Economic Theory for an Age of Ruin  2:24 pm in Failed
government, Financial Crisis by masaccio  Flour Mill,
Wolverhampton, England, photo by alienwatch via Flickr  As this
financial disaster grinds through its fifth year, US economists
haven’t seemed to change much about their analysis or
explanations. The people who got it wrong continue to push their
false theories, insisting that if we clap louder their
reputations will be saved. It’s working for the hyper-rich.
We’ve all seen the figures:   Median household income, which was
$50,054 in 2011, is about 9 percent lower than it was in 1999,
after accounting for inflation.  Economists comfortable with
progressive ideas offer the same solutions they always do:
infrastructure repair paid for with borrowed money, hikes in the
minimum wage, tax cuts for the workers who still have jobs, and
so on. Perhaps they are familiar with some of the thinking that
offers a better way forward. But let’s be realistic. There is
little point in trying to teach any new ideas to De