takes Capitalism Out of Bounds – Project Syndicate
, 04/05/2021
Europe has discovered its moral Rubicon, the frontier beyond which commodification becomes intolerable. The line in the sand that Europeans refuse to cross, come what may, has just been drawn. We bowed to bankers who almost blew up capitalism, bailing them out at the expense of our weakest citizens. We turned a blind eye to […]
Listen now to the Communist Manifesto, including the new introduction of the latest Penguin edition
, 24/04/2021
Penguin’s recent edition of the Communist Manifesto is now available on audio here and here. (Meanwhile, here is an extract of my introduction to the Manifesto – as it appeared in The Guardian. For a manifesto to succeed, it must speak to our hearts like a poem while infecting the mind with images and ideas […]
‘The Austerity Doctrine in the Time of Coronavirus’: Crucial Q&A on post-pandemic austerity with Brian Eno & Yanis Varoufakis plus special guests Stephanie Kelton & Naomi Klein
, 16/04/2021
In the 3rd episode of Let’s Talk It Over regulars Brian Eno and Yanis Varoufakis welcomed very special guests Stephanie Kelton and Naomi Klein to discuss The Austerity Doctrine in the Time of Coronavirus. Here are some of the questions tackled in the program: Austerians for years told us that all hell would be unleashed on […]
A Covid-19 counterfactual for Europe – Project Syndicate
, 10/04/2021
Imagine that the coronavirus pandemic, rather than undermining confidence in the European Union, had strengthened it. Imagine that Covid-19 had persuaded EU leaders to overcome years of acrimony and fragmentation. Imagine that it had catalysed the emergence this year of a stronger, more integrated bloc to which the world looked for global leadership. Imagine. It […]
Everything Must Change! DiEM-TV’s lockdown interviews now available as a book
, 05/04/2021
As the pandemic placed capitalism in suspended animation, dividing us between the privileged who could afford to quarantine ourselves and those who risked life and limb keeping the world’s wheels turning, DiEM-TV went into action. Srecko Horvat and I began a series of livestreamed discussions with one aim in mind: to keep alive the hope […]
The Goldilocks Stimulus Myth – Project Syndicate, The Kathmandu Post
, 09/03/2021
Both supporters and critics of US President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus plan assume that there is a dollar amount that is just right. In fact, no such figure exists: every possible stimulus size is simultaneously too little and too big. ATHENS – US President Joe Biden, facing the great challenge of stimulating his country’s […]
Is the EU Recovery Fund a step toward integration or further fragmentation? Moderated by Kevin Featherstone, organised by the German & the Hellenic Societies at the LSE
, 23/02/2021
The Consequences of Capitalism – Guest Lecture at the U of Arizona, 16th February 2021
, 19/02/2021
Invited by Noam Chomsky and Marvin Waterstone, here is an audio of the lecture I delivered to University of Arizona students on ‘The Consequences of Capitalism”
Speaking of antisemitism… – A personal view as related to my DiEM25 comrades (video + text)
, 14/02/2021
On 4th February 2021, DiEM25’s coordinating collective held a discussion on how progressives can, at once, fight antisemitism and remain highly critical of Israel’s policies. You can watch a video of my speech and read an extended version of these thoughts below. Last week, while discussing competing identities, I argued that it is unacceptable to […]
Did we see yesterday something like ANOTHER NOW’s Crowdshorters in action ? You be the judge!
, 28/01/2021
In my ANOTHER NOW I imagined a new type of resistance movement that uses the tools of finance to bring down capitalism and create a democratic market socialist economy in its stead. I called them CROWDSHORTERS. Yesterday, I received many messages suggesting that the CROWDSHORTERS are emerging for real, with the Reddit group that supported […]
Identity, solidarity and DiEM25
, 25/01/2021
If I were a transgender person and a bunch of Lefties dared lecture me that the exploitation of factory workers by capitalists is more important than my daily struggle tο function as a transgender person, I would tell them to get lost. No one has the right to tell those who are hurt, terrified, exploited […]
What is at stake is the independence of Ecuador, not of its central bank. This is why the oligarchy is attacking Andrés Arauz- video
, 20/01/2021
It is with considerable amusement that I follow the international oligarchy’s anxiety to prevent Andrés Arauz from winning the presidential election. I say amusement because they have chosen to damage his standing by painting him as a threat to the independence of Ecuador’s central bank – of which Andres was the youngest governor. Let’s get […]
“The EU after Brexit” Keynote followed by a conversation with Norman Lamont – 27th January 2021
, 20/01/2021
In this keynote, organised by the Economics Research Council, I shall discuss, and re-assess, the deeper forces leading to Brexit. Moving beyond the myth of it as the manifestation of some British idiosyncrasy, I shall trace its causes in a fundamental incompatibility between British and Continental capitalism which the financial crisis of 2008 brought to […]
“What New Institutions Do We Need For An International Green New Deal To Be Feasible?” Geneva Lecture Series, video & a review by Marie-Christine Ghreichi
, 30/12/2020
Organised by Prof. Anis H. Bajrektarevic as part of the University of Geneva Lecture Series on ‘Contemporary World of Geo-economics’, I was honoured with an invitation to deliver a long lecture on the pressing need for new international financial institutions to address crushing global imbalances and inequalities. Watch the video and also read a review […]
“Global Trade & Capital Imbalances imperil Global Stability” – Redaction Politics reviews my Holberg 2020 debate with John Bolton
, 30/12/2020
Redaction Politics published a review of my Holberg 2o2o debate with John Bolton on Global Stability. Their review is reproduced below. To watch the debate click here. Yanis Varoufakis lamented economic equality and pushed for global co-operation while John Bolton urged diplomatic confrontation as the pair battled over the question of “global stability” last week. […]
In conversation on the postcapitalist vision in my ANOTHER NOW – JACOBIN interview & DISSENS podcast
, 17/12/2020
State socialism has failed because of its authoritarian excesses, but the idea of socialism still offers the only alternative for a viable future – says Yanis Varoufakis. In 2015, in the midst of the Greek sovereign debt crisis, he became finance minister under Alexis Tsipras until he resigned after the referendum. In the meantime, he has […]
Designing a postcapitalist future in the midst of the pandemic – The Saturday Paper
, 10/12/2020
Doubts that our world is morally indefensible become unforgiveable when even the bankers of the ultra-rich, along with the bailiffs working diligently on their behalf, are panicking about excessive inequality. UBS recently reported that, between April and July 2020, as the pandemic’s first wave was surging, the collective stash of the world’s billionaires grew by […]
A chat on ANOTHER NOW with The Guardian’s Zoe Williams – The Guardian Live
, 04/12/2020
‘Another Now is structurally, ideologically and linguistically an extraordinary work’ Zoe Williams
A free Central Bank account for all would be a good start for a revamped monetary system – WIRED
, 27/11/2020
Imagine that the Bank of England were to create a free bank account for everyone. Overnight, it would be far better placed to regulate the money supply in the public interest. Moreover, to stay in business, commercial banks would have to seriously raise their game. In times of trouble, such as the current pandemic, the […]