EconStories.tv - Audio

According to the National Bureau of Economic Research, the Great Recession ended almost two years ago, in the summer of 2009. Yet we’re all uneasy. Job growth has been disappointing. The recovery seems fragile. Where should we head from here? Is that question even meaningful? Can the government steer the economy or have past attempts helped create the mess we’re still in? In “Fight of the Century”, Keynes and Hayek weigh in on these central questions. Do we need more government spending or less? What’s the evidence that government spending promotes prosperity in troubled times? Can war or natural disasters paradoxically be good for an economy in a slump? Should more spending come from the top down or from the bottom up? What are the ultimate sources of prosperity? Keynes and Hayek never agreed on the answers to these questions and they still don’t. Let’s listen to the greats. See Keynes and Hayek throwing down in “Fight of the Century”!  And, if you’re interested in learning more about the ideas debated in the video, check out additional content and references that will help you get the story behind “Fight of the Century.”   “Fight of the Century” Lyrics Written by John Papola and Russ Roberts KEYNES Here we are… peace out! great recession thanks to me, as you see, we’re not in a depression Recovery, destiny if you follow my lesson Lord Keynes, here I come, line up for the procession HAYEK We brought out the shovels and we’re still in a ditch… And still digging. don’t you think that it’s time for a switch… From that hair of the dog. Friend, the party is over. The long run is here. It’s time to get sober! KEYNES Are you kidding? my cure works perfectly fine… have a look, the great recession ended back in ’09. I deserve credit. Things would have been worse All the estimates prove it—I’ll quote chapter and verse HAYEK Econometricians, they’re ever so pious Are they doing real science or confirming their bias? Their “Keynesian” models are tidy and neat But that top down approach is a fatal conceit REFRAIN Which way should we choose? more bottom up or more top down …the fight continues… Keynes and Hayek’s second round it’s time to weigh in… more from the top or from the ground …lets listen to the greats Keynes and Hayek throwing down KEYNES We could have done better, had we only spent more Too bad that only happens when there’s a World War You can carp all you want about stats and regression Do you deny World War II cut short the Depression? HAYEK Wow. One data point and you’re jumping for joy the Last time I checked, wars only destroy There was no multiplier, consumption just shrank As we used scarce resources for every new tank Pretty perverse to call that prosperity Rationed meat, Rationed butter… a life of austerity When that war spending ended your friends cried disaster yet the economy thrived and grew faster KEYNES You too only see what you want to see The spending on war clearly goosed GDP Unemployment was over, almost down to zero That’s why I’m the master, that’s why I’m the hero HAYEK Creating employment’s a straightforward craft When the nation’s at war, and there’s a draft If every worker was staffed in the army and fleet We’d have full employment and nothing to eat REFRAIN REPEATS HAYEK jobs are a means, not the ends in themselves people work to live better, to put food on the shelves real growth means production of what people demand That’s entrepreneurship not your central plan KEYNES My solution is simple and easy to handle.. its spending that matters, why’s that such a scandal? The money sloshes through the pipes and the sluices revitalizing the economy’s juices it’s just like an engine that’s stalled and gone dark To bring it to life, we need a quick spark Spending’s the life blood that gets the flow going Where it goes doesn’t matter, just get spending flowing HAYEK You see slack in [...]

Is our prosperity derived from a continual circular flow of spending? Is it impossible for a society to increase it’s total savings? Can deficit spending by a government step in to replace private activity in order to maintain full employment and restore lasting economic growth? What is a liquidity trap and what does it mean for the economy? What did Keynes really mean by “in the long run, we’re all dead”? In this EconStories mini-documentary, we explore the foundations of Keynesian economics with Keynes most famed biography, Lord Robert Skidelsky. In the next episode, we’ll dig deeper into some of the most controversial aspects of Keynesianism including the notion that ditch digging or world war could provide a pathway to economic recovery and prosperity.

Are Austrians a broken clock that’s right twice a day (when there’s a bubble that busts)? Why do entrepreneurs continue to be fooled by manipulation of interest rates by the central bank? In this EconStories mini-documentary, part III in our first series on the Mises/Hayek theory of boom and bust, Lawrence H. White addresses the expectations and the cluster of entrepreneurial errors that reveal themselves during a bust. Lawrence H. White is a professor of economics at George Mason University. Prior to position at George Mason, he was the F. A. Hayek Professor of Economic History in the Department of Economics, University of Missouri-St. Louis. He has been a visiting professor at the Queen’s School of Management and Economics, Queen’s University of Belfast, and a visiting scholar at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.

So the boom turns to bust. What now? In this EconStories mini-documentary, economist and Hayek scholar Lawrence H. White offers his view on a Hayekian response to the bust phase of the Boom and Bust cycle and responds to the charge that F. A. Hayek was a “liquidationist.” Lawrence H. White is a professor of economics at George Mason University. Prior to position at George Mason, he was the F. A. Hayek Professor of Economic History in the Department of Economics, University of Missouri-St. Louis. He has been a visiting professor at the Queen’s School of Management and Economics, Queen’s University of Belfast, and a visiting scholar at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.

In this EconStories mini-documentary, economist and Hayek scholar Lawrence H. White provides an overview of the Mises/Hayek “Austrian” theory of Boom and Bust. Part one focuses on the unsustainability of a boom driven by artificially low interest rates and credit expansion by the central bank (the Fed) beyond the supply of genuine savings. Lawrence H. White is a professor of economics at George Mason University. Prior to position at George Mason, he was the F. A. Hayek Professor of Economic History in the Department of Economics, University of Missouri-St. Louis. He has been a visiting professor at the Queen’s School of Management and Economics, Queen’s University of Belfast, and a visiting scholar at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.

In Fear the Boom and Bust, John Maynard Keynes and F. A. Hayek, two of the great economists of the 20th century, come back to life to attend an economics conference on the economic crisis. Before the conference begins, and at the insistence of Lord Keynes, they go out for a night on the town and sing about why there’s a “boom and bust” cycle in modern economies and good reason to fear it. SING ALONG We’ve been going back and forth for a century [Keynes] I want to steer markets, [Hayek] I want them set free There’s a boom and bust cycle and good reason to fear it [Hayek] Blame low interest rates. [Keynes] No… it’s the animal spirits[Keynes Sings:]John Maynard Keynes, wrote the book on modern macro The man you need when the economy’s off track, [whoa] Depression, recession now your question’s in session Have a seat and I’ll school you in one simple lessonBOOM, 1929 the big crash We didn’t bounce back—economy’s in the trash Persistent unemployment, the result of sticky wages Waiting for recovery? Seriously? That’s outrageous! I had a real plan any fool can understand The advice, real simple—boost aggregate demand! C, I, G, all together gets to Y Make sure the total’s growing, watch the economy fly We’ve been going back and forth for a century [Keynes] I want to steer markets, [Hayek] I want them set free There’s a boom and bust cycle and good reason to fear it [Hayek] Blame low interest rates. [Keynes] No… it’s the animal spirits You see it’s all about spending, hear the register cha-ching Circular flow, the dough is everything So if that flow is getting low, doesn’t matter the reason We need more government spending, now it’s stimulus season So forget about saving, get it straight out of your head Like I said, in the long run—we’re all dead Savings is destruction, that’s the paradox of thrift Don’t keep money in your pocket, or that growth will never lift… because… Business is driven by the animal spirits The bull and the bear, and there’s reason to fear its Effects on capital investment, income and growth That’s why the state should fill the gap with stimulus both… The monetary and the fiscal, they’re equally correct Public works, digging ditches, war has the same effect Even a broken window helps the glass man have some wealth The multiplier driving higher the economy’s health And if the Central Bank’s interest rate policy tanks A liquidity trap, that new money’s stuck in the banks! Deficits could be the cure, you been looking for Let the spending soar, now that you know the score My General Theory’s made quite an impression [a revolution] I transformed the econ profession You know me, modesty, still I’m taking a bow Say it loud, say it proud, we’re all Keynesians now We’ve been goin’ back n forth for a century [Keynes] I want to steer markets, [Hayek] I want them set free There’s a boom and bust cycle and good reason to fear it [Keynes] I made my case, Freddie H Listen up , Can you hear it? Hayek sings: I’ll begin in broad strokes, just like my friend Keynes His theory conceals the mechanics of change, That simple equation, too much aggregation Ignores human action and motivation And yet it continues as a justification For bailouts and payoffs by pols with machinations You provide them with cover to sell us a free lunch Then all that we’re left with is debt, and a bunch If you’re living high on that cheap credit hog Don’t look for cure from the hair of the dog Real savings come first if you want to invest The market coordinates time with interest Your focus on spending is pushing on thread In the long run, my friend, it’s your theory that’s dead So sorry there, buddy, if that sounds like invective Prepare to get schooled in my Austrian perspective We’ve been going back and forth for a century [Keynes] I want to steer markets, [Hayek] I want them set free There’s a boom and bust cycle and good reason to fear it [Hayek] [...]