Economic Update with Richard D. Wolff

Episode Title: Resistance Economics
Date: March 29, 2018
Host: Richard D. Wolff
Guest: Ian Seda-Irizarry, Assistant Professor of Economics, John Jay College, CUNY

Episode Overview

This episode focuses on economic resistance: how collective action, alternative economic perspectives, and a critical understanding of economics can equip people to challenge the status quo. Prof. Wolff examines current economic events—youth gun protests, tariffs, strikes, and corporate behavior—through a critical lens, tying these events to the broader workings of capitalism. In the second half, he is joined by Prof. Ian Seda-Irizarry to discuss the teaching of heterodox economics and the importance of challenging the orthodox, mainstream economic curriculum.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Youth-Led Gun Protests and Economic Context

• [00:10–07:20]
  • Hundreds of thousands of high school students participated in anti-gun violence protests across the U.S.
  • Wolff highlights the economic forces behind America’s gun culture, particularly the role of the National Rifle Association (NRA) as an “ad agency” for gun manufacturers—turning gun ownership into an ideology.
  • The NRA utilizes economic discontent, diverting anger from corporations and capitalism to government, promoting gun ownership as a means of self-protection.
  • Notable Quote:
    "Every capitalist’s dream is to make somebody else take the fall."
    —Richard D. Wolff [06:35]

2. Trump's Tariffs: Economic Reality vs. Political Theater

• [07:21–15:40]
  • Explanation of tariffs as taxes that raise the price of imported goods, supposedly to protect American jobs.
  • Wolff critiques the logic, noting that retaliatory tariffs by China will offset gains, and consumers end up paying higher prices.
  • Emphasizes that surface-level debates about tariffs and scapegoating immigrants distract from systemic economic issues and growing inequality.
  • Notable Quote:
    "This is political theater ... It distracts you. It gets you focused on something other than the economic system that is screwing you."
    —Richard D. Wolff [13:12]

3. West Virginia Teacher Strike & the Power of Collective Action

• [15:41–17:18]
  • The West Virginia teacher strike is celebrated as a model for resistance, inspiring similar efforts in Oklahoma, Arizona, and Kentucky.
  • Highlights how organizing and collective action can yield meaningful economic change.
  • Notable Quote:
    "Beginning to understand the power of getting together to make economic changes that really matter."
    —Richard D. Wolff [16:48]

4. Corporate Misdeeds: BMW’s Emissions Scandal

• [18:23–20:10]
  • Explains BMW’s recall due to emissions cheating, noting this reflects industry prioritization of profit over public health—a recurring capitalist theme.
  • Notable Quote:
    "Profit dominates over human health in a capitalist enterprise-based system."
    —Richard D. Wolff [20:05]

5. Brexit Negotiations: Elites vs. the Masses

• [20:11–22:45]
  • Discusses Brexit as another instance where public dissatisfaction is redirected toward external entities (in this case, the EU), rather than addressing domestic economic imbalances.
  • Asserts that elite negotiations aim to protect the wealthy on both sides, not address the real concerns of working people.

6. Age Discrimination at IBM & Job Insecurity

• [22:46–25:57]
  • Summarizes ProPublica’s investigation into IBM’s pattern of discriminating against older workers, highlighting systemic issues of job insecurity and the pursuit of profit at the expense of experienced employees.

7. Resistance to Privatization: Tennessee Public Sector

• [25:58–27:33]
  • University of Tennessee employees successfully resisted state-driven privatization plans, viewed as more about saving money for the wealthy than improving public services.

8. Congressional Budget Office (CBO) Report on Inequality

• [27:34–31:34]
  • Summarizes a new CBO study tracking income changes (1979–2014), adjusting for taxes, inflation, and social safety net programs:
    • Poorest 20%: +69% over 35 years (~2%/year)
    • Next 20%: +39% (~1%/year)
    • Top 1%: +227%
  • Concludes social welfare programs have not come close to correcting inequality.
  • Notable Quote:
    "Over the last 35 years, the rich got richer and everybody else didn’t ... The social programs in this country don’t undo our inequality. They don’t even come close."
    —Richard D. Wolff [30:48]

Featured Interview: Heterodox Economics with Ian Seda-Irizarry

Introduction to Heterodox Economics

• [32:30–33:47]
  • Prof. Seda-Irizarry defines heterodox economics as an umbrella for alternative perspectives to the discipline’s mainstream.
  • Emphasizes heterodoxy is not strictly anti-capitalist, but critical and open, capturing a spectrum of thought.

The Rationale for a Heterodox Economics Program

• [33:48–36:57]
  • Historically, demand for alternative economic theories spikes during crises.
  • The 2008 financial crash catalyzed John Jay College’s move to develop a heterodox economics program.

Curriculum Design: Including and Critiquing Orthodoxy

• [35:58–37:35]
  • The program does not ignore mainstream economics but teaches it as one perspective among many, equipping students to critically engage with dominant theories and their political implications.

Why Is Economics Education So Orthodox?

• [38:08–40:19]
  • Mainstream economics often functions as an argument for the status quo, similar to political and philosophical theory defending ruling elites in other eras.
  • Exclusive reliance on math and statistics often masks ideological assumptions.

Institutional Pushback & the Tradition of Contestation

• [40:19–43:16]
  • The discipline historically silences alternatives (e.g., token Marxist professors who faced hostility).
  • John Jay’s program aims not just for a token heterodox presence, but an institutional foundation challenging orthodoxy.

Heterodox Economics and Student Experience

• [43:43–46:25]
  • Many students from working-class or immigrant backgrounds recognize the relevance of Marxist and alternative theories to their real-life experiences.
  • The program’s interdisciplinary approach prepares students for careers in policy, journalism, government, and finance.
  • Notable Quote:
    "Many people who go into finance also benefit from reading Karl Marx. Should be a topic for another program."
    —Ian Seda-Irizarry [45:38]

Professional Outcomes & Administrative Support

• [46:25–48:12]
  • Graduates find employment in a variety of sectors and report their broad analytical training is valued by employers.
  • John Jay and the City University of New York have been supportive, seeing value in a liberal arts approach.

Relevance to Students’ Lives

• [48:48–50:41]
  • The curriculum addresses issues directly affecting students—inequality, poverty, job instability, family and immigration dynamics—connecting theory to reality.
  • Challenges mainstream narratives that marginalize or downplay income inequality.
• Notable Quote:
  "If you take some versions of the mainstream, they will tell you, inequality doesn't matter. What's really important is poverty. So we tackle those problems, we show them."
  —Ian Seda-Irizarry [50:13]

Philosophy of Education and Methodology

• [50:41–53:51]
  • Mainstream economics is often “utterly irrelevant” to students, focusing on abstract math over real-world concerns.
  • Heterodox education begins with students’ lived experiences.
  • Anecdote about a student thesis highlights limitations of orthodox methods.
  • Notable Quote:
    "It makes you wonder when you hear stories like this, whether the real function of the orthodoxy really wasn’t to understand what's going on, but to justify it, to celebrate it, to make it all look terribly well organized beyond improvement."
    —Richard D. Wolff [53:51]

Memorable Quotes (with Timestamps)

• "Every capitalist’s dream is to make somebody else take the fall."
  —Richard D. Wolff [06:35]

• "This is political theater ... It distracts you. It gets you focused on something other than the economic system that is screwing you."
  —Richard D. Wolff [13:12]

• "Profit dominates over human health in a capitalist enterprise based system."
  —Richard D. Wolff [20:05]

• "Over the last 35 years, the rich got richer and everybody else didn’t ... The social programs in this country don’t undo our inequality. They don’t even come close."
  —Richard D. Wolff [30:48]

• "We use [heterodox] to highlight the openness of alternatives to the orthodoxy."
  —Ian Seda-Irizarry [33:25]

• "Many people who go into finance also benefit from reading Karl Marx."
  —Ian Seda-Irizarry [45:38]

• "It makes you wonder ... whether the real function of economic orthodoxy really wasn’t to understand what's going on, but to justify it, to celebrate it."
  —Richard D. Wolff [53:51]

Important Timestamps

• 00:10–07:20: Gun violence protests, NRA, and ideology
• 07:21–15:40: Tariffs, economic logic, and political theater
• 15:41–17:18: West Virginia teacher strike & collective action
• 18:23–20:10: BMW emissions cheating
• 20:11–22:45: Brexit and negotiations by elites
• 22:46–25:57: Age discrimination at IBM
• 25:58–27:33: Tennessee anti-privatization pushback
• 27:34–31:34: CBO report on inequality
• 32:30–54:41: Interview with Prof. Ian Seda-Irizarry on heterodox economics

Tone and Language

The episode is conversational, passionate, and direct—using accessible language while tackling complex economic issues. Prof. Wolff delivers critiques with clarity and urgency, inviting listeners to question the status quo, while Ian Seda-Irizarry brings a thoughtful, engaged perspective to the discussion about economics education.

Summary

This episode challenges listeners to think critically about contemporary economic events and the way economics is taught. It argues for collective resistance, for seeing beyond political theater and scapegoating, and for an education system that opens itself to multiple viewpoints rather than defending the status quo. The interview with Prof. Ian Seda-Irizarry demonstrates that alternative models of study and action are not only possible but urgently needed to equip people for understanding—and resisting—the systemic problems of today’s economy.