Common Sense Macroeconomics
Common Sense Macroeconomics by Ravi Batra, published by World Scientific Publishing Europe Limited in 2020, offers a fresh perspective on macroeconomic analysis. This 376-page textbook is designed to be student-friendly and accessible, making it suitable for those looking to understand economic developments and tackle pressing issues such as inequality and budget deficits. Batra argues for a rethinking of conventional macroeconomics, emphasizing that its primary goal should be to improve living standards for all, rather than just a select few.
In this edition, readers will find a comprehensive exploration of how monetary policies can exacerbate wealth disparities and the importance of fostering competition to enhance income for everyone. Batra discusses the detrimental effects of monopoly capitalism, which leads to a widening wage-productivity gap and contributes to economic instability. The book also highlights the historical context of these issues, linking them to significant economic downturns like the Great Depression and the Great Recession. Through this analysis, Common Sense Macroeconomics aims to provide insights into creating ethical policies that promote general prosperity and address the challenges of modern economies.
Official synopsis Publisher
In a world of negative interest rates, extreme inequality and trillion-dollar budget deficits, it is safe to say that conventional macroeconomics needs an overhaul. Common Sense Macroeconomics is an innovative guide to various concepts of macroeconomic analysis. Presented in a student-friendly and accessible way, this textbook is an ideal introduction to all who seek to foresee economic developments and address some of the key problems of our time.
Specifically, this book innovates as follows.
Ravi Batra, a Professor of Economics at Southern Methodist University and known for his accurate forecasts such as the 2008 crash, argues that the goal of macroeconomics is to raise the living standard of all, not just a privileged few. Contrary to popular belief, relentless monetary expansion to finance budget deficits actually makes the rich richer and the poor poorer, which has been happening all over the world. Ethical policies and efficiency that create general prosperity go together. In order to increase everyone’s income, governments should generate competition and outlaw mergers among large and profitable firms. Inequality arises from monopoly capitalism, because then wages lag behind productivity and generate a rising wage-productivity gap. This is the ultimate source of almost all economic troubles and imbalances. While the growing gap is inherently unfair, it also leads to vast income disparity and wealth concentration, stock market bubbles and crashes, recessions and eventually depressions. It is the rise in the wage gap that preceded the Great Depression of the 1930s and now the Great Recession of 2008. Hence governments should not stifle competition and vigorously enforce anti-trust laws. Macroeconomic equilibrium nowadays requires that
Supply = Demand + New Debt
Author
Publisher
Topics
FAQ
What is “Common Sense Macroeconomics” about?
Who is the author of “Common Sense Macroeconomics”?
When was “Common Sense Macroeconomics” published?
What is the ISBN for “Common Sense Macroeconomics”?
What are the book details (language, pages, edition)?
