Greek Debt and American Debt: Graduation Speech at the University of Athens Economics and Business School

John Geanakoplos ()
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John Geanakoplos: Cowles Foundation, Yale University, https://economics.yale.edu/people/faculty/john-geanakoplos

No 1837, Cowles Foundation Discussion Papers from Cowles Foundation for Research in Economics, Yale University

Abstract: This is the graduation speech I gave on receiving an honorary doctorate at the University of Athens Economics and Business School. I talk about my Greek family, about how I got interested in economics, and then how in the 1990s I came to think about default, collateral, and leverage as the central features of the financial/macro economy, despite their complete absence (even now) from any textbooks. Finally I suggest that the Greek debt problem, and on a bigger scale, the American debt problem, can only be cured when lenders are prodded to forgive. That would be better for the borrowers but also for the lenders.

Keywords: Greek; Parents; Mathematical economics; Yale; Mortgage; Collateral; Securitization; Leverage; Foreclosure; Forgive; Principal (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D52 D53 E44 G01 G10 G12 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 13 pages
Date: 2011-12
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hpe
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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