Is Capitalism a Blunt Force Instrument?

A few months ago Democrats bragged that Americans were so supportive of President Biden's "unprecedented" Russia sanctions turning the ruble into rubble, that they couldn't wait to pay higher gas prices. But now that prices are higher with no end in sight, Americans are irate with high costs eating into their earnings, and Democrats and Republicans are pretending the sanctions they enacted have nothing to do with it. 

Meanwhile mainstream economists are warning of a possible recession and saying the only way to get inflation down is to raise interest rates and unemployment. And that’s exactly the Fed’s plan. 

To help us make sense of what's happening, how we got here, and what should be done to contain it, Rania Khalek is joined by Eugene Puryear, a journalist for Breakthrough News and host of The Punch Out.

You can listen to all episodes of Rania Khalek Dispatches anywhere you get podcasts.

0:00 Intro

2:24 What’s really behind inflation? 

11:24 Sanctions on Russia

20:22 Intentionally raising unemployment to save capitalism 

32:16 What is a recession? Is it a built-in feature of capitalism? 

39:21 Causing suffering around the world to hurt Russia

48:32 Political consequences for Democrats 

59:03 Europe cuts its own throat

1:04:09 It’s socialism or barbarism