> Marx isn't of much help here - though Veblen is, as is Minsky.
In recent crisis writing, there has been a shortage of Veblen. I did find a paper with a decent account of why Veblen matters:
Household Saving, Class Identity, and Conspicuous Consumption By Jon D. Wisman <http://econpapers.repec.org/paper/amuwpaper/1908.htm>
Shane