Debunking Economics - the podcast

This week Phil and Steve dismantle the structural shift of the global economy toward a permanent state of debt dependence. Following a critique of Steve’s recent debate on the Piers Morgan show and a revisit to last week’s discussion on th link between energy and productivity, they look at how policy since the 1980s aggressively incentivizes borrowing over saving. Steve argues that the banking sector now functions primarily to inflate asset bubbles—particularly in housing—rather than funding productive industry, effectively conditioning entire generations to rely on debt-fueled asset growth for wealth. By debunking the neoclassical "savings myth," they show how the broader economy is dangerously fragile to any slowdown in the relentless creation of new debt. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of Debunking Economics, Steve Keen dismantles the mainstream economic obsession with "Total Factor Productivity" (TFP), labeling it a mythical construct that ignores the laws of physics. He argues that economists historically "fudged" data to credit an abstract idea of technology for growth, while in reality, productivity gains are almost entirely a function of increasing the energy throughput of machinery. Keen asserts that "labor without energy is a corpse" and "capital without energy is a sculpture," emphasizing that real output only rises when we design machines capable of converting more energy into useful work. The discussion concludes that as the global economy faces energy supply shocks and shifts from fragile "just-in-time" efficiency toward localized resilience, we must brace for a structural decline in traditional productivity, as "resilience" is effectively the physical price paid for security in a less stable world. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Phil and Steve analyze the 2026 return of double-digit inflation, characterizing it as a structural cost-push crisis rather than the result of excess consumer demand. Keen argues that with Brent crude hitting $100 a barrel due to the Strait of Hormuz blockade, energy costs have become a fundamental driver of prices that central bank interest rate hikes are fundamentally powerless to resolve. He delivers a scathing critique of current monetary policy, suggesting that raising rates acts as a "debt tax" that exacerbates the real income shock for households while failing to address the underlying energy supply bottlenecks. To truly "beat" this inflation, he advocates for moving beyond interest rate orthodoxy toward direct energy price interventions and an accelerated transition to energy sovereignty to decouple the economy from global fossil fuel volatility. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, Phil Dobbie and Steve Keen dissect Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey’s push for greater central bank independence, a move Bailey claims is necessary to shield price stability from politically motivated meddling. Steve Keen, however, isn't buying the mainstream narrative, arguing that central banks are operating on a "fantasy" model that ignores the actual mechanics of money creation and the volatile role of private debt. The discussion ranges from the "policy ineffectiveness" of interest rate hikes to the historic failures of central banks to act as anything more than a "Greenspan put" for a fragile banking system. Ultimately, they suggest that instead of doubling down on flawed independence, central banks should stop pretending they can micromanage GDP and start acting as a realistic police force for financial stability—before the next "unforeseen" crisis hits. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of the Debunking Economics podcast, Phil Dobbie and Professor Steve Keen explore the precarious intersection of the ongoing global energy crisis and the massive resource demands of the AI revolution. The conversation traverses a landscape of geopolitical instability—from Iranian influence in the Strait of Hormuz to the vulnerabilities of Western microchip manufacturing—while questioning whether the "AI promise" can survive a world of dwindling energy supplies and extreme inequality. Professor Keen offers a provocative comparison between the disruptive force of political volatility and the impending reality of global warming, arguing that without a fundamental shift toward collective economic stability and energy self-sufficiency, the high-tech future envisioned by "Tech Bros" may be sidelined by the urgent requirements of human survival. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.