EconAir

The autocratic leader of Transylvania, Vlad the Inhaler (he had asthma), called together his cabinet and closest advisers, most of whom were relatives. In a short three-hour harangue he told them there was a financial crisis. The country’s currency, the dracma, was almost worthless. The government had borrowed a lot of money from Western banks. The more they borrowed, the higher the interest rate. They couldn’t even pay the interest on the debt, let alone roll it over. Vlad railed against the bankers, calling them a bunch of bloodsuckers who were bleeding his country dry. He reminded them that was their job, not the bankers. Foreign bondholders and banks were screaming for their money. As usual, he called the IMF to bail out the government. This would be the sixth time in 15 years. Again, he promised fiscal and political reforms. The new head of the IMF, a former press secretary of the Trump administration, called him a liar, called his beautiful land a “shithole country,” and said No ...

  The Pantheon   Remember, Roman, that it is yours to lead other people. It is your special gift.      Virgil,  The Aeneid   We are the indispensable nation.  We stand tall.  We see further into the future.      Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright A Roman General Comes to Washington   Imagine an educated patrician (upper class) Roman officer from around 20 BC. He has spent most of his military career in the last decades of the Roman Republic and now is a legion commander in the first years of the Roman Empire of Caesar Augustus. Rome is at the height of its power and influence, acquired through conquest during the Roman Republic. Now imagine he is transported through time to today’s Washington. After marveling at the new technology (horseless chariots?), like any curious tourist he would start to look for similarities to his hometown, Rome.   The similarities would not be hard to find.  Both ci...

Famous Headline     Before You Begin If you don't know the background of this complicated story, you might want to first read a shorter version that introduces some of the key factors explaining the Crash and the Depression. See,   Introduction to the Stock Market Crash of 1929 and the Beginning of the Great Depression     Before reading this essay, I strongly recommend you see the PBS video on YouTube. Type in Stock Market Crash 1929. Look for: US – The Crash of 1929 (PBS), ALLHISTORIES – PLAYLIST.  The documentary is broken into 6 parts to show commercials. Or buy the video on Amazon Prime. Great documentary with wonderful photos, videos, and scenes from movies of the 1920s and the crash. Shows what a crazy time it was.   The video is also a great introduction to Andrew Ross Sorkin's recent best-seller  1929:  Inside the Greatest Crash in Wall Street History - and How It Shattered a Nation.  This book concentrates on the roles played b...