Steve Keen | Monetary Misperceptions, Climate Economics, and the Limits to Growth

In Episode 112 of Hidden Forces, Demetri Kofinas speaks with Steve Keen one of the few economists to correctly anticipate the Global Financial Crisis of 2008, as well as the subsequent deflationary forces that would frustrate and confound policymakers in the years afterward. The two discuss Keen’s latest work modeling the impact of climate on economic output, as well as debunking some of the most common misperceptions about money and credit held by Keynesian and Austrian theorists alike.

Demetri and Steve have known each other going back almost ten years. Dr. Keen was a frequent guest on Demetri’s old television program Capital Account, where he would come on to share his views on markets and the economy. For years, Steve had been warning policymakers and the media about the dangers of a build-up in private sector debt through mortgage refinancing and consumer credit. In the years after the Great Financial Crisis of 2008, Steve Keen was one of the prominent voices alongside folks like Richard Koo, Mark Zandi, and others, who were ringing the alarm bell, warning about the risk of a deflationary spiral. Many of the more prominent, Austrian-trained economists like Thomas Woods, Peter Schiff, and others, were pounding the table about the risk of hyperinflation. In retrospect, it was those economists warning about deflation like Steve Keen, who had it right. In today’s conversation, we explore the reasons why and examine if those conditions still hold to this present day.

You can gain access to this week’s overtime segment, as well as to the transcript of Demetri’s conversation with Steve Keen through the Hidden Forces Patreon Page. All subscribers also gain access to our overtime feed, which can be easily be added to your favorite podcast application.

Producer & Host: Demetri Kofinas

Editor & Engineer: Stylianos Nicolaou

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