Macro N Cheese

The 2024 fictional film “Civil War” shows an America that has been fractured into armed factions. It’s not the dystopian fantasy that interests us here, however, it’s the collapse of the currency! In the movie, the US dollar has lost its value, like the fate of Confederate money after the (real) US Civil War.

With his imagination piqued by the film, Steve asked Brett Scott, author and monetary theorist, to help us think about the dynamics of commerce, currency, and systemic forces in times of societal collapse and global capitalism.

Brett and Steve look at historical cases like Zimbabwe's hyperinflation and Ireland's banking strike. They discuss barter systems, mutual credit, dollarization, and informal credits.

The conversation delves into broader themes of pre- and post-capitalist markets, moral logics within economies, and the systemic nature of global capitalism. Highlighting the inadequacy of simplistic elite-blaming narratives, they advocate for understanding economic interdependence and discuss Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) as a counter to austerity.

Brett Scott is an author, journalist, and activist, who explores the intersections between money systems, finance, and digital technology. He’s the author of The Heretics Guide to Global Finance: Hacking the Future of Money. His latest book is Cloudmoney: Cash, Cards, Crypto, and the War for Our Wallets. Find more of his work at https://alteredstatesof.money/

brettscott.substack.com

@Suitpossum on Twitter

Jonathan Kadmon is on the leadership team of Real Progressives and writes for the website. He also helps put out this podcast. Today, however, he is talking to Steve about his vast knowledge of Zionism, Palestine, and US support for Israel.

Jonathan was raised in a Republican household and became a passionate supporter of Israel during his college years, when he was given training and taken on trips by powerful players in the Israel lobby. After growing up a Jew in the South, he now became part of a powerful community and embraced it with pride.

He talks of his experiences and describes his increasing discomfort as discrepancies between fact and propaganda became too great to ignore.

Steve, a vocal critic of the administration’s role in the current genocide in Gaza, is regularly attacked for his views. Jonathan, having studied in Israel and been trained by AIPAC, says:

The discussion goes into historical and political manipulation by Zionist organizations to blur the lines between Jewish identity and support for Israel, the erasure of Palestinian history, and the media and political complicity in perpetuating the Zionist narrative.

The episode includes profound insights into Holocaust education, which is intentionally designed to emphasize the trauma and neglect the political economy.

Jonathan Kadmon is on the leadership team at Real Progressives, where he is a writer and a co-host of the weekly discussion group, Macro ‘n Chill.

@JonathanKadmon on X

In June, Real Progressives hosted a webinar with Carlos García Hernández on his book, Fiat Socialism: Achieving the Goals of Socialism Through Modern Monetary Theory. After hearing his Macro N Cheese interview last year, we wanted to open the door for our volunteers to ask questions and engage with Carlos on this topic. He is an important voice applying the insights of MMT to socialist theory.

In talking about his book, Carlos laid out the goals of fiat socialism:

• Full employment
• Full and prudent use of material resources
• The guarantee of the five essentials to every citizen: food, housing, clothing, health services, and education
• Social security at all major exposed points in the social structure (eg, old age, sickness, accident, temporary unemployment, and childbearing)
• Labor standards, to be assured by labor unions

This episode includes his presentation followed by Q&A with the event’s attendees.

Carlos García Hernández is the founder and director of Lola Books, a publishing house that has introduced MMT to Spanish and German readers. He is the author of Fiat Socialism: Achieving the Goals of Socialism through Modern Monetary Theory.

@Carlos_G_H_ on Twitter

According to Mischa Geracoulis, of Project Censored, media is a public good and journalism is a public service.

It only follows that censorship is a violation of human rights.

Project Censored defines censorship more broadly than a government’s control over the media. It is the suppression of information, whether purposefully or not, by any method – (including) bias, omission, underreporting, or even self-censorship by the reporter or publisher.

Steve and Mischa discuss the urgency of getting the public to understand the genocide in Gaza, and crucial for Americans to see their government’s role in it.

They look at the challenges faced by independent press, as well as special problems of news deserts. They also talk about the need for media literacy while much of the public relies on social media, where algorithms play a suppressive role.

Mischa Geracoulis is a media literacy expert, writer, and educator, serving as Project Censored’s curriculum development coordinator. Mischa is on the editorial boards of the Censored Press and the Markaz Review.

@MGeracoulis, @ProjectCensored on Twitter

Steve’s guest this week is Dirk Ehnts, a lecturer and author

who specializes in modern monetary theory (MMT). They discuss Dirk's new book,

"A Simple Guide to the Monetary System," which aims to simplify the

often complex concepts of MMT.

They discuss the significance of the Copernican turn to MMT,

which refers to the shift in perspective that occurred during the COVID-19

pandemic. Dirk explains that the massive increase in government spending and

the lack of inflationary effects challenged conventional economic theories that

had previously dismissed MMT.

Dirk explains the theory behind inflation targeting and how

it has failed to deliver on its promises of price stability and full

employment. He also highlights the role of trade policy and income inequality

in shaping economic outcomes, pointing out that these factors are often

overlooked in favor of focusing solely on interest rates and inflation.

The conversation shifts to the rise of the BRICS

countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) and the geopolitical

battles that have influenced international trade. They discuss the idea of

losing faith in the US dollar as the primary world reserve currency and the

potential impact on global trade.

Dirk emphasizes that the public needs to understand how

money and resources interact in order to find solutions to problems like

climate change. He believes that as more people become aware of MMT and its

potential policies, there will be a demand for change.

Dirk Ehnts is a German heterodox economist.

He is one of the leading proponents of Modern Monetary Theory in Europe. Ehnts

is a member of the standing field committee History of Economic Thought of the

German economists association. Every summer since 2016 Ehnts has held a course

on MMT at the Summer School of Maastricht University. In February 2019, he

organized the 1st European MMT Conference. He is also a lecturer at the MMT

summer school at the University of Poznan in Poland.

When corporations are guilty of poisoning the population, it is newsworthy. When state and local governments are complicit, it is newsworthy.  Yet the US media refuses to cover some of the most scandalous and tragic stories of our time, despite overwhelming evidence of corporate and government culpability.

Jordan Chariton, CEO of Status Coup, has many years of experience working for both mainstream and independent news organizations. He and Steve discuss the media’s role in perpetuating the distorted narrative. If they’re not ignoring the facts, they’re misrepresenting them.  

Jordan talks about his continuing coverage of the Flint water crisis and the East Palestine train derailment. He describes the case of Graphic Packaging International in Kalamazoo, Michigan, where a paper mill has been releasing deadly gases into a poor black community for decades. Despite complaints and environmental violations, the plant has not been shut down.

He finds himself waging war on two fronts; after digging up the truth he struggles to get other media to help spread the information. He and Steve highlight the gatekeeping role of social media algorithms and clickbait in determining what news gets attention.

Jordan also mentions his upcoming book, "We the Poisoned," which exposes the Flint water crisis cover-up and the poisoning of 100,000 Americans.

Jordan Chariton, Status Coup CEO, is an independent progressive journalist who has worked inside and outside the belly of the corporate media beast for over a decade. He worked at Fox, MSNBC, and TYT, before starting Status Coup.

@JordanChariton on Twitter

@StatusCoup 

**On Tuesday evening we’re gathering for a listening party and discussion of this episode of the podcast. Get the Zoom link here https://realprogressives.org/event/macro-n-chill-284/  

If anyone still thinks adopting the Euro was a good idea, this episode should set you straight. 

Writer and journalist Thomas Fazi joins Steve to talk about the critical issues surrounding the European project, beginning with elite reaction to the recent election of Marine Le Pen in France, which Thomas calls a script that, as an Italian, he has seen play out many times: 

Markets begin selling off the bonds of the country in question, in this case France, because they’re said to be spooked by the election results. The mainstream media frames this as the market’s natural reaction to “irresponsible” politicians gaining power.  

The European Central Bank has every interest in using financial markets to discipline governments, ensuring they don’t stray off the neoliberal path.  

The discussion goes into the US role in European geopolitics, the importance of economic and industrial sovereignty, and the negative impacts of relying on imports and being subordinate to the US. They go into the purpose of the bombing of the Nord Stream gas pipeline, the petrodollar system, and the destruction of Ukraine. 

They also question the MMT community’s disturbing reluctance to speak out on geopolitics, especially the ongoing genocide in Gaza.    

Thomas Fazi is a critically-acclaimed writer and journalist. His books include The Battle for Europe: How an Elite Hijacked a Continent — and How We Can Take It Back (Pluto Press, 2014), Reclaiming the State: A Progressive Vision of Sovereignty for a Post-Neoliberal World (co-authored with Bill Mitchell; Pluto Press, 2017) and The Covid Consensus: The Global Assault on Democracy and the Poor — A Critique from the Left (co-authored with Toby Green; 2023). He is the co-director of Standing Army (2010), an award-winning feature-length documentary on US military bases featuring Gore Vidal and Noam Chomsky; His articles have appeared in numerous online and printed publications. He is a columnist for the British magazine UnHerd and a contributing editor for the American magazine Compact.  

@battleforeurope on Twitter 

** For a full transcript of this and every episode of the podcast, go to our website, where you will also find an “Extras” section with information and links to resources discussed in the episode. realprogressives.org/macro-n-cheese-podcast/ 

At Macro N Cheese we’ve been having an ongoing conversation about the need for radical change in the labor movement and the rise of class struggle unionism.  

Traven Leyshon is president of the Green Mountain Central Labour Council and part of the leadership team of the Vermont State Labour Council. Traven, who has over five decades of labor organizing experience, talks to Steve about the pushback from national labor institutions against Vermont's newly elected progressive leadership and what it represents for the movement. 

The episode delves into the historical context of labor shrinkage and addresses the practical challenges of organizing in a neoliberal economy dominated by corporate money. He emphasizes the need for a participatory democracy within unions, contrasting this approach with the dominant model of business unionism, where members often feel disconnected and disengaged. 

Traven and Steve highlight the need for workers to have a deeper knowledge of how the system operates in order to fight back against the capitalist order. They also touch on issues such as the need for a job guarantee and the impact of austerity measures on working-class people.  

In the face of climate crisis and continual economic crises, building a powerful, inclusive labor movement is more urgent than ever. 

Current president of the Green Mountain Central Labor Council, part of the leadership team of the Vermont State Labor Council, AFL CIO member of OPEIU 153, Teamster truck driver for Teamsters for a Democratic Union, and proud rank and file UAW Audi worker.  

@TravenL on Twitter 

What happens to a nation when its leaders get in bed with the IMF? In this episode, Steve and his guest Daniel Kostzer look at the case of Argentina under President Javier Milei. Daniel is the Chief Economist of the International Trade Union Confederation. 

They discuss the recent legislative wins by Milei's government, which have sparked mass protests and civil unrest in the country. The reform bill passed by the Argentine Senate includes sweeping austerity measures, privatization, and labor rights cuts. 

The conversation delves into the factors contributing to the high inflation rate in Argentina, including the country's debt with the IMF, the impact of the pandemic, and external conditions such as the Ukraine-Russian war and drought. Daniel explains that Milei's approach to the economy is characterized by a belief in dollarization. 

They also discuss the role of the IMF in Argentina and its pro-market, pro-capitalist ideology. They talk about the historical pattern of accumulation in the country, with a constant pendulum swing between the export-oriented neoliberal model and the industrial autonomous development model. Without a clear resolution of this conflict, Argentina will continue to struggle. However, they also highlight the resilience and fighting spirit of the Argentine society, with a strong union density and a comprehensive system of social protection. 

Daniel Kostzer is the Chief Economist of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC-CSI) based in Brussels. He was the senior regional wage specialist for Asia and the Pacific at the INWORK Branch (Inclusive Labour Markets, Labour Relations and Working Conditions), International Labour Organization. Daniel does research in Labour Economics, especially wages and income distribution, poverty alleviation, and the linkages with the broad economic issues. 

@dkostzer on Twitter 

Dan Kovalik, author and human rights lawyer, joins Steve to talk about his new book, The Case for Palestine: Why it Matters and Why You Should Care. The conversation goes into the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the concept of settler colonialism, and the current situation in Gaza.

They criticize the US government's support for Israel and the lack of accountability for the ongoing genocide. They blame the corporate media for not adequately informing the public about these issues, allowing for a privileged perspective that ignores the suffering.  

They touch on the role of social media in raising awareness of the atrocities, discuss the need for the American public to unify around principles of peace & to call out the US for war crimes and also talk about the attempts to silence criticism of genocide by labeling it as anti-Semitic or terrorist sympathizing.

Dan Kovalik is a labor and human rights lawyer and peace activist. He is the author of the recently released book, The Case for Palestine: Why it Matters and Why You Should Care. Some his other books include The Plot to Control the World: How the US Spent Billions to Change the Outcome of Elections Around the World, and The Plot to Scapegoat Russia: How the CIA and the Deep State have Conspired to Vilify Russia

@danielmkovalik on Twitter