Author(s): John Quiggin

Business & Economics

In the graveyard of economic ideology, dead ideas still stalk the land. The recent financial crisis laid bare many of the assumptions behind market liberalism - the theory that markets always know best, regardless of the problem. For decades, their advocates dominated economics, and their influence created a system where an unthinking faith in markets led many to view speculative investments as fundamentally safe. The crisis seemed to have killed off these ideas, but they still live on in the minds of many - members of the public, commentators, politicians, economists, and even those charged with cleaning up the mess. In Zombie Economics, John Quiggin explains how these dead ideas still walk among us, in Australia and abroad - and why we must find a way to kill them once and for all if we are to avoid an even bigger financial crisis in the future. Because these ideas will never die unless there is an alternative, Zombie Economics also looks ahead at what could replace market liberalism, arguing that a simple return to Keynesian economics and the politics of the welfare state will not be enough - either to kill dead ideas, or to prevent future crises.
This new paperback edition includes an Australia-specific preface and a full chapter on the local scene.