Austerity never works. This was the argument of Brown University political economist Mark Blyth, author of Austerity: The History of a Dangerous Idea, as he offered his perspective on economic policy to an audience at the Goethe-Institut Los Angeles. The idea that a country cuts in order to grow is backward.

“In order to save, you need to have income from which to save,” he said. If every nation tries to save at once, no nation generates any income, no one buys any products, GDPs shrink all around, and debt grows. Austerity only sinks economies deeper into their economic troubles—and places an undue burden on the most vulnerable.

In Europe, said Blyth, “Every single country that has gone on an austerity program has gone into more debt, not less.” Unemployment is rampant throughout the E.U.; In Greece, youth unemployment has hit 60 …

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