The Great Money Binge: Spending Our Way to Socialism

Melloan, George

ISBN 10: 1400114675 ISBN 13: 9781400114672

Publisher: Tantor Audio, 2009

Synopsis

Prestigious newspaper editor George Melloan, who worked for the Wall Street Journal for more than half a century, is no stranger to the wild ups and downs of the American and world economies. Using detailed examples from the Crash of 1929 and from the Carter era, this brilliantly argued book explains how government intervention actually prevents the economy from recovering its natural balance. Unless lawmakers realize the true importance of using supply-side economics in our current crisis, warns Melloan, nothing will save us from a new era of disastrous inflation and widespread global depression.

Citing the importance of historical example, Melloan explains how the world of economics was completely changed in the 1930s under the influence of English economist John Maynard Keynes. His theories advocating government interventionist policies were wholeheartedly adopted as a response to the Great Depression and remained unquestioned until the "supply-side revolution" of 1980, after the stagflation of the 1970s showed the inherent weaknesses of neo-Keynesian economics. By employing what is sometimes called "Reaganomics," President Ronald Reagan and his economic advisers sparked a quarter century of unparalleled prosperity. Unfortunately, as Melloan demonstrates, government policy soon began to revert to Keynesian theories, even though they are widely misunderstood and misapplied.

Now, with the Crash of 2008, our new president and government appear committed to ignoring the lessons of the past. With multibillion-dollar "stimulus packages" becoming the norm, and a multitrillion-dollar national debt that will keep growing so long as present policies are continued, America can look forward to a very grim future indeed.

There is only one solution: we must return to our eroded supply-side principles. In the face of general misunderstanding, Melloan outlines a lucid and detailed explanation of exactly why we are currently sinking so rapidly, how this crisis compares to similar situations in the past, and exactly what must be done to return the United States to the economic vitality it enjoyed not so long ago.

About this title

About the Author

George Melloan, now retired, was deputy editor, international, of the Wall Street Journal, and he is coauthor of The Carter Economy, a discussion of Jimmy Carter's policies in the first year of his presidency.

From AudioFile

A financial journalist uses historical examples to argue that government intervention in the U.S. economy does more harm than good. Citing all the depressions and downturns of the past 80 years, Melloan says that stoking the supply side (fewer regulations, lower taxes, less government spending) energizes consumers and business owners to move our economy forward. Libertarians and pro-business Republicans will revel in Melloan's direct and sometimes-caustic writing, which narrator Johnny Heller delivers with relaxed authority. Heller's consistent professionalism won't keep Obama fans from wincing at some of the author's conclusions, but Heller's emotional balance helps make this book sound more like a rich economics lesson than a partisan diatribe. T.W. © AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine

About this edition

• Publisher: Tantor Audio
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 1400114675
• ISBN 13: 9781400114672
• Binding: Audio CD