Inflation & Unemployment: Fiscal actions (i.e., “daily governance”) & Banking Regulation Work. Monetary “Policy” Does Not

Any argument that there is a “fiscal policy versus monetary policy” debate that somehow suggests we primarily rely on the latter is misspecified. You cannot not be primarily “doing fiscal,” it is simply not possible. (Whether done well or not is a different issue; the very belief that somehow fiscal takes a backseat is the key reason it has been done poorly for decades).

A (very) oblique history of MMT, Part III: (Blogs, Mitchell etc.)

"What happened to get the ideas out was the development of blogs.So Bill developed a blog...This is how the ideas got out. It wasn't through academics. It wasn't through the conferences—those are almost a complete bust. It was the blogs.L. Randall Wray (11 min mark generally, 14 min mark for these qts) A (Very) Oblique … Continue reading A (very) oblique history of MMT, Part III: (Blogs, Mitchell etc.)

A (Very) Oblique History of MMT (Wray, Institutional Econ, & other ramblings): Part I

As MMT has “taken off” its founders and others have begun to preserve and reflect on its history (1). That history will be well covered as it will prove to be central to (genuine) macroeconomic history one day. Leaving that to others, I enjoy thinking about subtle influences, intellectual links and lineages, that go less … Continue reading A (Very) Oblique History of MMT (Wray, Institutional Econ, & other ramblings): Part I

AUSTERITY IN A TIME OF PLENTY: The “domestic default” boogeyman = More bad statistics from Reinhart & Rogoff

According to Reinhart and Rogoff the danger is both outright (de jure default) and de facto default from inflation and financial repression. However, like their discredited “growth” paper, the “default” argument is also based the on the improper use of statistics.