It’s more than a century since American school supervisor Lyda Hanifan coined the term social capital to define intangible social connections vital for community cohesion and productivity. Economists have long recognised its importance. But they have never effectively incorporated it…
Author: Edmund O'Sullivan
I am an economist, author, reporter and media executive.
IMF lays the foundations for a new economic policy nightmare
IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva On 16 November, IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva delivered an opening statement for the fund’s 10th IMF Statistical Forum which was entitled Measuring the Tangible Benefits of Intangible Capital. The two-day event was addressed by…
MMT is the opposite of what’s needed for economies facing austerity
Credit: www.marketplace.org/2019/01/24/modern-monetary-theory-explained/ Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) is an idea that’s gathered growing support since the term was first coined in Full Employment Abandoned, a book published by Bill Mitchell and Joan Muysken, both academic economists, in 2008. This is recent…
When an empire dies
The UK is an imperial nation without an empire that needs a new vision of its future UK prime minister Liz Truss’s resignation announcement after 44 days in office is the product of long-term trends not something new. It looks…
Digitalisation is the third money revolution (and perhaps the last one)
The second week of May witnessed a fresh downward twist in the decline of cryptocurrencies since the autumn. On 12 May, the combined market value of all cryptocurrencies was reported to be $1.12trn. That’s about a third of the figure…
While Putin fights for power in the tangible world, Musk is trying to conquer the virtual one
Is Elon Musk (right) the model for a new type of ruler of the virtual world who will challenge masters of the tangible one like Russia’s President Putin? On 13 April — less than 50…
As the Malthusian forecast goes into reverse, economists once again struggle for answers
Graph sowing the principle of Malthus’ theory of population. (Graph by Jan Oosthoek, Environmental History Resources) In June 1798, an English vicar penned two sentences that in many ways defined the problem economists have tried to solve ever since. “Population,…
BIS warns that finance is laying the foundations for a new crash. Is anyone listening?
The latest quarterly review published in December by The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) delivers a warning that the finance industry is laying the foundations for the next big crash. It contains a report that highlights the role of non-bank…
Nine reasons not to study economics
1 It’s not a science. Economists present themselves as champions of a discipline with the rigour of physics. The models you’ll learn about are presented algebraically and will borrow from real sciences, particularly hydraulics. But the material of economics isn’t…
Comedy, Britain’s fiscal rules and Rishi Sunak’s budget
Will UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Rushi Sunak’s budget be (yet) another comedy show? Ahead of UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak’s budget statement on 27 October, the New Economics Foundation (NEF) has released a report about “rules” that…