Money: A Horror Story (or: Fractional Reserve Banking for Non-Economists)
Taught by Charlotte Bowen
Charlotte Bowen is a writer, polymath, and all around good egg who lives in Windsor Terrace, Brooklyn. She blogs about languages, history, and the joys of autodidactic learning at friendlypolymath.com.
John Kenneth Galbraith once said that "the process by which banks create money is so simple that the mind is repelled." The real story of how money comes into existence is indeed very simple, but most people don't know the explanation or understand the frightening consequences that has for the wider society.
This class will cover the history and principles of our modern money-creation mechanism and the consequences -- positive and negative -- for ourselves and our society. No previous economics knowledge or super math skills are necessary.
(Class size: 15-20, lecture + q&a)