The Breakdown: Are Financial Institutions Holding Our Economy Hostage?

The Breakdown: Are Financial Institutions Holding Our Economy Hostage?

The Breakdown: Are Financial Institutions Holding Our Economy Hostage?

Years after we were first told that the banks were “too big to fail,” we still seem to be held captive by the same financial system that caused our economic mess in the first place.

Copy Link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
Bluesky
Pocket
Email

Years after we were first told that the banks were “too big to fail,” we still seem to be held captive by the same financial system that caused our economic mess in the first place.

During the 2008 financial meltdown, we were told by politicians, economists, bankers and industry executives that further implosion of major financial institutions would wreak havoc on the larger economy. The banks were “too big to fail,” we were told, and if the financial markets faltered, that would be bad for the rest of us. But since the financial gains of the past several years haven’t trickled down, many are wondering why we continue to be held captive by the same financial system that caused the mess in the first place. On this week’s edition of The Breakdown, finance blogger Mike Konczal joins DC Editor Chris Hayes to discuss what’s behind this “financialization” of the economy, how it happened and whether there’s anything that can be done to change it.

Further Reading:
Mike Konczal’s finance and economics blog, Rortybomb.

Subscribe to The Breakdown on iTunes to listen to fresh takes on the confusing concepts that make politics, economics and government tick. A new episode every week!

Your support makes stories like this possible

From illegal war on Iran to an inhumane fuel blockade of Cuba, from AI weapons to crypto corruption, this is a time of staggering chaos, cruelty, and violence. 

Unlike other publications that parrot the views of authoritarians, billionaires, and corporations, The Nation publishes stories that hold the powerful to account and center the communities too often denied a voice in the national media—stories like the one you’ve just read.

Each day, our journalism cuts through lies and distortions, contextualizes the developments reshaping politics around the globe, and advances progressive ideas that oxygenate our movements and instigate change in the halls of power. 

This independent journalism is only possible with the support of our readers. If you want to see more urgent coverage like this, please donate to The Nation today.

Ad Policy
x