The Banker Who Made America: Thomas Willing and the Rise of the American Financial Aristocracy 1731-1821
If you haven't followed the money, chances are you don't know the real story of America and its Revolution. Nothing gives a clearer insight into this history than the life of early America's dominant merchant trader, first bank president, and first central banker, Thomas Willing.
This dramatic untold story sheds genuinely new light on the genesis of the American Republic, as well as the enduring economic and political conflicts that still shape US society today.
Richard's Works
The Paradox of Debt: A New Path to Prosperity Without Crisis
A MUST-READ FOR ANYONE LOOKING TO UNDERSTAND—AND FIX—THE DEEP, UNDERLYING DYNAMICS OF THE AMERICAN ECONOMY
Increasing debt is what creates household growth, yet inevitably leads to economic catastrophe when occurring in excess. How can we shape policy that attempts to tame the dark side of debt while allowing it to continue to create wealth, perhaps with more equality than ever before?
An Illustrated Business History of the United States
DISCOVER TRIUMPHS AND CATASTROPHES IN AMERICA'S BUSINESS HISTORY
Whether viewed through the lens of real estate, finance, agriculture, industry, or other sectors, the story of American business has been extraordinary, with outsized characters, breathtaking achievements, spectacular collapses, and notorious swindles. This book tries to capture a sense of that story.
The Case for a Debt Jubilee
The author’s clear, straight-forward descriptions of the economic conditions that have created our present debt crisis, as well as the debt restructuring proposals to alleviate the mounting debt burdens, make a strong case for repairing the ever-growing imbalances of the current U.S. economy.
A Brief History of Doom: Two Hundred Years of Financial Crises
Financial crises happen time and again in post-industrial economies—and they are extraordinarily damaging. Building on insights gleaned from many years of work in the banking industry and drawing on a vast trove of data, Richard Vague argues that such crises follow a pattern that makes them both predictable and avoidable.
The Next Economic Disaster: Why It's Coming and How to Avoid It
Current debates about economic crises typically focus on the role that public debt and debt-fueled public spending play in economic growth. This illuminating and provocative work shows that it is the rapid expansion of private rather than public debt that constrains growth and sparks economic calamities like the financial crisis of 2008.
Visit debteconomics.org to access downloadable data on debt trends for most major economies.