Political Economy Primer

Political Economy Primer

Note: The PDF document currently covers Parts I through IV of the primer, which span the schools of thought, historical genealogy, political spectrum placement, and cross-school comparisons. The remaining sections are still in progress and will be posted as they're completed.

I've been working on this primer for the past several months. The goal from the start was to put together something I wished had existed when I first started studying economics: a single document that takes every major school of economic thought seriously on its own terms, rather than picking a winner upfront. Whether you're already familiar with some of these traditions or coming in fresh, I hope it gives you a useful framework for evaluating the economic arguments you encounter every day.

The primer covers 11 schools of thought, from Classical to modern Mainstream and Heterodox schools. It traces how these traditions developed, where they agree, where they clash, and what it looks like when you line their claims up against actual data. These first four parts form the foundation of the primer: describing each school, the history behind them, where they sit on the political spectrum, and how they compare on big questions like inflation, crises, and the role of government. These will set up the later analytical sections. The intent here is to be as factual as possible without inserting too much opinion or analysis. That will come later.

Your feedback is greatly welcomed. Please leave a comment below.

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