[Lehman collapse, 15 September 2008 - headlines 16 Sep 2008]

What is the Economy, Anyway?

Our Goal: Reclaim Economics

for Ordinary People• The rich and powerful of our society invoke claims about “economics” (many of which are false) to justify their own positions, and discourage us from fighting for change.

Our Goal: Reclaim Economics

for Ordinary People• The rich and powerful of our society invoke claims about “economics” (many of which are false) to justify their own positions, and discourage us from fighting for change.

• And most economists also have a vested interest in the status quo.– Example: economists who work for banks.

Our Goal: Reclaim Economics

for Ordinary People• The rich and powerful of our society invoke claims about “economics” (many of which are false) to justify their own positions, and discourage us from fighting for change.

• And most economists also have a vested interest in the status quo.– Example: economists who work for banks.

• It’s important for unions & social movements to develop the capacity and the confidence to challenge traditional economic claims

Our Goal: Reclaim Economics

for Ordinary People• The rich and powerful of our society invoke claims about “economics” (many of which are false) to justify their own positions, and discourage us from fighting for change.

• And most economists also have a vested interest in the status quo.– Example: economists who work for banks.

• It’s important for unions & social movements to develop the capacity and the confidence to challenge traditional economic claims

• Economic literacy is thus an important priority.

Economics is a social subject.

It’s the interactions and relationships between people that make the economy go around.

Debates over economic issues are not technical debates where expertise alone settles the day. They are deeply political debates.

Economics is a social subject.

It’s the interactions and relationships between people that make the economy go around.

Debates over economic issues are not technical debates where expertise alone settles the day. They are deeply political debates.

A society in which ordinary people know more about economics, and recognize the often conflicting interests at stake in the economy, is a society in which more people will feel confident deciding for themselves what’s best – instead of trusting the experts. It will be a more democratic society.

Economics is a social subject.

It’s the interactions and relationships between people that make the economy go around.

Debates over economic issues are not technical debates where expertise alone settles the day. They are deeply political debates.

A society in which ordinary people know more about economics, and recognize the often conflicting interests at stake in the economy, is a society in which more people will feel confident deciding for themselves what’s best – instead of trusting the experts. It will be a more democratic society.

Quite apart from whether you think capitalism is good or bad, capitalism is something we must study. It’s the economy we live in, the economy we know.