ps.
suggested reading if you're genuinely interested in the subject outside zeitgeist movement:
On the subject of expectations and their role in the monetary system:
Akerlof, Shiller: Animal Spirits
Shiller: Irrational Exuberance
On the subject of western wealth:
King (Stephen D.): The Emerging Threats to Western Prosperity.
Also, the Warren Buffet piece on debt (macro-level global involved)
http://www.berkshirehathaway.com/letters/growing.pdf
If these aren't in 'layman enough' terms for you then it's perhaps best if you do not even try participate in a discussion on the subject. I don't try build boats or nuclear reactors either.