In the latest episode of the Tax Justice Network's monthly podcast, the Taxcast:
- Much of the world is run on the basis of economic theories that have become accepted truths of our era. But they actually have very little evidence to back them up. This month, Naomi Fowler speaks to finance journalist and writer Tom Bergin on how economics ruins economies, and puts economists in the dock. Tom's book, Free Lunch Thinking: how economics ruins the economy is available here.
- Plus: which nations are the world's worst offenders for helping multinational corporations pay less tax than they should? The results of the Tax Justice Network's Corporate Tax Haven Index 2021 are out. Read more here.
Here's the transcript of the show (may not be 100% accurate)
Featuring:
- Finance journalist and writer Tom Bergin
- John Christensen of the Tax Justice Network
- Hosted and produced by Naomi Fowler of the Tax Justice Network
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I liked the Tom Bergin interview very much. The right says socialism fails to realise there is no such thing as a “free lunch”, yet at the same time advocates lowering “taxes to raise revenue”, to which his reply is “well there is a free lunch” for some, or removing safety measures without making people less safe….another free lunch for some . As well as the long running resistance against a minimum wage that was thought by many to be a ruinous policy for the economy, but again a free lunch for the same people.
We have in the end, been led astray by decades of ill informed falsehoods. Falsehoods that greatly benefited a privileged and powerful minority,
To these falsehoods, one might now add the idea that a govt can safely spend more than tax revenues when it is necessary, which seems the last taboo. These myths are falling one by one, now we need to nail that last one.
Maybe worth a post on how much of what we are told are taught by past economists is deeply flawed.
Agreed, but but today
A good book to read as to how we got here is Democracy in Chains by Nancy MacLean. Economists positing theories without facts to reach a conclusion they made before starting out in favour of their rich friends. It is a horrifying book. Charles Koch is the vanguard in the US at the moment and has used many of these witchdoctors. A very dangerous Oligarch.
Brilliant book
Agreed Vincent. This comment reminded me of Richard’s mythbuster series last year. Perhaps these messages need recurrent repetition until bit by bit they eventually sink in.
Let me get ‘Money for nothing and my Tweets for free’ out of the way first
That is my weekend work
@Alan,
Yes they need constant repetition until they become the new meme ,not the false memes we have been fed.
I do like the word “meme”,it seems so popular now as well : )