Why We’re Getting Poorer

A Realist’s Guide to the Economy and How We Can Fix It

De: Cahal Moran

Narrado por: Cahal Moran

An insider's guide to our broken economy and how it fails to serve us.

‘A fascinating examination of the failures of modern economics, and how these failures are harming us all' Grace Blakeley, author of Vulture Capitalism

‘Easily one of the most compelling economics communicators of our generation.' Yuan Yang, FT columnist and MP for Earley and Woodley

Did you know that while we think of money as notes issued by the government, the truth is that the overwhelming majority of money today is credit created by private banks?

Did you know that the reason housing keeps getting less accessible is because we haven’t found a way to separate houses from land in our policies?

And did you know that far from globalisation being a mystical force, certain countries and currencies have dominated the way it has played out – to their own advantage?

Whilst economics is at the heart of the society we live in, governing so many functions from our taxes to where we live to the price of our shopping, few of us have a strong grasp on the subject. This book is here to help.

Why We're Getting Poorer delves into the key topics in economics – money, globalisation, inequality, climate change and growth – showing that what we think we know about these things is wrong, and teaching us what we really need to know. Deciphering the jargon and complexity of economic thinking, with examples ranging from the Simpsons to the German football league to The Inbetweeners, Cahal Moran shows us why our economy set us up to fail, and offers suggestions for how we can make positive changes.

Written by an award-winning economist and the YouTuber responsible for ‘Unlearning Economics’, Why We're Getting Poorer is a thrilling, iconoclastic guide to how the world really works.

©2025 Cahal Moran (P)2025 HarperCollins Publishers

An accessible explanation of why things feel so broken

This book does an excellent job of breaking down what its been like to come of age during the back end of the 08 housing crisis. Got through it in under a week, and I plan to relisten next week, especially to the bit on Housong

must listen

fantastic. Illuminating and measured. Nice summary and synthesis of his YouTube videos. Thanks for taking the time to put this together.

Approachable, Entertaining, Educational, and Timely

It’s easy to follow, well structured, and packed with information that EVERYONE should know. Our economy isn’t an accident and has always been influenced by both internal and international politics. This book critiques our economy from an internal and realistic perspective, rather than through abstract or philosophical lenses.

It's a very big Unlearning Economics video and I'm here for it

It reads (sounds) just like a normal Unlearning Economics video so if you like them you'll like this. The ideas are well formulated and argued and possible solutions for all problems posed are given. Overall I'm pretty happy with the book, worth my free token

Leftist drivel

Before buying this book I researched the author. The association of economists he belongs to admits, or at least purports to admit, economists of all political affiliations into its membership. If that is true, the author must ignore everything written since Marx, except for Keynes and maybe Lenin.
"Conservative" economists advocate for capitalism, while (usually) admitting to its flaws. This book, by contrast, tries to ignore how much capitalism has raised standards of living worldwide solely because the benefits are shared unequally. Are poor people overfed, obese, housed in small homes or (shudder!) mere apartments? Yes, but just look how much money those plutocrats have! While it is true that a very few live without the basics, capitalism has created so much wealth that middle class Americans live better than wealthy aristocrats of 200 years ago. "Yes, but super rich people live even better!" the author splutters. Yawn.
Want to see real poverty? Go look in a communist dictatorship, or a tribal kleptocracy. Capitalism has made princes of us all, this guy's sour grapes notwithstanding.