Many people, myself included, have been looking back at the Financial Crisis of 2008 and asking the question, "What the hell happened?" The information landscape of finance is a difficult one made even more difficult by political agendas. Having interest in both financial markets and politics I have been reading and listening to many sources to try and understand the event. Even though I spent three years at Fidelity Investments as a brokerage trader, had my series 6, 63, 7, and 4 licenses to trade securities, and being a political junkie for the last 15 years, I would not call myself an expert in either arena. What I do well is listen to very smart people and evaluate their arguments and their evidence calmly and rationally to come to a conclusion about an issue.
Due to the complexity of this particular issue I have chosen to share with you all the sources I have used to inform myself and my opinions rather than create a summary or specific conclusion. I think it is extremely important for us as citizens to understand to the best of our ability the events that shape, and shock, the world in which we live so that we may have the most accurate understanding of the forces at work. Even if we are unable to derive 100% concrete conclusions.
To begin, I would suggest you start with the following podcast:
Russ Roberts on the Crisis – Russell Roberts is Professor of Economics and the J. Fish and Lillian F. Smith Distinguished Scholar at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. Roberts has a clear style of speaking that provides a great place to start. He doesn’t lose his audience with technical jargon and even shares the possible concerns as to why his theories could be incorrect (a sign of someone that is after the truth). If you prefer to read instead of listen, this podcast is based on his paper Gambling with Other People’s Money, feel free to start there instead.
After you have listened to Roberts, you may desire more as I did. Here are other sources to get more insight, analysis, opinions, and perspectives on this issue:
SHOWS:
PBS FRONTLINE: Inside the Meltdown
PBS FRONTLINE: Breaking the Bank
PODCASTS:
EconTalk and John Taylor
EconTalk and Charles Calomiris
EconTalk and and many other thought leaders discussing the crisis
BOOKS:
Bailout Nation: How Greed and Easy Money Corrupted Wall Street and Shook the World Economy
A Failure of Capitalism: The Crisis of '08 and the Descent into Depression
House of Cards: A Tale of Hubris and Wretched Excess on Wall Street
