What Went Wrong with Economics II

Michael Reiss PhD

November 2024: This "GitBook" is based on my earlier work What Went Wrong with Economics. It is intended for this to be a kind of living book so if I find or am told about errors or have new ideas, they won't be saved for some future work, instead I will simply make the changes right here. If you find something wrong, or think I need to explain something in more detail please tell me.

Who the book is for

When preparing this book I was repeatedly advised that I could either write a book about advanced economics employing technical jargon or a beginner's guide to economics employing simple everyday language. The idea of writing about advanced economics using everyday language appeared to be against some unwritten law. I have steadfastly ignored the advice. Make no mistake, this book discusses concepts that even professional economists could learn from, yet at no point does it resort to economic jargon, at least not without defining the terms first. In short, this book is advanced economics for everyone.

How to read this book

The chapters in many economics textbooks can be read out of sequence, this is especially so if you have some previous knowledge of the subject. This book however will reconsider the structure of economics so fundamentally that it is necessary to define its own terminology and concepts that are quite unlike those you will find elsewhere. Later chapters will refer to these new terms and so may not make sense when read out of order.

— The cover picture was taken during the anti-austerity protests in Greece in 2010. REUTERS/John Kolesidis.