Book Description

Hailed as "the most dramatic and comprehensive account" of the early years of Russian capitalism (New York Times Book Review)

David Hoffman, former Moscow bureau chief for the Washington Post, sheds light onto the hidden lives of Russia's most feared power brokers: the oligarchs. Focusing on six of these cunning and ruthless men--Alexander Smolensky, Yuri Luzhkov, Anatoly Chubais, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Boris Berezovsky, and Vladimir Gusinsky--Hoffman reveals how a few players rose to the pinnacle of Russia's new capitalism.

The oligarchs started small. Before perestroika, they lived the lives of Soviet citizens, stuck in a dead-end system, cramped apartments, and long bread lines. But as Communism loosened, they found gaps in the economy and reaped their first fortunes by getting their hands on fast money. As the government weakened and their businesses flourished, they grew greedier. The state auctioned off its own assets, and they grabbed the biggest oil companies, mines, and factories. They went on wild borrowing sprees, taking billions of dollars from gullible western lenders. When the ruble collapsed, the tycoons saved themselves by hiding their assets and running for cover. This is a saga of brilliant triumphs and magnificent failures, the untold story of how a rapacious, unruly capitalism was born out of the ashes of Soviet communism. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A wonderful review of the Oligarchs
The Oligarchs of Russia are a special breed and this excellent book brings them to light. Hoffman excellently details the various men who came tot he fore in the New Russia under Yeltsin. From Mayor Luzhkov to Gusinky, Khordorovsky and Berezovky among others this book paints a wonderful picture of the hustlers, gangsters, politicians and Bankers that recreated Russia in the 1990s, making it mirror more 1920s America then the past soviet empire. This wonderful account details the back story of the various super-rich who came to dominate Russian Industry from Yukos to Aeroflot and the Russian Central Bank, from oil to automobiles. These men started poor, many were of Jewish ancestry and subjected to the prying eyes of the vast soviet bureaucracy. In one oligarchs case he started out selling Bibles on the black market and another pioneered the building of Dacha's over and above his quota for production. A wonderful tale about the horrors of communism, for instance the story of Russia's disgusting massive warehouse for vegetables, and the story of the cowboy capitalists, most of whom are now in prison or under indictment and forced to flee abroad.

Seth J. Frantzman ... Read more

Book Description

"A superb volume on the new economics of geography by three pioneers in the field. This lucid, elegant book is a must for any graduate course in urban economics." -- Edward L. Glaeser, Professor of Economics, Harvard University

Since 1990 there has been a renaissance of theoretical and empirical work on the spatial aspects of the economy--that is, where economic activity occurs and why. Using new tools--in particular, modeling techniques developed to analyze industrial organization, international trade, and economic growth--this "new economic geography" has emerged as one of the most exciting areas of contemporary economics.

The authors show how seemingly disparate models reflect a few basic themes, and in so doing they develop a common "grammar" for discussing a variety of issues. They show how a common approach that emphasizes the three-way interaction among increasing returns, transportation costs, and the movement of productive factors can be applied to a wide range of issues in urban, regional, and international economics. This book is the first to provide a sound and unified explanation of the existence of large economic agglomerations at various spatial scales. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A pretty good textbook with material not found elsewhere
If you are considering buying this book, you will probably want to do so. If you are interested in applying regional analysis or the "new" spatial economics that they present, you will have a good starting point. The necessary background is probably be a year of Ph.D. level economic theory. Specific high points are the exposition of the Dixit-Stiglitz model of monopolistic competition and the evolution of urban systems. All new Ph.D. students will have a use for chapter 4, which is an easy-to-read discussion of monopolistic competition. Further, the book is rigorous enough to be used in academic work. I recommend it to anyone interested in regional or urban economics. It is useful to students and practicing economists alike. Its rigor makes it academic, but its ease of exposition makes it useful for those without extraordinary math backgrounds. Compared to similar books, you get a lot of value for the price. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Institutions as Panacea
In this book North modifies the rationality assumption of neoclassical theory and puts individuals into a more complex framework of decision-making. According to my reading, this new model is characterized by an emphasis on incentive constrains (structures/institutions) and a dynamic process of learning (both individual and collective).

But here North runs into a problem with the infamous structure/agency dichotomy. That is, he means to rise above methodological individualism by incorporating a broad, deterministic social "structure" into his analysis -- "by structure I mean those characteristics of a society which we believe to be the basic determinants of performance" (3). However, he also seems to chalk a great deal of explanatory power up to individual leadership, calculation and rationality: the state specifying rules of the game to maximize rents (24) and also: "throughout history, individuals given a choice between a state-however exploitative it might be-and anarchy, have decided for the former" (24). But if there's such a powerful structure, then can individuals really "choose" their fate? How much leeway is there for strategic calculation? On page 32 he seems to say that the masses have no power to choose: "institutional innovation will always come from rulers rather than constituents since the latter would always face the free rider problem". Is North's structure (and institutions) merely an aggregation of the choices of masses of agents, or is it the strategic choices of a few ruling principals and their agents, or is it the evolution of an impersonal body of culture, ideas, law, etc., or is it all three? And if it's all three, then is he trying to incorporate too much into the concept of "institutions", until they become tautological? What CANNOT be an institution under his definition, and if everything is an institution, then how can we formulate testable, falsifiable hypotheses about social change?

North defines institutions as "the humanly devised constrains that construct human interaction" (p. 344); or, the rules of the game in a society. Thus, it is clear that North is trying to provide an explanation of the dynamic interaction among many factors, which is always a difficult task. But he is to be commended for modifying neoclassical thought in this provocative new way, potentially opening a path for a whole new research agenda in the social sciences.

theory covering eight millenia of economic history
Professor North's work is divided into two parts. The first briefly outlines a theory of structural change of institutions through time. North argues that the most interesting aspects of economic history involve assumptions that standard, neoclassical economic theory holds contant. In particular, North argues that "The physiography and resources of the regions together with the state of military technology played decisive roles in determining the size and characteristics of the state and in shaping the forms of economic organization" (pg. 64), and that those forms overcome shirking, known as the Free Rider Problem, through the elaboration of a dominant ideology. It is just such considerations that neoclassical theory cannot account for in its model of the utilitarian actor and yet which are so vital in understanding the essential elements of economic history (rather than economics) - structure and change.

The second part applies the ideas of the first to a few thousand years of human history. At least that is the aim. It is actually little more than a brief recounting of major events in world, particularly Western history. North starts with the so-called First Economic Revolution; that is, mankind's switch from a primarily hunter/gatherer existence to one based mostly on agriculture. He then moves through the decline of the ancient world, spending most all of his time on the fall of the Roman Empire. From there he covers the rise of western Europe and then the American economy at the turn of the last century.

It is this second part that is the book's weakest link. North should either have spent more time discussing how his theory relates to the event he surveys or let the reader apply the theory on her own and left the historical essays out entirely. As they stand, they are little more than brief reviews in "benchmark" and tired historical events. It would have been interesting, for instance, to see how Roman economic institutions and its ideology of stoicism compared with the Ch'in dynasty and confucianism, or of the role that "physiography" - a word used but never discussed - played in the differing development of each. Here North seems much less willing to speculate.

His theory also leaves a little to be desired. By explaining innovation merely as a result of the development of communal, and then personal property rights, he can make the scientist and historian of science shudder. He argues for the central role of structure in forging economic systems and the dominant order, but seems merely to assume that no structure existed in early hunter/gatherer bands - that they were models of egalitarianism. Such ideas run counter to a lot of accumulating evidence that man, like all social mammals, has a basic social structure "hardwired" in us. It is not clear how such knowledge would effect the formation of early "states" as North describes them.

But all criticisms aside, the book is well-written and the discussions, if they cannot lay all controversy to rest, certainly give the reader an excellent introduction to the economic history of man. Given the spate of less-than-rigorous books on the subject that have been published of late, this one is a welcome breath of fresh air.

A must read.... I suppose....
Although this is an important book from the 1993 Nobel Prizewinner in Economics, and a text that capably and fully illustrates what it sets out to do at its outset, I hesitate to recommend it universally for reasons that aren't fully clear to me.....

Certainly, this is a book that should be read by students of economic histroy and political economy. It illustrates how social changes (i.e. changes in property rights) lead to seemingly unrelated changes across the whole of society. It is well-written. Perhaps you should buy this book....

Must Read
A must read for anyone interested in economics and economic history. This book gives a sophisticated and neccessary background that will give an understanding as to why the world is the way it is today. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Conventional wisdom has it that John Kenneth Galbraith's The Affluent Society spawned the neoliberalism we see in Bill Clinton, Tony Blair, and other world leaders. The economist's prose, lofty but still easily manageable, laid down the gauntlet for the post-cold war class struggle that was still far in the future in 1958. Galbraith saw the widening gap between the richest and the poorest as an emergent threat to economic stability, and proposed significant investment in parks, transportation, education, and other public amenities--what we now call infrastructure--to ameliorate these differences and postpone depression and revolution indefinitely. Widely criticized by conservatives and libertarians wary of public expenditures or increased government influence, Galbraith still influences liberal and neoliberal thinking. He has acknowledged that his work, like that of most social scientists, contains flaws (like his dire prediction of an out-of-control unemployment and inflation spiral that petered out in the 1980's), but much of it remains fresh and true even today. Four years beforeSilent Spring, he wrote about the consumerist blight that threatened our wild lands equally as much as our cities; his hoped-for increase in environmental awareness has grown significantly in recent years. Whether you support the political implementations of his views, experiencing his writing is important to put those views in context.More than this, though, it is an honest pleasure to read such original ideas so well expressed. --Rob Lightner ... Read more

Reviews (14)

Affluent Society was a partly factual and interesting book.
The Affluent Society was a term to describe the United States after World War II. An Affluent Society is rich in private resources but poor in public ones because of a misplaced priority on increasing production in the private sector. John Kenneth Galbraith argued that the U.S. should shift resources to improve schools, the infrastructure, recreational resources, and social services providing a better standard of life instead of mor and more consumer goods. The term is now used to indicate prosperity, wide spread I shouldn't tell you any more or it would spoil your experience when you read it. It was a great book. John Galbraith game some great opinions which he truly believed in. I would reccomend this book to anyone who is into American history.

Thought Provoking, Well Written Leftist Economics
Galbraith's book is certainly thought-provoking & worth reading. His arguments are well thought out, and his writing is wryly witty. Even if you disagree with his views, as many have, it's worth a read.

Galbraith starts the book off by reviewing how many early economic ideas were created in periods of scarcity, and that the notion of scarcity may not appropriate for today's age of mass affluence. Those with vested interests in production (i.e. large businesses) still cling to the "conventional wisdom" that increased production equals progress, even though goods are now abundant and our basic material needs have been satisfied. To stimulate further demand, corporations must resort to salesmanship and advertising. If advertising stopped, demand would fall, production would drop, and unemployment would rise; thus, business continue to focus on increasing production to ensure their own survival.

There are other threats to production. Economic cycles may result in a depression. Poorly managed firms may have to lay off workers. As a result, people -- and especially politicians --focus on economic growth to avoid these insecurities. Growth is something that both the rich and poor will vote for, since they both want to keep their jobs and acquire more goods. Growing out of a recession also seems promising. The net result is that society as a whole focuses on increasing production by private industry.

Next, Galbraith shifts his view from private industry to the public sector. He does this by introducing the idea of social balance, which asserts that as private spending increases, public spending should increase to match. For example, if factories build more cars, more money needs to be invested in public roads. Unfortunately, private goods are sold via advertising by companies that can react quickly to changes in demand. In contrast, public investment by governments reacts much more slowly, and typically lags private spending and investment, due to regulations, bureaucracy, and voter's general aversion to new taxes. The result is a world rich in private goods but poor in public ones: beautiful cars driving on poor roads, well-dressed kids in the crumbling public school, neighborhoods with beautiful homes but polluted parks.

So what to do? Galbraith's proposed solution is that we should invest in our economic infrastructure: our parks, our roads, our educational system, long-term scientific research, police, and the like. To fund this, he emphasizes sales taxes, which reduce consumption, and make those who consume a lot pay for it. To alleviate poverty and inequality, Galbraith also proposes to expand unemployment insurance so that one could choose not to work, yet still be able to get by. In his view, this would allow more people to reduce their work week, or not work at all, or to be able to focus on work they really enjoy.

Although this is certainly a liberal view & may not be feasible, his views certainly were eye-opening and thought provoking. For that reason, I recommend the book.

An outdated and wrong book
The Affluent Society is no longer relevant to contemporary economics. It was written in 1958, when the world was mired in the Cold War. Not only is this book irrelevant, it is also elitist and arrogant. Galbraith says that people who belied Karl Marx were inherently more intelligent. I think it is about time to stop calling an irrelevant book a classic.

A book all students of economics should read.
If you agree with Galbraith's notions on economics you may find this a seminal work. If you disagree with him you will no where find a better spar for your own ideas. (Friedman spent an entire book analyzing Galbraith) Love it or hate it The Affluent Society looms large in American economic thought of the 20th century. The book itself is dedicated primarily to re-assessing the role of production in an economy of increasing affluence. Economics long ago acquired the unhappy designation as "the dismal science." This was derived from the observation by all famous early economists that economic life for the masses was inevitably harsh. Ricardo, Smith, and Marx all agreed that while a minority might enjoy abundance the majority were doomed to struggle for their very economic survival. As early as the 1950s Galbraith made the very simple point that the economic prospects of the masses are no longer dark. The average worker could (and still does) expect reasonable wages, a constant supply of luxury goods, and free time to enjoy these things. The modern economy is no longer a battle for simple survival but rather one over what an individual's share of excess production should be. Some reviewers have commented that the specifics in The Affluent Society have become dated. Indeed automotive tail-fins are no longer the common automotive add-on they once were, but the underlying questions remain valid. In the economy of 150 years ago to claim that suffering was inevitable seemed fair, for it was the state of the masses. In the economy of the present where economic deprivation is no longer the norm, to claim some must suffer while the majority live in relative affluence suddenly appears cruel.
A social scientist who argued the changes of the last 200 years were not relevant to analysis would be laughed at in any other field. Unequivocably our economic priorities have changed during that time. The Affluent Society provides a history of that change, a look at how our failure to adapt has led to a number of social problems, and suggests how we might better organize economic priorities in the present. It is no small acheivement.

Interesting case study of a Canadian in America
The Affluent Society is probably not read anymore, and for good reason, because it doesn't have a great deal to say today. It is an "intervention," as the leftists like to say, and it doesn't translate very well to very different circumstances. Just for that reason, it is a snapshot of a particularly interesting time, the late 50's, in American history. What is most interesting about the book is the aristocratic disdain he holds for large gas grills, tail fins, televisions, and advertising. The idea that growth is not organic or spontaneous but generated by advertising--the book was written at about the same time as Vance Packard was big--is repugnant to Galbraith. How frivolous! Or even worse, how trivial. Because Galbraith was part of the strategic air command and was involved in the bombing of cities in WWII, he was intimately familiar with the consequences of that campaign, and he tells a story about how production actually increased after the bombing because all the people engaged in services, like waiters and housecleaners and barbers, went into production after the city had been destroyed. (Albert Speer, who organized that production, recalls meeting his American counterpart after the war and being very impressed with his professionalism. Speer and Galbraith are very similar, no the least in their relationships with charismatic leaders.) Galbraith does not argue, as one would expect, that quality of life is largely divorced from "production"--he is all for production, so long as it involves food, housing, steel, and other essentials. What he notes, instead, is that life went on as before after all the superfluities were stripped away. If only the masses were not so stupid! If only we could maintain a war economy after the war is over: that is the implicit message of the book (and of course Galbraith would be in charge). The idea that all those factories that once produced beautiful bombers would now be producing chrome by the ton was deeply offensive to sense both of discretion--wealth is not for display--and technocratic utility: production should serve a purpose, whether it be fighting Hitler or fighting poverty. Galbraith is also a spectacularly good writer. ... Read more

Book Description

The definitive guide to understanding and interpreting economic indicators

The Book

It is essential in business and many professions today to have a thorough understanding of economic information. Written for the non-specialist, this highly accessible guide provides the keys to understanding all the major and many lesser economic indicators: what they are, the areas they cover, their reliability, and how and why to interpret them. It contains chapters covering:
• GDP (Gross Domestic Product),GNP (Gross National Product) and GNI (Gross National Income)
• Growth, trends and cycles
• Population, employment, unemployment
• Government and Consumers
• Investment and savings
• Industry and commerce
• Exchange rates
• Money and financial markets Now in its fifth edition this fully updated, revised guide is invaluable for anyone who needs or simply wants to have the underlying economic realities of the world we live in clearly explained. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

If only economics were that easy
True to the style of The Economist, this book makes everything seem easier than it really is. However, for people who spend too much time thinking about economic issues, this is actually rather refreshing, much like a cold beer after a long day's work.

Some examples: "In the long term, the growth in economic output depends on the number of people working and output per worker (productivity)" (Page 41); Or "In general, the more optimistic consumers are, the more likely they are to spend money. This boosts consumer spending and economic output" (Page 93)...

...One begins to yearn for the days where economics was more of an explanatory and less a mathematical science.

The guide is divided into a number of chapters discussing issues and examples related to
- How economic activity is calculated, and what the main indicators GDP/GNP/NNI capture and do not capture, as well as what changes in these indicators or their components mean.
- Employment indicators such as employment by sector or the unemployment rate
- Balance of payments and fiscal indicators, such as tax revenue or budget deficit
- Consumer indicators, such as disposable income or consumer confidence and their significance
- Investment and savings indicators, such as investment intentions or sales/inventory ratios
- Business indicators, including business conditions, auto sales, construction orders and other common stats
- Exchange rates and financial market indicators, such as interest rates and money supply.
- Prices and wages, like the effect of oil price changes, among others

Coverage of the most common and widely available indicators is fairly comprehensive. Given the simplicity of the book, it is better to have a certain level of economic knowledge and opinion to be able to put the content in context. Not much different to reading The Economist, really.

A good reference guide for understanding economic indicators
The book itself will be of great use for those analysts who evaluate country risk analysis. Economic indicators sometimes tend to be hard to understand, but this guide makes them easy to comprehend and relate to each other.

A good purchase
As the title says, this book can help you make sense of economic indicators. The more you know, the easier it is for you to understand the economical aspects of society, and this seemed to add a lot more to my knowledge, and it clarified other thoughts. ... Read more

Book Description

Time series analysis has undergone many changes during recent years with the advent of unit roots and cointegration. This textbook by G. S. Maddala and In-Moo Kim is based on a successful lecture program and provides a comprehensive review of these topics as well as structural change. G. S. Maddala is one of the most distinguished writers of graduate and undergraduate econometrics textbooks today and Unit Roots, Cointegration and Structural Change represents a major contribution that will be of interest both to specialists and graduate and undergraduate students. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

modern econometrics with latest developments
This is a book on specialized topics in econometric modeling. Like Franses recent book it deals with ARIMA models with unit roots and advances in the theory of cointegration. This book is somewhat advanced but is perfect for the right audience, the statisticians and econometricians that deal with time series modeling (univariate and multivariate ) and structural equation modeling.

The asymptotic theory is well covered but the unique feature of the book is that it points out that the asymptotics can give very poor approximations in small to moderate sample sizes. The authors provide alternatives including the use of the bootstrap for standard error estimates, confidence bounds and hypothesis testing (particularly tests for unit roots).

It is clear and covers the important literature. Much like Franses book it covers bootstrap and Bayesian methods and really does provide a current and useful approach to important problems and methodology in econometrics.

It could be used for a special topics graduate course or as a supplement to a graduate course in econometrics.

Excellent Book
Excellent book

This one of the best book about cointegration.

Intuition behind modern time series analysis
This book is extremely well written. It gives a good intuition behind unit roots and cointegration. It tells us to be critical when it comes to unit roots and cointegration; they are not very powerful in a statistical sense. The authors warn of using such techniques blindly. This book is a good start for an intuitive feel after a tough Time Series course where one is all entangled in sophisticated statistical techniques.It is also a good book for the professional economist not very knowlegeable in time series econometrics. I personally learned a lot from that book and it increased my critical capacity when it comes to econometrics.

A good reference

The book by Maddala and Kim is a very good and relativelynontechnical pointer to the time series literature on unit roots andcointegration. The book is meant to be used as a reference, not readas a text.

Maddala and Kim do a good job of discussing the strengths and weaknesses of the myriad unit root and cointegration tests that have appeared in recent years. If you want to know more about the asymptotic theory, then refer to _Time Series Analysis_ by Hamilton or read the original journal articles.

For a more balanced review of the Maddala and Kim book, one might also take a look at the book review written by Heather Anderson in the December 1999 issue of the Economic Record. END

the worst book I have ever had!
I was required to read this book as a part of my field course in econometrics. The book is full of mistakes, especially on asymptotic distributions of estimators. Since the properties of these estimators of unit root tests depend on those asymptotic distributions, this kind of mistake is crucial. Also, the results they derive are sometimes misleading and other times even outright wrong! This book is a mere survey of papers other people wrote and not a good one at that. In summary, do not spend your money on this book! ... Read more

Book Description

India today is a vibrant free-market democracy, a nation well on its way to overcoming decades of widespread poverty. The nation’s rise is one of the great international stories of the late twentieth century, and in India Unbound the acclaimed columnist Gurcharan Das offers a sweeping economic history of India from independence to the new millennium.

Das shows how India’s policies after 1947 condemned the nation to a hobbled economy until 1991, when the government instituted sweeping reforms that paved the way for extraordinary growth.Das traces these developments and tells the stories of the major players from Nehru through today. As the former CEO of Proctor & Gamble India, Das offers a unique insider’s perspective and he deftly interweaves memoir with history, creating a book that is at once vigorously analytical and vividly written. Impassioned, erudite, and eminently readable, India Unbound is a must for anyone interested in the global economy and its future. ... Read more

Reviews (10)

marvellous
A well written and passionate summary of economic and political changes in India since independence. It was an eye-opener in many ways: readers of Ayn Rand would appreciate parallels to situations described in Atlas Shrugged. Coming from a former CEO of P&G India, the book offers a useful perspective on economic policies and changes over the last few decades. Though often repititive in its ranting against policies of earlier Indian governments, the book is still fairly engrossing.

Understanding Indian political Economics.
Its a wonderful book for all those who are interested in India or for that matter even those who aren't.I'm sure in the last decade or so Indian Economy has shown promising growth, which makes it impossible to undermine importance of India in overall Global trade.
This book throws light on the economic path that India followed after Independence and the influence of Politics in the initial phase and the absence of the same on the Economy in the last few years.
Very good reading with sound analytical observations.

Growth Unlimited - India Unbound
This book has become one of my favourite for two reasons. 1.) The author has written it in such an engrossing way(full of anecdotes) that you crave for more at the end of every chapter.
2.) It talks about present India.
This book does not give a picture (snake charmers, elephants, magicians, poverty...)which has been depicted for years. India Unbound traces meteoric rise of India after liberalisation and explores the reason behind it in Indian culture and tradition. It talks about deep rooted culture of Indian Business Community which has survived everything to see this day. I recommend India Unbound to everybody who wants to understand present Indian scenario. A must read for all.

Das is a thorough Pollyanna
India Unbound presents a thesis which is good to read but might not be as practical as one would like.

Das has definitely written a highly readable commentary and for that he gets the four stars. The material is anecdotal and is highly redundant at times. He keeps repeating themes throughout the book which might be deliberate to drive the point home.

All in all a good read for anyone interested in India economics and a good dose of why capitalism-is-good-for-all rhetoric. Now, if only the Indian youth actually reads this book.

On the slow but steady road to prosperity
As former CEO of Procter & Gamble in India, Gurcharan Das seems eminently qualified to describe how policy reforms in the early 1990s finally broke the stranglehold of the License Raj on Indian's enormous economic potential. His prognosis that half of India could turn middle class by the first quarter of this century, while somewhat optimistic, is not out of line with what many analysts agree is certainly possible.

Much of this book is an indictment of past policy failures and an relatively upbeat assesment of India's future economic prospects. Das delivers this in elegant, readable prose with analysis which is generally well backed by statistics.

There are many quotable extracts from this book, but I will limit myself to one which draws from his comparison of India's economic performance to the faster growing East Asian economies until the onset of the 1997 crisis QUOTE India did not participate in this great adventure. We grew up believing that our mixed economy - the mixture of socialism and the free market that grew out of Jawaharlal Nehru's idealist vision - though not as efficient as capitalism, was better because it cared for the poor. It was better than communism because it preserved political freedoms. But its problem was of performance, not of faith. If it had worked, most of the Third World would be more prosperous today. Indians have learned from painful experience that the state does not work on behalf of the people. More often than not, it works on behalf of itself. UNQUOTE

Not having grown up in India, I am less sure whether readers in India will find many parts of this book as informative as it certainly will be for many, if not most foreign readers. But they will surely share much of Das' view that a profound transformational change is underway in this nation, even if its boat to prosperity has been slower than elsewhere. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A Good Economic text which lacks important details.
I would reccomend this textbook for students or someone who is just begining economics. This book is for the most part easy to follow. It gives basic concepts of microeconomics and macroeconomics. However, more pedagogy is needed in some chapters as well as with explanations. ... Read more

Book Description

Back in the 40s, 50s, and 60s, it was fairly easy to plan for a secure future.People pickeda career, a spouse, and a place to live, and those basic decisions put them on apredictablecourse for the rest of their lives. Especially if they were lucky enough to landat a bigcorporation with great benefits and smart enough to buy stocks.

In the 70s, 80s, and 90s, technology and global competition transformed theworld. Anincreasingly strong economy masked spiraling instability in the workplace andthe world.A rising stock market lulled people into thinking they were in control of theirlives.

But now we’ve entered a totally new era, which Roger McNamee calls the NewNormal.It’s a time of great uncertainty—about terrorism, corporate scandals, theoutsourcing ofjobs overseas, and much more. The old safety nets aren’t coming back, even whentheeconomy recovers. But the good news is that the New Normal also offerstremendousopportunities.This book—by one of Silicon Valley’s most insightful andsuccessfulinvestors—explains how to make the most of your life, career, and money byembracingthe future.

The New Normal is the era of the individual. In companies large and small, eachpersonnow matters more than ever before. The Internet has finally made it easy tolaunch andgrow a real business. For entrepreneurs and managers, the global economy openspreviously untapped sources of supply and demand, cost savings and innovation.Individual investors now have access to tools and knowledge that were, untilrecently,restricted to professionals.

Roger McNamee has written a sweeping book in the tradition of Megatrendsthatclarifies this new era and gives readers a practical blueprint for success. ... Read more

Book Description

For the past twenty years this book has been distinguished by its relevant coverage, tight organization, multidisciplinary perspective, and timeliness. The ninth edition preserves these qualities while incorporating new reference material. A three=part organization covers the dimensions of poverty and inequality, causes of poverty, and policy options.For social workers, welfare professionals, and job counselors. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Getting Knowlegde
This is a relly good book for students to understand more about poverty and discrimination in the American society. I will recommended to anyine who is intereted about issues such as welfare poverty and so on. I think you wil enjoy this book. ... Read more

Book Description

Provides readers with a solid background in the theories of economic geography, while examining contemporary issues. Updated edition integrates new recent research on industrial geography using information published within the last ten years with an added global emphasis. Features a new chapter on interdependent global economies and improved figures and graphics, including updated tables throughout the text. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Gender Equity as Mainstream Economists See it
This book can be read at many levels -- used for a course or read as needed. You can answer questions like: How is unfair discrimination measured? Why do jobs that employ women pay less than those that employ men even if the requirements are similar. Go beyond romantic love to answer questions about whether marriage makes sense. Does welfare make peole work less? These two academics represent mainstream, what is called "institutional labor econmics." Anyone interested in the labor market, gender equity, international comparisons on how women are doing will find this book accessible. You do not have to have formal education in economics. ... Read more

Book Description

Globalization and Diversity is an exciting contemporary approach to World Regional Geography that explicitly acknowledges the geographic changes that accompany today's rapid rate of globalization. Organizes each regional chapter into five thematic sections: Environmental Geography; Population and Settlement; Cultural Coherence and Diversity; Geopolitical Framework; Economic and Social Development. Features approximately 15 standardized maps in each regional chapter, including a chapter-opening map with countries and place names; a physical map, showing landforms hydrology, and tectonic boundaries; a climate map, with climograph call-outs giving temperature and precipitation data for specific cities; a "transformation of the Earth" map with call-outs to environmental issues and solutions within the region; a population map for the region; a map of regional languages; a geopolitical map with call-outs to current issues and tensions. For anyone interested in learning more about world geography.

Book Description

In today's telecom business environment, a thorough and accurate understanding of past mistakes goes a long way in ensuring future success. Providing an authoritative account of what contributed to the failure of so many telecom firms between 2000 and 2002, this insightful resource explores the roots of the perfect storm that buffeted telecom and Internet companies and investors. You find a detailed insider's look at how the crash was caused by a complex combination of risk and regulatory factors in an increasingly competitive environment, much of it originally fueled by the break up of AT&T.

The Great Telecom Meltdown offers you a solid understanding of the evolving structure of the information, communications and telecom industries, and how companies and sectors within these industries relate to each other. You gain insight into identifying sound long-term investment strategies and avoiding fads with unsound fundamentals. The book helps you make sense of the regulatory framework that has been evolving, as competition gradually replaces regulation among different industry sectors. Moreover, you gain an appreciation for the context of the modern telecom industry, leading up to and beyond the Telecom Act of 1996, which, as the book explains, has been given more credit and more blame for the events of the era than it deserves. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

An informative analysis on just what went wrong
In The Great Telecom Meltdown, author and telecommunications expert Fred R. Goldstein offers an informed and informative analysis on just what went wrong with the telecom industry when the telecom stock market bubble burst. Moreover, Goldstein offers invaluable and practical advice for keeping this economic disaster from reoccurring, and even how to profit from such an event in the future. Of special note is Goldstein's analysis revealing that the dysfunctional elements that would lead to the boom-bust cycle crash of the telecommunications industry began long before the Telecom Act of 1996 (itself a belated, overly compromised reaction to an obsolete regulatory model). Highly recommended and essential reading for anyone working, regulating, or investing in the telecommunications industry, The Great Telecom Meltdown is completely accessible for non-specialist general readers with an interest in how the telecom bubble came to burst.
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Book Description

Today's most exciting trend in the shopping center industry is the creation of retail entertainment destinations. This book describes how the industry has evolved, best practices in development, and how this concept has been incorporated into mixed-use, town center, and shopping center projects in the U.S., Germany, Hungary, and the Philippines. ... Read more

Book Description

Book Description

Senior managers know that the Internet demands new business strategies. But for many of these executives, much about the Internet and e-commerce remains enigmatic. This important new book by strategy guru Michel Robert demystifies the Internet for executives and provides a comprehensive framework for developing Internet strategies that dovetail with an organization's overall business strategy.

Based on Robert's two decades of research and international consulting experience at more than 400 companies, the e-strategy model described comprises 10 e-drivers, corresponding to 10 key business strategies. These include: demand aggregation for obtaining better prices; build-to-order services that allow customers to configure products to their specifications; customer self-service; direct customer access for manufacturers; dynamic pricing; and others. Using many real-life examples, Robert describes how each e-driver works and how to combine them in a coherent strategy for making optimal use of today's most powerful strategic tool, the Internet. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Valuable reading (if you are objective)
I am always amused by "reviewers" who trash another consultant's book. Every guy with a phone and fax who thinks he is a consultant finds it in their interest to degrade other concepts.

This book is filled with valuable and memorable information that will help any senior executive get a grip on the Internet and it's future implications.

I don't think the author ever intented for "E-Strategy" to be the encyclopedia of the Internet - I think he did a marvelous job of taking a complex topic that most managers don't understand and putting it in our language and context. I wish more authors took that approach.

A classic
"A portal is a web capability developed by an organization in which a company offers its own products as well as products from competitors." (Page 85) This definition shows a basic lack of understanding of what a portal is. "The client is the architect." (Page 103) Try telling that to the IT people. The illustrations on pages 98 - 99 are simplistic beyond belief. I've read many IT books in my time, but this one takes the cake!

Basic business strategy with some interesting nuances
There is nothing new or Earth-shattering in this book - it's about employing strategy within the context of e-commerce. The authors' agenda, from the preface, is to "... demystify the Internet ... which then empowers CEOs and their key executives to design their own Internet strategy and control their own destiny."

The central theme of the book is wrapped in three imperatives: (1) clarify your business strategy, (2) construct an "e-strategy", and (3) integrate the business and e-strategy.

While the ideas and approach are straightforward and basic, the real gems are contained in the interviews with key executives who have creatively conceived of viable (and innovative) e-strategies and have successfully integrated them into their overall business strategy. In my opinion the most interesting interview was with Philip C. Kantz (CEO, TAB Products). TAB Products makes folders, labels and other commodity items. Not the sexy stuff of e-strategies, but that's exactly what this executive crafted and it transformed his entire business. Not surprisingly the creative part of the strategy was minor compared to the leadership abilities that were required to transform a vision into action and results. This interview alone summarizes the entire message of the book. Each of the other four interviews provides insights about the creative, leadership and technical challenges of devising and implementing an e-strategy.

As you read this book don't be so quick to conclude that it is only stating the obvious. There are some wonderful ideas to be gleaned, inspiration and encouragement from executive interviews, and some subtle nuances in the authors' approach. The structure and message of the book puts e-strategy and the Internet into the familiar framework of business strategy 101. You'll benefit from the interviews, and will have a path marked with familiar landmarks towards implementing an e-strategy.

What's your business strategy?
A concise and easily read book on how to watch for the micro, macro, and mega changes that are coming our way. 

The obvious goal is to get you to use the consulting services, but still, there is solid information about re-thinking business models to accommodate the internet world.

Perhaps the most important advice given is to make sure you have a clear business strategy to begin with, update that strategy to be pertinent in this information age, and formulate your Internet strategy to further your business goals. "The Internet is another vehicle to help a company deploy its business strategy. Unfortunately, because of its pervasiveness, the Internet cannot be ignored."

There are several good pieces of information to use as you're thinking about your IT investment, such as: "Eighty-four percent of IT projects are late, over budget, or canceled. The cost to U.S. corporations is over $184 billion per year. Completed projects achieve only 60 percent of their objectives.

Charts, drawings, and lists help to make clear the authors' intent. Plenty of white space makes the book easy to read (even on a bouncing aircraft!).

False Advertising
If you read Robert's other book, The Power of Strategic Thinking, there is absolutely no reason to read this one. He (and McGraw Hill) put out the same book under two separate titles. Based upon its title, I was expecting the book to focus entirely on e-strategy and provide some innovative, insightful and applicable information. Instead, there was little or nothing "new under the sun" imparted in this book that he didn't already tell us in The Power of Strategic Thinking - which by the way is the much better book of the two. If you want information on e-strategy, save your money and look elsewhere. Jim Altfeld, Altfeld, Inc. Strategic Corporate, Marketing & Sales Planning. ... Read more