This is my first post of 2014. I've been so busy working on research projects and getting ready for the new semester, that I've neglected my blog! So as its my first post of 2014, I want to talk about something uplifting. How about Britain's impending financial crash and debt crisis? The video below by MoneyWeek is part scaremongering and part drumming up business, but it worth watching as it does make some salient points. Most people want to ignore the scale of the UK's debt problem, but this documentary tackles it head on. Happy 2014!
My colleague and former PhD student Gareth Campbell has created a website about the British Railway Mania - click here . This episode has been described by the Economist as probably the greatest bubble in human history. Gareth's website provides background on the Mania and posits some explanations for the 'bubble'. In his explanation of why the bubble happened, Gareth places a lot of emphasis on investor myopia regarding future dividends and uncalled capital. His study of investors during the episode does not support the view that this episode was fuelled by naive and irrational investors.