Economics, Inequality and the Political Order

From Ray's introduction

“I added economics as a core subject of Science Plus about four years ago. Our first presentation was about Thomas Piketty's book Capital in the 21st Century. We also had presentations on the 2008 economic crisis, African economic issues, and the development of a novel method of funding university students by equity loans.

“My interest in economics goes back to my undergraduate university days. I was torn between economics and physics — the first can be referred to as a soft science and the physics as a hard science. I chose the latter possibly because I did not understand how to deal with the uncertainties and imprecision of economics. John Kenneth Galbraith, James' father, authored a number of books which appealed to my inclination to deconstruct economics and social issues, which he did with flourish. James comes honestly by his opinions on economics.

“James grew up in the presence of many of the renowned economists of the 20th century. Though he attained his Ph.D. in Economics from Yale in 1981, James does not consider himself a part of the economist community. That is why he is currently a professor at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs and at the Department of Government, University of Texas at Austin. Galbraith heads up the University of Texas Inequality Project (UTIP), which has been described by economic historian Lord Skidelsky as ‘pioneering inequality measurement.’ Among his publications is one entitled How Economists Got It Wrong.

“James is not only a fine scholar and contemporary thinker, but also a humanitarian at heart.”

About the speaker

Lloyd M. Bentsen Jr. Chair in Government/Business Relations, University of Texas at Austin. Economist and author, son of John Kenneth Galbraith, with a career devoted to understanding inequality, political economy, and global financial systems.