

Commanding heights (3 x 2 hour video) - mixmax
http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=commanding+heights&__q=commanding+heights&btnG=Google+Search&lr=&dur=3&so=0&num=10#

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mixmax
Watch this over the weekend if you want to understand the global economy and
the current crisis. Excellent walk through of how and why the worlds economy
has changed from the second world war up to the present day.

Or as Jon Stewart puts it: _Those who don't understand history will have an
exciting opportunity to repeat it_

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hugh
I think I'm going to need a much more detailed recommendation than that if I'm
going to invest six hours in watching a video.

Indeed, the only people likely to (a) watch six hours of little internet video
about economics and (b) try to persuade random people to also watch six hours
of little internet video about economics are the kinds of people who have,
shall we say, fringe views on economics one way or another.

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mixmax
Yes, you're right. So here goes:

This is a documentary of the history of economic ideas since world war 2. It
describes how the two opposing forces, socialism and capitalism, battle it our
on the world scene, and how the pendulum swings back and forth between the
two.

It is made by PBS, and has a homepage here:
<http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/commandingheights/>

As far as I can tell it does not try to depict one ideology as better than the
other, merely to explain these ideas, and how they have shaped the world. The
six hours of video will take you through the rise and fall of fascism, the
fall of the soviet union, the depression of the 70's, the Asian meltdown in
the 90's and much more. And most importantly: It will give an excellent
insight into why these things happened, what economic and ideological ideas
lay behind, what it meant for the world economy, and how it is all
intertwined. In short it describes why globalisation and world economy is as
it is today.

It has interviews with Gorbachew, Bill Clinton, Milton Friedmann, Lech Walesa,
Friedrich Hayek, Margaret Thatcher, Jeffrey Sachs, and just about everyone
else worth mentioning that has shaped globalisation.

It'll basically teach you the history off globalisation, and do so in an
engaging way.

And no I don't have fringe economic views, even though I'm an economist by
training ;-)

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ojbyrne
I haven't watched the third episode yet, but I think its better characterized
as Keynesianism vs. the Austrian school rather than socialism vs. capitalism.

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mixmax
Yes you're right, that's probably more correct.

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ojbyrne
Actually watching the 3rd episode now, and it is more socialism vs.
capitalism. Resonant line from it so far:

"The bailout worked" (In relation to the near collapse of the Mexican economy
soon after NAFTA).

Its very much the best episode, too, thoughtful, lacking jingoism, and
somewhat anti-capitalist.

