Hard Times - The Great Depression.

Summary by Krater

This video examines the economic history leading up to the Great Depression, analyzing the aftermath of World War I, agricultural overproduction, the gold standard, and monetary policy errors.

From the video

Answers: What caused the Great Depression?

• Great Depression causes and history
• World War I economic aftermath
• Agricultural overproduction and debt
• Gold standard and monetary policy
• Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act impacts
• Federal Reserve policy errors
• Franklin D. Roosevelt New Deal programs

What it concludes

• The Great Depression cannot be simply blamed on the 1929 stock market crash or the imposition of tariffs.
• Milton Friedman and Anna Schwartz argued that the Great Depression was caused by the Federal Reserve's failure to act as the lender of last resort.
• Michael Pettis argued that the 1929 crash cut off funding for countries buying US exports, necessitating domestic consumption or production adjustments.