David Ricardo on Public Debt

David Ricardo on Public Debt provides a comprehensive view of the topic of public debt from the Ricardian standpoint. It shows how and why Ricardo's analysis of public debt connects to other themes and issues in Ricardian economics. With extensive reference to Ricardo's own words Churchman demonstrates that his writings and speeches on the subject of public debt provide an interesting exploration of issues still very relevant today. In addition, they furnish us with a rich source of evidence regarding topics of interest to all Ricardian scholars, including his theories of resource allocation and economic growth, the quality of his applications of analysis to practical questions, and the motives behind both his abstract reasoning and policy recommendations.

List of Tables Preface Acknowledgements Introduction Public Debt and the Economics of David Ricardo Public Debt Policy and Public Extravagance: The Ricardo-Malthus Debate The Capital Levy Proposal: Implications for Ricardian Method Ricardo on Public Debt: The Question of Motive Ricardo on Modern Public Debt Theory Summary and Conclusion Appendices Index