Deep State

 

Excellent interview and important presentation worth watching, though it may sound like a farfetched conspiracy theory.

 

With my frugal sources of information access and limited reading, less knowledge, and much less understanding, I could still infer some vital aspects of the footprints of the global economy combined with geopolitical maneuvers, a deadly cocktail that has its toxic tentacles with a huge army of well-paid executives operating in all directions, in every place on the globe, at multiple levels, manifesting varying degrees of influence with a very well-maintained secrecy.

 

Macroeconomics has always held my interest and intrigued me as well. Microeconomics merely stretches from our kitchen to the street corner, shopping mall, or some online offer.

 

However, unfortunately, in college curricula these days, we hardly studied anything; it was all about fundamentals of economics, and of course, certain fundamentals in any subject do not change, and it hardly allowed us to wander freely to learn about the various dimensions, dynamics of each dimension, and the evolving outcome, at least a prediction of possible outcomes as a result of interactions among these dynamics, and delve more in-depth about any subject.

 

Unfortunately, the world of academics is overcrowded by lovers of fundamentals who make you think as if economics is all about a few well-defined blocks of activity, not even a Venn diagram of a multitude of contributory and concomitant factors. However, when we start approaching the subject of economics also, through reading unorthodox approaches, we realize that economics is more of a multi-function spirograph or kaleidoscope creating designs of colorful pieces of broken glass. This must give us clarity that most of our economic activities of commerce, trade, and finances are mere passing clouds, and the real magnitude of macroeconomics is beyond the scope of any normal theory or concept-based operations about which most of us engage in debates with varying degrees of ignorance.

 

Even when we arrive at this level of perception, we realize that the puzzle of the maze is not yet over; it goes beyond commonly known histories, politics, national and international organizations. There is a much deeper core that manipulates both macroeconomics and geopolitics beyond the façade of theories, concepts, doctrines, political ideologies, national and international organizations, etc.; it is the DEEP STATE that really moves the coins on the chessboard of geopolitics and macroeconomics. The impact of its manifestations is like the unnoticed tremors that keep happening, always too deep beneath our feet but felt only when they explode on the surface as a massive earthquake.

 

I would like to give a list of books on economics for better learning and greater understanding of both inevitable fundamentals and the fun of knowing the unorthodox dynamics of macroeconomics. I felt like writing this after listening to, of late, a few good programs in PGURUS.

https://www.youtube.com/live/vqGMGk93scE?feature=share

It's worth listening to the full episode to know the whole gamut of the deep state and how its interlocking system protects the self-interests of its club members, but at the same time, they can choose to create jolts to economies anywhere anytime at will.

To date, it has wielded its power without any disturbance, but can it go on for too long, and how long? I was hoping that the Covid crisis would change the status quo of these club members, but as I said earlier, their tentacles are spread all over, and therefore, even in Covid, they made their profits. In fact, paradoxically, during Covid and post-Covid, through their multiple FIIs, they ended up buying stocks of distressed sales.

 

I have read some of them on the advice of my friend and professor of economics, Nandakumar, from Vivekananda College.

Again, like any other subject, one can choose from a buffet of books and authors based on the perspective from which one wants to read economics.

 

Great books for casual reading:

1. Freakonomics and SuperFreakonomics: I would recommend his book think like a Freak too. His book is great for starters and freaks out in appeal.

2. Naked Economics, as the title suggests, really undresses the darker sides of this science.

3. "Nudge" by Richard H. Thaler and Cass R. Sunstein - Behavioral economics and how it can be used to encourage people to make better decisions.

4. "Thinking, Fast and Slow" by Daniel Kahneman - Psychology behind decision-making and how it affects economic behavior.

5. "The Shock Doctrine" by Naomi Klein—History of neoliberal economic policies and their impact on societies around the world.

6. The Undercover Economist – leads to practical methods of pricing and marketing.

7. Irrational Exuberance and Predictably Irrational – more about behavioral economics.

8. The Black Swan, Fooled by Randomness, and A Random Walk Down Wall Street are all about randomness.

9. Capital in the Twenty-First Century is too verbose, typical of French authors.

10. An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations

11. Economics in One Lesson—a short and sweet one.

12. The Firm, the Market, and the Law eBook: R. H. Coase

13. "The Wealth of Nations" by Adam Smith – Teaches the basic principles of free market capitalism.

14. "The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money" by John Maynard Keynes - This book laid the foundation for Keynesian economics, which emphasizes government intervention in the economy during times of recession.

15. "The Road to Serfdom" by Friedrich Hayek—This book is a critique of government intervention in the economy and argues for a free market approach.

One economics professor says. “It is a complicated subject that cannot be studied by reading just a couple of textbooks. A few microeconomic and macroeconomic factors come into the picture when making an economic assessment. Economic trends play an important part in planning the budget for market verticals like finance, politics, law, business, healthcare, education, etc. Plus, these trends keep on changing every year.

I would recommend that you read the below-mentioned books to understand the depth of the subject:

Other People's Money by John Kay

Economic Facts and Fallacies by Thomas Sowell

The Everything Economics Book: From Theory to Practice, Your Complete Guide to Understanding Economics Today

The Globalization of Inequality by François Bourguignon, translated by Thomas Scott-Railton

 
The General Theory of Employment Interest and Money by John Maynard Keynes

GDP: A Brief But Affectionate History by Daniel Coyle

Economics by Paul A Samuelson

"Microeconomics" by Paul Krugman and Robin Wells: An accessible and well-regarded textbook that covers microeconomic principles and applications. "The Theory of the Firm" by Ronald H. Coase: A seminal work exploring the nature and behavior of firms in market economies.

"Macroeconomics" by N. Gregory Mankiw: A widely used textbook that provides a comprehensive introduction to macroeconomic theory and policy. "This Time Is Different: Eight Centuries of Financial Folly" by Carmen M. Reinhart and Kenneth S. Rogoff: A historical exploration of financial crises and the patterns of economic behavior over centuries.

"International Economics" by Paul Krugman and Maurice Obstfeld: A renowned textbook covering international trade and finance.

"Globalization and Its Discontents" by Joseph E. Stiglitz: A critical examination of the effects of globalization on developing economies and global economic governance.

Behavioral Economics:

"Thinking, Fast and Slow" by Daniel Kahneman: Though not solely an economics book, this work by a Nobel laureate delves into the psychological aspects of decision-making and their implications for economic behavior.

 

Monetary economics

"The Ascent of Money: A Financial History of the World" by Niall Ferguson: An engaging exploration of the evolution of money, banking, and finance.

 Development Economics

"Poor Economics: A Radical Rethinking of the Way to Fight Global Poverty" by Abhijit V. Banerjee and Esther Duflo: The authors, both Nobel laureates, examine poverty through rigorous economic analysis and offer innovative solutions."

 

The Bottom Billion: Why the Poorest Countries Are Failing and What Can Be Done About It" by Paul Collier: An examination of the challenges faced by the world's poorest countries and potential strategies for development.

Finance and Investing

"The Intelligent Investor" by Benjamin Graham: A classic guide to value investing, emphasizing the importance of fundamental analysis and a disciplined approach to investing.

"Capital in the Twenty-First Century" by Thomas Piketty: This influential book delves into

The Big Questions, by Steven Landsburg
Spin-Free Economics, by Nariman Behravesh
Economic Gangsters, by Raymond Fisman and Edward Miguel
Lives of the Laureates, by William Breit and Barry T. Hirsch The Price of Everything, by Russell Roberts
The Armchair Economist, by Steven Landsburg
Basic Economics (Thomas Sowell)
Free To Choose (Milton Friedman)

The Forgotten Man (Amity Shlaes)


For a general understanding of economic philosophy:
Economics in One Lesson - Henry Hazlitt
For the history of economic thought:
A History of Economics - J.K. Galbraith
The Worldly Philosophers - Robert Heilbroner
Economic Theory in Retrospect - Mark Blaug
For the history of money, banking, and financial markets:
The Ascent of Money - Niall Ferguson
After The Music Stopped - Alan S Blinder
For general applications and scope of economics:
Economics Rules - Dani Rodrik
Applied Economics: Thinking Beyond Stage one - Thomas Sowell
For game theory, strategy, and wider applications:
Thinking Strategically - Avinash Dixit and Barry Nalebuff
For Development Economics:
Development Economics - Debraj Ray
The Great Escape: Health, Wealth, and the Origins of Inequality—Angus Deaton
Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity and Poverty - James A. Robinson and Daron Acemoglu
The Economics of Poverty: History, Measurement and Policy - Martin Ravallion
For Trade and Globalization:
Globalization and Its Discontent - Joseph Stiglitz
In Defense of Globalization - Jagdish Bhagwati
The World that Trade Created—Kenneth Pomeranz, Steven Topik

For Indian Economy
An Economic History of India—Dietmar Rothermund (pre-colonial to 1991)
India's Political Economy, 1947-2004 - Francine Frankel (post-independence to 2004)
The Indian Economy: A Macroeconomic Perspective - Nilanjan Banik (modern-day analysis)
Things They Don’t Tell You About Capitalism by Ha-Joon Chang.
Animal Spirits by Akerlof and Shiller.


https://www.bookscrolling.com/the-best-economics-books-of-all-time/