Keynesians Supply Siders and Monetarists

- Keynesian Theory
- Supply-Side Theory
- Monetarism
We will begin by summarizing the basics of each of these schools of economic thought and will make brief mention of some of the points of conflict and agreement between them. We will then note the ways in which these theories have fit into their surrounding political context. Finally, this writer will venture an opinion as to the merits of each of these systems.
Keynesian economics embodies a certain degree of skepticism with respect to the ability of free markets to automatically restore lost economic equilibrium. Heilbroner has noted that where classical economic models had tended to see the business cycle as being something like a see-saw that would always right itself, a proper simile for Keynesian views of the business cycle is that it is like an elevator that can go up, down, or be frozen in place. John Keynes, who published his The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money in 1936, believed that the Great Depression was an example of an economy frozen in place at an equilibrium point that mandated disastrous social consequences.
If, in fact, the economy could be frozen at a low level of prosperity, if there were no self-correcting property in economic activity such as classical economists in the tradition of Adam Smith believed in, then what was to be the solution to a stagnant economy? The answer, according to Keynes, was deliberate government stimulation of the moribund economy. As Thurow and Heilbroner state, "The crux of Keynes' message was therefore that government spending might be an essential economic policy".