This week we talk with Richard Lachmann, author of the article, The Roots of American Decline [1] in the Winter 2011 issue of Contexts. Lachmann addresses common misunderstandings we Americans tend to have about our government's spending, particularly military spending, and the current "fiscal crisis". Lachmann compares the decline of American dominance with past empires and offers some lessons about what we might do to have a graceful decline as opposed to a painful, violent one.

Download Office Hours #23 [2]

[1] http://contexts.org/articles/winter-2011/the-roots-of-american-decline/

[2] http://files.thesocietypages.org/downloads/OH23_Lachmann.mp3