Rachel reviewed The Deficit Myth by Stephanie Kelton
Accessible and interesting.
4 stars
Can someone send a copy to Reeves?
hardcover, 336 pages
Published June 9, 2020 by PublicAffairs.
4 stars
(29 reviews)
The leading thinker and most visible public advocate of modern monetary theory - the freshest and most important idea about economics in decades - delivers a radically different, bold, new understanding for how to build a just and prosperous society. Stephanie Kelton's brilliant exploration of modern monetary theory (MMT) dramatically changes our understanding of how we can best deal with crucial issues ranging from poverty and inequality to creating jobs, expanding health care coverage, climate change, and building resilient infrastructure. Any ambitious proposal, however, inevitably runs into the buzz saw of how to find the money to pay for it, rooted in myths about deficits that are hobbling us as a country. Kelton busts through the myths that prevent us from taking action: that the federal government should budget like a household, that deficits will harm the next generation, that deficits crowd-out private investment and undermine long-term growth, that entitlements …
The leading thinker and most visible public advocate of modern monetary theory - the freshest and most important idea about economics in decades - delivers a radically different, bold, new understanding for how to build a just and prosperous society. Stephanie Kelton's brilliant exploration of modern monetary theory (MMT) dramatically changes our understanding of how we can best deal with crucial issues ranging from poverty and inequality to creating jobs, expanding health care coverage, climate change, and building resilient infrastructure. Any ambitious proposal, however, inevitably runs into the buzz saw of how to find the money to pay for it, rooted in myths about deficits that are hobbling us as a country. Kelton busts through the myths that prevent us from taking action: that the federal government should budget like a household, that deficits will harm the next generation, that deficits crowd-out private investment and undermine long-term growth, that entitlements are propelling us toward a grave fiscal crisis. MMT, as Kelton shows, shifts the terrain from narrow budgetary questions to one of broader economic and social benefits. With its important new ways of understanding money, taxes, and the critical role of deficit spending, MMT redefines how to responsibly use our resources so that we can maximize our potential as a society. MMT gives us the power to imagine a new politics and a new economy and move from a narrative of scarcity to one of opportunity.
Matt Lehrer reviewed The Deficit Myth by Stephanie Kelton
Clear, important, and interesting
5 stars
I highly recommend this book to everyone who cares about how governments spend and collect money, which should be everyone. The explanations are clear, important, and interesting.
Right from the beginning the story about about where the first US dollar (or any fiat currency) comes from had me hooked on the book. I listened to the audiobook of this one so I don't have kindle highlights. But the gist of this one is: the government could not possibly have taxed people without first spending some dollars in the economy.
The main takeaways for me were
- We don't have to fear deficits, which are just surpluses for private industry.
- Taxes are unnecessary for government spending but serve only to create incentives and disincentives and to redistribute wealth and resources.
- Balancing the budget would limit the supply of Treasuries and, taking the argument to the extreme, eliminating the market in Treasuries is …
I highly recommend this book to everyone who cares about how governments spend and collect money, which should be everyone. The explanations are clear, important, and interesting.
Right from the beginning the story about about where the first US dollar (or any fiat currency) comes from had me hooked on the book. I listened to the audiobook of this one so I don't have kindle highlights. But the gist of this one is: the government could not possibly have taxed people without first spending some dollars in the economy.
The main takeaways for me were
- We don't have to fear deficits, which are just surpluses for private industry.
- Taxes are unnecessary for government spending but serve only to create incentives and disincentives and to redistribute wealth and resources.
- Balancing the budget would limit the supply of Treasuries and, taking the argument to the extreme, eliminating the market in Treasuries is absurd. Everyone should agree that the market in Treasuries stabilizes the dollar and empowers the US.
I want Stephanie Kelton to be in charge of the OMB.
– originally written 2021-02-02
Erin reviewed The Deficit Myth by Stephanie Kelton
Review of 'The Deficit Myth' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
I give this 4 stars because it was pretty readable and I get the idea. Like other nonfiction books I’ve read recently, it felt like it went on a little long, repeated itself, etc. There’s a tendency for personal anecdotes to show up, I guess to try to make things more interesting, but it often feels more like the author trying to showcase their importance when the story doesn’t really add anything.
My takeaways are (with no sense of the strength of the claims cause I’m not that smart):
1. MMT recognizes that a nation with currency sovereignty doesn’t need to worry about a deficit. There’s always more money.
2. The real concern is inflation. You do not have a blank check. You have limited resources (human and otherwise), that need to be taken into account.
3. Congress should manage fiscal policy with inflation in mind, not the deficit. The …
I give this 4 stars because it was pretty readable and I get the idea. Like other nonfiction books I’ve read recently, it felt like it went on a little long, repeated itself, etc. There’s a tendency for personal anecdotes to show up, I guess to try to make things more interesting, but it often feels more like the author trying to showcase their importance when the story doesn’t really add anything.
My takeaways are (with no sense of the strength of the claims cause I’m not that smart):
1. MMT recognizes that a nation with currency sovereignty doesn’t need to worry about a deficit. There’s always more money.
2. The real concern is inflation. You do not have a blank check. You have limited resources (human and otherwise), that need to be taken into account.
3. Congress should manage fiscal policy with inflation in mind, not the deficit. The budget should be deficit agnostic. It should be whatever it needs to be to balance the economy.
4. Sort of tangentially, the author pushes the idea of a federal job guarantee as an alternative to unemployment benefits. These would be jobs related to public works and care. I have so many questions about that idea that she doesn’t answer.
hunterowens reviewed Deficit Myth by Stephanie Kelton
do you even MMT bro
5 stars
there's been lots of good praise for this well written book on how to solve problems with economics, and it is great. I would pair it w/ Zack Carters price of piece for the historical context but this was also good
Rob Rey reviewed The Deficit Myth by Stephanie Kelton
Review of 'The Deficit Myth' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
An incredible, eye opening look at how the deficit works. It really changes everything and gave me the best understanding of our economic system yet.
Adem reviewed The Deficit Myth by Stephanie Kelton
Review of 'The Deficit Myth' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
MMT isn’t new to me, but this is the clearest, most concise explanation I’ve read. This is a book to give or lend to anyone who argues that the United States budget deficit restrains government action or that entitlement spending threatens federal bankruptcy.
nevermore reviewed The Deficit Myth by Stephanie Kelton
Review of 'The Deficit Myth' on 'GoodReads'
5 stars
Great ideas! Simply put and digestible. A bit repetitive.
nevermore reviewed The Deficit Myth by Stephanie Kelton
Review of 'The Deficit Myth' on 'GoodReads'
5 stars
Great ideas! Simply put and digestible. A bit repetitive.
