This episode focused on the previous weeks' major events, including the S&P downgrade of US debt, extreme stock market gyrations, and major signs of broad economic decline. Visiting guest, Professor Immanuel Ness, touches on the history and current prospects of worker-controlled enterprises as alternatives to capitalist enterprises.

Standard and Poor’s downgrades US debt, stock markets gyrate around the world, Sarkozy and Merkel perform yet another empty summit, the Chinese and Japanese economies look worrisome. Serious commentators worry about global recession, another global banking collapse, eurozone dissolution, and austerity programs that only make matters worse. Nouriel Roubini, famed Professor at NYU’s Stern School of Business asks this month, “Is Capitalism Doomed?” His answer: maybe.

On Economic Update with Professor Richard Wolff, Wolff and guests will discuss the current state of the economy, both locally and globally in relation to the economic crisis.We will focus on wages, jobs, taxes, and debts - and on interest rates, prices, and profits. We aim to explain why certain economic changes are happening and other changes get postponed or blocked and we will explore alternative ways to organize enterprises, markets, and government policies.

Richard Wolff joins Thom Hartmann on The Big Picture to discuss the recent downgrading by Standard and Poor's and the resulting plummet in the stock market (634 points) that occurred soon after - the largest one-day loss since the financial crisis began in 2008.

Las posturas políticas relacionadas con la “crisis” del límite de la deuda fueron más que nada una distracción del enfoque en los asuntos de mayor envergadura. El más fuerte de esos — que subyace la caída económica en Estados Unidos— sigue reapareciendo para mostrar los costos, el dolor y la injusticia que amenazan con disolver a la sociedad.

A Radio-Documentary on the Brecht Forum / New York Marxist School produced by Barbara Eisenmann. Aired on German Public Radio on Aug 9, 2011.

On Economic Update with Professor Richard Wolff, Wolff and guests will discuss the current state of the economy, both locally and globally in relation to the economic crisis.We will focus on wages, jobs, taxes, and debts - and on interest rates, prices, and profits. We aim to explain why certain economic changes are happening and other changes get postponed or blocked and we will explore alternative ways to organize enterprises, markets, and government policies.

Appeared originally on Truthout.org on August 3rd, 2011

The political posturing around the debt ceiling "crisis" was mostly a distraction from the hard issues. The hardest of those - underlying US economic decline - keeps resurfacing to display costs, pains and injustices that threaten to dissolve society. Its causes - two long-term trends over the last 30 years - help also to explain the political failures that now compound the social costs of economic decline.

Appeared in the Guardian "Comment is Free" on July 28th, 2011

Corporate profits and stocks have recovered, but for the millions of Americans who live on Main Street, economic conditions remain depressed. Photograph: Mark Lennihan/AP

Richard Wolff makes an appearance on KPFA's Evening News program on Sunday, July 31st 2011 to speak on the breaking news of the debt ceiling in the United States, commenting on the theatric aspects of the current American political events as well as the possible consequences.