Opinion of Keynesian Economics

[America's Sweetheart ❤/𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝕭𝖔𝖔𝖙𝖞 𝖂𝖆𝖗𝖗𝖎𝖔𝖗]

The idea in itself is sound, but generally works horribly as most governments only follow Keynesian partially not fully.  Otherwise they run deficits during a recession, but continue to run them during growth.  Keynesian says you spend more during recessions to stimulate the economy, but cut back during growth however governments very rarely do the latter thus why it often hasn't worked well.  If they followed it fully instead of partially it would work well.

Why do you think it is sound?

Governments are made up of people too which are irrational actors. Why give them the keys to the economy when they do not have perfect information? Why not let individuals and companies decide in the marketplace? On the scale of an entire country of the size of the US with 320 million people it is hard to ask for someone to really know what is the right mix of spending in the market at any time in the business cycle.

The Fed's own admittance of failing to understand why inflation is the way it is and the yet they still have a reading of the economy and decide to raise rates or hold. It paints the picture of the dangers of the lack of information in the monetary field as well as the trust in technocrats to plan the economy. It is a similar one in the fiscal policy field and government dollars during the recession are coming either from the Treasury - tax collection or from the printing press.

It is telling that Keynes himself even after bank run warning signs were going off that he saw nothing wrong and failed to see the looming Depression.

Likewise, many neo-Keynesians such as Paul Krugman were in the dark on 2008 and then later spun info like the Obama stimulus where it was a case where the economy further worsened to say 'well it would have been even worse without it.' Or for 2013 during the timing of the sequester by the Republicans was the talk of the day he mentioned about not wanting to be like Europe with their experience with austerity cuts but when the economy did not sink as he predicted he turned around and credited it to Obama's stewardship of the economy.

Economics isn't about some fantasy perfect alternative that libertarians/Austrian School types present, economics is about choosing among a limited selection of imperfect alternatives. Keynesianism/fiat money 'backed' by central banks has its imperfections, but the alternative you support is a joke.