The Return of Depression Economics and the Crisis of 2008
- ISBN13: 9780393337808
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
Product Description
The New York Times bestseller: the Nobel Prize–winning economist shows how today’s crisis parallels the Great Depression—and explains how to avoid catastrophe. With a new foreword for this paperback edition. In this major bestseller, Paul Krugman warns that, like diseases that have become resistant to antibiotics, the economic maladies that caused the Great Depression have made a comeback. He lays bare the 2008 financial crisis—the greatest since the 1930s—tracing it to the failure of regulation to keep pace with an out-of-control financial system. He also tells us how to contain the crisis and turn around a world economy sliding into a deep recession. Brilliantly crafted in Krugman’s trademark style—lucid, lively, and supremely informed—this new edition of The Return of Depression Economics has become an instant classic. A hard-hitting new foreword takes the paperback edition right up to the present moment. .
For more information: The Return of Depression Economics and the Crisis of 2008
Tags: Crisis, Return, 2008, Economics, DepressionRelated posts:
- The Return of the Great Depression
- The Great Depression Ahead: How to Prosper in the Debt Crisis of 2010 - 2012
- Conquer the Crash: You Can Survive and Prosper in a Deflationary Depression
- How does ML B survived during the Great Depression era?
- The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Great Depression and the New Deal
Krugman is a lefty polemicist first and economist second, which is why he won the Nobel prize. He should be ashamed to try and recycle 10-year-old tripe and pass it off as relevant to the current situation, which it absolutely is not. He’s an academic, for chrissake, what does he know about the real world and how it functions?
Rating: 1 / 5
The Return of Depression Economics and the Crisis of 2008
Amazing how this author has created a mini-industry (with himself as the primary product) screaming and shouting about the depredations of the capitalist system that has so richly rewarded him. With books like this, his column in the soon-to-be-defunct Amazing how this author has created a mini-industry (with himself as the primary product) screaming and shouting about the depredations of the capitalist system that has so richly rewarded him. With books like this, his column in the soon-to-be-defunct New York Times, this charlatan is using the recession as a kind of Trojan horse to advance his crackpot semi-socialist economic, big-government, post-Keynesian, hyper-spending ideas. If it weren’t so dangerous, this nonsense would be quite laughable! New York Times, this charlatan is using the recession as a kind of Trojan horse to advance his crackpot semi-socialist economic, big-government,post-Keynesian, hyper-spending ideas. If it weren’t so dangerous, this nonsense would be quite laughable!
Rating: 5 / 5
The Return of Depression Economics and the Crisis of 2008
I just finished reading Tom Woods’ Meltdown book about why the Austrian School thinks the economy tanked. In that book, Woods mentions Krugman in a rather unflattering way. Because of that, I decided to read Krugman’s Depression book, just to get another point of view.
In the beginning of the Krugman talks about a baby sitting co-op, which is pretty much the same story he has used here http://www.slate.com/id/1937/, and he says the fix for the recession this co-op has was to simply print more money. He further expands the point to say all recessions can be fixed by printing money.
The problem with the story is that the co-op was a one good, fixed price system that doesn’t come close to describing a real economy. Further more, the problem experienced in the co-op could have been resolved simply by allowing people to charge as much as they wanted or by offering other services in exchange for babysitting or even by buying babysitting on credit, i.e. promising to babysit two times in the future in exchange for someone babysitting tonight.
The other problem with this story is that the effects of inflation are not addressed (increasing the supply of money is inflation). Let’s say we decide to print money to fight our way out of our current economy. Let’s say the FED decides to print every person in the world a billion dollars. After everyone has a billion dollars, Krugman would say no one would hoard money and that everything will be wonderful. But would it really be? How many people would stay home from work since they are now billionaires? How many people would quit their jobs altogether? If people are quitting their jobs, what is going to happen to the supply of goods? Certainly, the cost of all goods in existence would be much higher. After all, it will cost much more to employ people to produce and sell goods. No one is going to flip burgers in a fast food restaurant for $8.00 an hour when they are billionaires. No way. I am not sure what the new price would be but it would be much higher. The result of increasing the money supply in a real economy is higher prices and a reduction of supply. Goods and services simply have less value now that more money is in the economy.
I haven’t finished the book yet but based on his analogy and his stated idea for fixing a depression, I have to rate the book a one. I am going to finish the book and if I think he deserves a higher score, I’ll rate him again.
Rating: 1 / 5
The Return of Depression Economics and the Crisis of 2008
This very readable (and brief) tome elucidates the various financial and currency crises of the past twenty years… from Latin America in the 80’s and 90’s… to SE Asia in 1997… the ruble collapse in 1998… the Long Term Capital bailout the same year… the stagnant lost Japanese decade in the 90’s… to our current worldwide financial fiasco.
Short, readable, to-the-point, and wonderful analogies. Highly recommended. (And much better than Greenspan’s recent volume, which —)
Like Krugman, I always thought Greenspan was overrated. Volcker was my idol. He gave us tough love, some Castor oil as medicine, and broke the back of 70’s stagflation. Greenspan inherited a world where communism fell (lowering risk premiums) and IT technology rose (enhancing productivity and profits). He helped facilitate the two greatest asset bubbles of my lifetime to occur… in equities, and housing.
It’s going to be a tougher world for you boomers from now on. The home equity cash machine is broken. Manufacturing has `left the building’. VP’s of Operations are selling suits at Carson’s. There’s only so many openings left as Door Greeters at Walmart.
Unemployment will rise for at least the next two years.
Boomers will be buying Dockers instead of the Banana Republic. Toyotas instead of the latest Lexus.
Emerging economies will crater next year. States will go bankrupt. The S&P will hit the 600’s, maybe 500’s sometime in 2009 or 2010…
That gnawing, uneasy, quesy feeling in your stomach? When you look at your 401K statement?
Hey! It’s — only — money.
Don’t worry. Be happy.
Rating: 5 / 5
The Return of Depression Economics and the Crisis of 2008
I would think many people would be trying to figure out what to do in these turbulent times. This book is worth reading to help enhance understanding.
The title of the book sounds depressing but the gist of the message is the current times will not be as tough as the 1930s and that we will recover.
Rating: 4 / 5
The Return of Depression Economics and the Crisis of 2008