Reviews (4)

Breaking new ground
The American theologian Michael Novak converted from socialism to capitalism in the 1970s, somewhat against the trend of the times. It might be said that he got in early to beat the rush to the neoconservative right. He has written that his liberal humanist education, mostly in philosophy and theology, was anti-capitalist 'as was common'. At the age of 40 he recognized a need to question his presuppositions about political economy and especially economics. This led him to discover and eventually to celebrate democratic capitalist traditions and institutions, especially in their North American form. He is especially proud of the achievements of the founding fathers of the Constitution with their appreciation of the need to separate the powers of church and state, and to take precautions against the predatory activities of political factions.

In his capacity as a Catholic theologian he has been especially concerned to reply to the moral critics of capitalism who typically argue that the system abandons the public interest and the welfare of the community to self-interest and the pursuit of individual gain. In one of his other books, Free Persons and the Common Good, he attempted to retrieve from the Catholic literature a conception of the common good that is consistent with capitalism and the market order. Novak taook up this challenge with a tortuous excursion into the works of Catholic thinkers, among them Aquinas who Lord Acton described as 'the first Whig'.

His account of the American experience as an adventure of classical (non socialist) liberalism is more convincing. He identifies several valuable moral traditions which were called forth by democratic capitalist institutions in the early American colonies. These include civic responsibility, personal economic enterprise, creativity and a special kind of communitarian living. He also offers a cogent rejoinder to the critics who accuse capitalism of lacking moral or spiritual depth. He explains that statements on the 'spiritual deficiency' of democratic capitalism spring from a "horrific" category mistake. Democratic capitalism is not a church, a philosophy or a way of life, instead it promises three liberations; from tyranny and torture; from the oppression of conscience, information and ideas; and from poverty. The resulting social order provides space "within which the soul may make its own choices, and within which spiritual leaders and spiritual associations may do their own necessary and creative work". He suggests that Democratic capitalism has done rather well on the score of promoting spiritual and cultural life, in contrast with Fascism and Communism which aspired to cater for higher human needs.

The most significant achievement of the book is to explain how the common good can be served by the blend of individualism and free-market institutionalism (under the rule of law) that is advocated by von Mises and Hayek. Both these writers and other classical liberals dismiss the notion that there is anything identifiable as the common (collectivist) good. But the kind of 'common good' that Novak identifies is not of the collectivist variety, instead it is a framework of institutions and traditions which maximises the chance for all individuals to enjoy life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. This particular kind of common good is promoted by the extended order of morals and markets, provided that the markets and other vital parts of the system of law and government are working properly. Here the notion of the rule of law is crucial because it defines an essential function for strong (but limited) government.

Novak supports the market liberal thrust for free trade and he also endorses the traditional, conservative notion of the rule of law against certain types of social engineers and judicial activists. However he does not object to the welfare state because he thinks that it is necessary in these days of fragmented communities and highly mobile people. Those who like their ideology strong and pure will deplore this lapse from grace but it shows Novak's willingness to get the best of both worlds, if this is at all possible. In the same way that he is determined to retrieve the best of Catholic theology he is prepared to take whatever he finds acceptable from the diverse strands of liberalism, ranging from the laissez-faire of von Mises and the deregulators to the left-liberalism of the American democrats. Novak challenges libertarians who have no time for religious traditions and he challenges religious conservatives who regard the liberal tradition as self-centred. This book maintains his reputation for breaking new ground and making connections between apparantly antagonistic modes of thought.

A Prayer of Capitalism
...

This is an important book. It links the liberal democratic order of capitalism with the Judeo-Christian moral tradition and thus at once removes capitalism from being a secular, non-discriminatory form of free market exchange to a human set of relationships between individuals based on a moral code.

Whether or not all philosophers would agree with that thesis is another issue. Since the enlightenment when religious authority was usurped and the secular society emerged, religion has been under attack in developed societies and today many in organized religions decry the relatavistic nature of our behaviour.

That said this is a book that should be read by anyone interested in the concept of the ethical corporate governance. It is a difficult book to read due to the densely written arguemnts which require close reading. It is a challenging book in many ways, especially to those who have strong personal belief systems. Nevertheless, Novak makes a strong case and his exposition deserves to be taken to a wider audience

My thoughts upon rereading this book again recently were that there is a need for a similar book to relate Capatilism to other major religions in a way which transcends any one religion in particular. In the light of recent events too there is a case for a treatise which relates Capitalism to the Moslem world to show that it is an inclusive rather than an exclusive social system.

Brilliant, provocative, learned, faithful
Michael Novak is probably the foremost Christian thinker on the economy. Any of his books reward study, but "The Spirit of Democratic Capitalism" is undoubtedly his magnum opus. In this classic text, which has now been updated and revised, Novak joins issue with theologians like Paul Tillich who contend that "any serious Christian must be a socialist." It appeared in a samizdat (underground) edition in Poland during the 1980s and had an obvious impact on the Solidarity movement. Its reasoned defense of democratic capitalism as being grounded in the humane values of the Judeo-Christian tradition also helped give a moral center to the neo-conservative movement.

In "Democratic Capitalism," Novak addresses the consistency of capitalism with church teachings on wealth. Novak recognizes that church teaching has been hostile to capitalism, as with much else of modernity. Yet, Novak contends that arguments against capitalism serve mainly to give aid and comfort to the Leviathan state. Indeed, Novak persuasively (if controversially) attributes Christian opposition to capitalism to two main sources: ignorance and antique world views. Church leaders and theologians tend to have either a pre-capitalist or a frankly socialist set of ideals about political economy.

To be clear, Novak does not believe that faith should be subordinated to capitalism. To the contrary, he recognizes that the divine plan was that we should enjoy the fruits of the earth and of our own industry. He simply contends that capitalism is the best way Fallen humans have yet devised to obey the Biblical command that we are to be stewards of God's world. Novak never loses sight of the basic proposition that it was equally the divine plan that God should be worshiped, obeyed, and feared. The fear of the Lord, he would argue, is the beginning of capitalist wisdom, just as it is of any other kind of wisdom. Not surprisingly, therefore, Novak's analysis has begun to impact the way the church thinks about capitalism. Pope John Paul II's most recent encyclicals on work and the economy, for example, such as Centesimus Annus, contain obvious marks of Novak's influence. In sum, very highly recommended.

The Spirit of Democratic Capitalism by Michael Novak
A nut's and bolts book about how and why systems that allow "free choice" produce better goods and services. A MUST book for people in Latin Countries where "poverty" was a virtue and production was conceived as evil. Novak pulls the shades off of the "socialist" concept that only Capitalists are greedy. Marx indeed never took into consideration a human spirit that could be "inspired" to do things for the Glory of the Creator. I don't leave "home" without my copy. I read and then re-read. ... Read more

Reviews (16)

compelling disertation of reality today
"The most important event in the recent history of ideas is the demise of the socialist dream," begins Gilder's masterful moral defense of supply-side economics. No one makes the case for capitalism as compellingly as Gilder, because he refuses to apologize for entrepreneurs.

Why don't those left-wing-extremists realise their paternal holier-than-thou attitudes are what really are responsible for anyone remaining in poverty. They that actually do "care", owe it to those they profess to care about to find out whether or not their cherished nostrums do anything more than make themselves feel better. Those that see the light become conservative. It's that simple. It's that complex. Enjoy the book!

Is it economics and morals? (Pat Padley's review)
Even though I have had to read this book for an Economic class, I actually got something out of it. From what I understand this has become an aditional way of learning about supply side economics, which is still very confusing. I have also read many of the other reviews and I agree that this could very well become a bible for Reaganomics. I guess the one question I would ask is if George Gilder also took an Adam Smith view to some things. It seemed like he kept focusing on the individual view point of things. The way he proposed ideas is that it sounded like he wanted us to look over not just the mathematics, but the whole human spectrum. This includes faith, history, technology, etc.
This book actually suprised me. I really didn't think I would enjoy it at all. Even though I was forced to read it for Econ, I'm glad I got to read this book. Gilder's as if moral views kept me interested.

To one-sided ....
whose review is below. I cant believe that this reviewer believes that corporate "welfare" disproves the thesis of this book. How moronic can one be? The difference dear child is that corporations still are in business and trying to produce a profit. An individual on welfare does nothing to earn an income, or very little at most. Thus the incintive not to work. Corporate welfare is just as incidious in my book, but at least the corporation is trying to profit from as many revenue centers as it can.

Fundamental Book on Supply Side Economics
I won't try to summarize the fundamental theses of this brilliant book. I doubt I could. Instead I will simply call it what it is: the best and most readable introduction to supply side theory available. This is where to go before you begin reading Jude Wanniski.

I was so much older then I'm younger than that now
This book which most of us, who read books like this, read 20 years ago should be reread again today. The prescience and accuracy of its viewpoints are worth prolonged cogitation for members on either side of the aisle. Perhaps it could be recommended reading along with the cliff notes of Adam Smith's "Wealth of Nations"? Okay, at least for Graduate students in the social sciences?

Gilder points out that we have been misled by popular economics as it relates to how we increase wealth and curtail poverty. He then introduces the concept of Supply-Side Economics to the general reader. He fulminates about how misguided policy has undermined the true source of wealth that is to be found in such nonmaterial forces as creativity, technological adventure, and the motivation to strike out for new territory in economic enterprise. He talks about how the blunting of incentives and the efforts to redistribute the wealth, in a just fashion, only serve to keep the poor in poverty. He contrasts this with his description of the true capitalist as one who invests energy and money today for a return he may or may not receive in the future. Is this not the model for describing the difference between children and adults? Is it not a model for delayed gratification one which most of the world eschews? They instead opt for a metaphorical traffic jam at the waterhole of natural resources with the alpha chimp and his cohorts ripping off the biggest piece.

When Gilder talks about the LEFT getting it exactly backwards it reminds me of what Balint Vazsonyi writes about in his book "America's 30 Years War: Who's winning?" He says, "contrary to the prevailing (classic Marxist-Leninist) thinking that economic conditions provide the foundations and everything else is "superstructure", the truth is the other way around. Our spectacular economic success is the result of a unique legal-moral foundation upon which a successful political system has been built".

To show how deep the roots of misguided economic thinking go consider that even Christianity is built on a communistic notion of sharing, and an abhorrence for profit that is seemingly earned on the backs of the laborers. This results in men of the cloth, all to often economically illiterate ones, preaching the wrong formulae to the poor. Basically, "you're poor because they're rich". This Liberation theology is echoed in Marx's backward reading of human nature and the economic consequences of risk and reward. Gilder sets us straight.

Amazing isn't it? We still have academics teaching this LEFT-wing nonsense in respected universities across America while their acolytes storm the barriers in Seattle, Washington, Genoa, etc; all in an attempt to wipe out a system that has brought greater wealth to more people than any other in human history, something even Marx himself acknowledged.

Too me, it's about a pursuit of power and money at the top that is coupled with a reliance that those further down the pyramid of man will continue to engage in blocking and denial. Thus the proles can act as enablers of the "Priests" of the LEFT, those who commit the worst sorts of human crimes (see "the Black Book of Communism"), their zeal inversely proportionate to the laws of unintended consequence which they continue to violate with reckless abandon.

Perhaps a futuristic pill will be uncovered that will allay the LEFT's fevered assessment of mankind's ills and grant them the ability to reason while providing them with much needed relief from their pervasive envy. Read this book along with Myron Magnet's "the Dream and the Nightmare" to get a feel for the intellectual firmament of the Bush II administration, and pray for another cable network. ... Read more

Book Description

In the highly competitive retail world, the small-business owner needs pragmatic, current, down-to-earth advice to be successful.So You Want to Own the Store is a comprehensive handbook that provides step-by-step help for the prospective shopkeeper or home-based retail-business owner.Included are helpful hints from experiences store owners about every aspect of the business: choosing a location, defining store policies, training personnel, ordering, pricing, and displaying merchandise--even negotiating with the bank.

Reviews (4)

I was not impressed
Folks use your common sence and save the 12 bucks on this one. This book would be good for any one under 16, but for even the
most sheltered adult this book will be a waste of your time. Good Luck

Good Overview
This book provided a good overview for some one looking to get started in the retail business. I would caution readers that much of the information is directed more towards a retail business that will be located in a mall setting, not necessarily a stand-alone or downtown located specialty or boutique shop. With that in mind, it certainly provided good personal advice and insight.

So you want to own the Store :
A general summary of how to start and run a store, almost common sense. Not very use full in terms of marketing and customer service. Based on an 'American' way of running a large size store instead of a boutique store.

A must-read for any aspiring retail entrepreneur
Mort Brown offers indispensable advice to people considering going into retail business for themselves. His conversational style and examples from his own experiences running a candy shop and a pet store offer the reader a behind-the-scenes look at what goes into the retail operation. From the daily interaction with customers, to the satisfaction that comes from being your own boss, Brown shares his wisdom on every topic related to running a profitable retail operation. If you're thinking about opening your own store, you'd be wise to read this book before you draft the first page of your business plan. One wonders how many retail failures might have been successes if only their proprietors had read Mort Brown's "So You Want To Own The Store" and taken his advice to heart. ... Read more

Book Description

This book provides an accessible and comprehensive one-volume introduction to capital markets. Based on the author's many years experience as a trainer in this field, the book is ideal for those who are entering or planning to enter investment banking or asset management. It will also be an invaluable reference tool for professionals already working in the industry who are seeking to extend their knowledge base.

Describing how the key products and markets work, who the principal participants are and their overall goals and objectives, Andrew Chisholm provides a thorough overview of the global capital markets. The book covers both equity and debt instruments as well as the principal derivative products. In a step-by-step fashion, making extensive use of real-world cases and examples, it explains the application of interest rate and equity swaps, financial futures, equity options and options on currencies and interest rates. An extensive glossary explains concisely many of the 'jargon' expressions used in the financial markets. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

One of the best introductions to this subject
This book is one of the best introductions to an area that grows in complexity.

It explains the various types of equities and how they are used. It covers the mathematical aspect of equities that even a non-mathematician would find absorbing, although and I hate to say this, mathematical purists would not find it rigourous enough.

This book goes a long way to demystifying an increasingly important part of world finance.

A good read for both investors and laymen alike.

Capital Markets
An extremely clearly written introduction to financial markets. I learned a lot. I recommend reading this before tackling something like John Hull's book on derivatives. It would be very useful for people joining an investment bank or for college/MBA students interested in finance.

Very Good Book on Capital Markets eBook format SUCKS!!!
I'm referring to the eBook version of this book. Be careful when buying the eBook. It uses a special Adobe Reader that you have to download first. When I first tried it, it told me several times the downloaded file is corrupted. I finally manually saved the executable and ran it. It loaded but I have to sign in MSN .Net passport... total of four sign in's to different sites (amazon acct, yahoo passwd, ...) !@#$%. Finally after 1.5 hrs of trying this and that mostly spent on downloading adobe, it slowly loaded something which I guess is the ebook. Adobe opened it, I saw the title of the book and the table of contents. The rest of the book is unreadable. I tried printing. It will only let me print 17 bad pages and my printer icon for this ebook is GRAYED OUT FOREVER!!! I went to the adobe website and there is no information on printing hardcopies, apparently, the version I downloaded is ONLY capable of sending info to handheld devices. Since I don't have one of those nifty devices... !@#$

I wouldn't pay any money on eBooks if this is how they will structure the sell. It didn't use to be this way. It used to be priced $2.99 - $5.99 and you can open easily and print any part of the book. Since I didn't want to carry a heavy book due to back problems, I shelled out the money to try this. Never again!

Capital Markets
This is an excellent comprehensive introduction to capital markets. It is very clearly written with a lot of practical examples and case studies. I particularly like the fact that the book covers a wide range of debt and equity cash and derivative products. It is less mathematical than a book like Hull and a very good complement to it. ... Read more

Book Description

The last quarter century has seen a broad, but qualified, belief in the efficacy of market organization slide into an unyielding dogma that the market, as unconstrained as possible, is the best way to govern virtually all economic activity. However, unrestricted markets can often lead to gross inequalities in access to important resources, the creation of monopolies, and other negative effects that require regulation or public subsidies to remedy. In "The Limits of Market Organization," editor Richard Nelson and a group of economic experts take a more sophisticated look at the public/private debate, noting where markets are useful, where they can be effective only if augmented by non-market mechanisms, and where they are simply inappropriate.

"The Limits of Market Organization" examines the appropriateness of markets in four areas where support for privatization varies widely: human services, public utilities, science and technology, and activities where market involvement is altogether inappropriate. Richard Murnane makes the case that a social interest in providing equal access to high quality education means that for school voucher plans to be effective, substantial government oversight is necessary. Federal involvement in a transcontinental railroad system was initially applauded, but recent financial troubles at Amtrak have prompted many to call for privatization of the rails. Yet contributor Elliot Sclar argues that public subsidies are the only way to maintain this vital part of the American transportation infrastructure. While market principles can promote competition and foster innovation, applying them in certain areas can actually stifle progress. Nelson argues that aggressive patenting has hindered scientific research by restricting access to tools and processes that could be used to generate new findings. He suggests that some kind of exception to patent law should be made for scientists who seek to build off of patented findings and then put their research results into the public domain. In other spheres, market organization is altogether unsuitable. Legal expert Richard Briffault looks at one such example—the democratic political process—and profiles the successes and failures of campaign finance reform in preventing parties from buying political influence.

This important volume shows that market organization has its virtues, but also its drawbacks. Just as regulation can be over-applied, so too can market principles. "The Limits of Market Organization" encourages readers to think more discriminately about the march toward privatization, and to remember the importance of public institutions. ... Read more

Book Description

Has the nation's infatuation with the free market warped the true meaning of American freedom by its emphasis on the self-serving individual in a "looking out for Number One" world?

Freedom is America's most treasured value. InFreedom Reclaimed, John E. Schwarz examines the profound implications of the difference between the vision of American freedom that the Founders enshrined in the Declaration of Independence and the free-market idea of freedom that is ascendant today. Schwarz shows how the three-decade shift toward free-market freedom has brought economic hardship to the majority of Americans and suffering to the political life of the nation. As the nation moves further away from its impelling original commitment, most Americans now have only limited access to the freedom the Founders envisioned. Schwarz sets forth a program that can help America return to its ennobling vision and resume its historic journey.

In policy discussions on employment, education, social issues, and health care, Schwarz recasts our understanding of what freedom means and involves. In so doing, he transforms the way we see our world and revitalizes our ability to change it for the better.

Reviews (1)

Reality and Vision Could Take Back America
The author has done a great job of elucidating how the past 30 years of Republican conservative political dominance has hurt the average worker and working family.The book brings to light the great degree to which average Americans have been backing the politics that has been stabbing them in the back.Robbed of economic freedom and prosperity, deprived of personal freedoms, without decent healthcare, lacking in educational opportunity, and confronted by a deteriorating environment, the American people nonetheless have come to the false view that Conservatives are the protectors of liberty and Liberals have nothing to offer them.Schwarz shows how Republican policies have given the benefits of worker productivity to the very few and the very rich, while the worker just keeps working harder and getting farther behind.

"Freedom Reclaimed," once it is understood and appreciated for its message and its implications, could serve as a rallying point for a political resurgence to take back America from the stranglehold of selfishness and lack of vision that characterizes its current "leadership."If average workers only knew how much better off they were under the Democrats in the 1960s and could be again, they would throw out the GOP in a heartbeat. ... Read more

Reviews (41)

problems of economic globalization are daunting
Greider is clearly one of the very top liberal\populist economic analysts who writes for laypeople today. Greider proves, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that economic globalization as it is practiced today is fraught with contradictions and the potential for disaster. His book is simultaneously alarming and hopeful; the prospects for implementing his common sense reform proposals seem poor in the current conservative political atmosphere, meaning that global deregulation is sure to move even quicker now, causing new and frequent financial crises. The fundamental point in his book are sound: that an unequal income distribution, reinforced by the relocation of capital to low-wage areas, exacerbates a problem of inadequate aggregate demand, making recessions more likely. Greider is quite clear in his belief that a deflation of incomes, economies, and prices is the ultimate consequence of this fundamentally unjust new world economic order. To support his thesis, he takes the reader on a tour of a variety of places all over the globe, showing how, for example, the repression of labor rights in a place as far away as Indonesia contributes to a worsening of the wage-earning potential of first-world middle income workers. Greider is one of the few writers today who offers a genuinely humane and efficient economic vision that the world would be wise to follow. He suggests worker ownership of capital as a middle road between the inequities of capitalism and the disincentives of communism. He points out how transaction taxes on international capital flows would return stability to foreign exchange markets and, more importantly, national economies. He makes clear that the rule of finance capital, as manifest in high real interest rates, is only exacerbating the fundamental capitalist problems. (inadequate demand and excess capacity) Above all else, he makes apparent that economies, like all social institutions, are fundamentally human contrivances, and thus can be favorably altered by a populace with enough imagination to envision a more prosperous, equitable, and environmentally sustainable future. Greider is way left of almost anyone in D.C. today, but he is no communist, as is apparent from a reading of this book. All progressives should read this book, (though it is somewhat complex for those without prior exposure to economics) and use Greider's policy suggestions to pressure the political class to legislate real changes in our global economy so that we can create a more stable, equitable, sustainable, and democratic global community. As a final point, it is very heartening to see someone provide such plentiful evidence for what to me is a self-evident proposition: widely-shared prosperity requires genuine political democratization, everyone and anywhere in this tightly bound global economy.

Provocative, Insightful, Compassionate Look at the 3rd Wave
No one writes with more verve, insight, and human compassion than long-time Rolling Stone contributor and Editor William Greider. His perspective always centers on the human cost of social phenomena, and is always heartfelt, compassionate, and extremely well focused. In this book he centers in brilliantly on the ways in which the so-called "Third Wave" of global trading and commerce is poised to transform the social, economic, and political landscape of the countries in which it is being introduced. His writing skills are superb, and the ordinarily dry and stuffy stuff of economics come alive in this highly readable and quite entertaining work. In fact, reviewer Brink Lindsey of the Kirkus Review called this book "the best-written book on the global economy" he had ever read. Ditto, Mr. Lindsey, ditto.

I also agree with his observations calling the prose energized, clear, and sharp. However, I disagree with the negative criticism many other critics and reviewers have voiced concerning Mr. Greider's conclusions herein, which seem to center on the fact that he is not an apologist, fellow-traveler, or celebrant of the new global forces. Indeed, Mr. Greider's perspective is more sanguine, expressing concern of the many ways in which this fundamentally anti-democratic new commerce tends toward becoming a revolutionary & extraordinarily well-focused force literally power-hosing the new wealth generated by this commerce in the direction of the rich and well placed at the expense of almost everyone else.

Who can argue against the observation that we increasingly face an amazing conundrum when in face of the greatest sustained period of prosperity in the last forty years many people at the lower reaches of the socioeconomic spectrum are slipping farther and farther behind, that this prosperity is not acting to level the playing field, but, on the contrary is intensifying the distances and qualitative life styles of the affluent and the poor, or with the observation that consistently the indifferent, selfish and affluent conservative Republicans, ignoring the needs and problems of a majority of others, still demand a substantial tax refund for themselves at the expense of the rest of the populace? The truth speaks for itself in the sense that the governments of the world seem either uninterested or unable to regulate, limit, or meaningfully constrain the powers, policies, or dispositions of the multi-national corporations who now produce, distribute, and control the majority of the world's commercial efforts.

These corporations seem to be primarily motivated by motives much less socially responsive or oriented than they are profit-centered. Unless one actually believes in the silly, self-serving and patently ridiculous nonsense about Adam Smith's 'invisible hand' of the market place, believing that somehow an unregulated and unconstrained world economy will automatically and magically manage and self-corrrect itself through the countervailing forces of the marketplace (can I sell you some of my old lottery tickets?), one must take heed of the plethora of examples one can readily observe concerning the changes in our social, economic, and political environment that stem from the effects of this new 'global economy'.

In summary, Greider argues that the world is headed for a difficult & chaotic set of social & economic circumstances; disastrous levels of industrial plant overcapacity, unmanageable surplus goods, unemployable labor pools, frantic & often irrational stock speculation, unserviceable debts, and chronic massive unemployment. While all may seem to be wonderful to a casual observer watching along the surface, we are in fact skating bravely over the very thin ice of a totally new and revolutionary set of socioeconomic circumstances, and we should hardly be racing across this fragile and frozen expanse so quickly or so recklessly, trusting so blindly in so many anonymous corporate forces that historically have never bothered to concern themselves with the social, economic or political consequences following in the wake of their profit-oriented activities. Given the increasingly random & uncontrollable flow & use of capital, coming to terms with this emerging bulwark of the 'new world order' will be increasingly problematic. His conclusions are similar to those of neo-Luddite authors like Sales Kirkpatrick and Theodore Roszak, who have come to similar conclusions about the increasingly serious situation emerging concerning a technical, commercial, and economic world spiraling out of control. In my opinion, Greider's book is a heaven-sent call to arms; the first issued by a mainstream social critic whose argument we would all do well to consider.

His conclusions drive the narrative
"The Storm Upon Us ... everything seems new and strange ... nothing seems certain ... masses of people are tangibly deprived of their claims to self-sufficiency ... this revolution is steadily creating the predicate for its own collapse ... the prospect of an economic or political cataclysm of unknown dimension ... ." These and similar claims are found on just the first two pages of the book. To be fair, Mr. Greider also references the "great fortunes" thrown off by globalization and the fact that millions escape poverty, but right from the start you get the feeling that he is working backwards from his conclusions and choosing his rhetoric and his examples to sell his point of view. It's almost as if Mr. Greider is suggesting that, now that the West has gone through the very sort of radical transformation he describes with shock and dismay, the rest of humanity should just stay where they are at while we in the industrialized world figure out if and how they should reach for the security and the lifestyle that we take for granted. If you are looking to validate an anti-globalization bias you already hold then this may be the book for you, but I think it's fair to say that most readers would like to benefit from Mr. Greider's considerable experience and expertise without having to interpret his selective or overly cynical presentation. In a nutshell, my problem with the book is not that it argues against globalization and is wrong, but that it is as committed to persuasion as it is to education. I chose not to finish the book and will look for a more neutral resource.

A Close Look At Globalism
I've been meaning to write about One World, Ready Or Not (1997) by William Greider for some time since I finished reading it a few weeks ago, but it is a difficult book to describe in detail given it's scope and content. I first encountered Greider in the pages of Rolling Stone magazine where he writes about politics and economics and was impressed by his intelligence and rational thinking. Needless to say, he is somewhat liberal and progressive. This book is an excellent look at globalism, especially how economic systems and policies affect the world. Some of these sections are bit difficult to follow, but I found his case studies of different companies and labor movements quite fascinating, especially the section about the airplane industry and Boeing in particular. He explained how Boeing parcels out parts contracts to countries that order airplanes as a sort of kickback for countries doing business with them.

The section about the negative impact of free trade zones on the poor people who work in them is very telling. (For a more comprehensive look at the exploitation of third world workers see Naomi Klein's excellent No Logo, which is a good companion text to this). It is something that has troubled me since I saw a large group of peasant girls lining up at the gates of a textile factory in Cambodia, they looked like they were twelve, it was very Dickensian. The fact that they make around $20 a month for shoes that cost over $100, is absurd to me. I'd like to present some of the suggestions he has for reforming the global economic system, which has been spiraling out of control. All of them seem quite reasonable to me.

1. Tax capital instead of labor.

2. Reform the terms of trade to ensue more balanced flows of commerce, compelling export nations to become larger consumers of the global production.

3. Bring the bottom up-raising wages on the low end as rapidly as possible-by requiring trading nations to honor labor rights.

4. Forgive the debtor-that is, initiate a general write-off of bad debts accumulated by poorer nations.

5. Reform the objectives of central banks so they will support a pro- growth regime instead of thwarting it.

6. Refocus national economic agendas on the priority of work and wages rather than trade or multinational competitiveness, as the defining issue for domestic prosperity.

As Greider mentions, none of the propositions I have suggested is especially radical or even new in historical terms, since they all have been actively employed at one time or another. Nonetheless, I don't really expect to see any of these reforms adopted given the fact that there's no real economic motivation to do so. The problem as Greider states it, is that there is no governing body with the best interests of workers overseeing economic policies. As a result the gap between the haves and have-nots will continue to extend. All in all, a very thought provoking look at global economics.

Amateur Opinions in Print
Grieder likes playing the role of a public intellectual- one who cuts through it all to see what is really going on. One who sees all that escapes supposed experts, particularly economists. What he sees is a destructive machine that is out of control. There is no one at the wheel of global capitalism, it is wreaking havoc, and will undo itself. To prove this point he describes capitalism and 'free market theory' with disparaging adjectives. To make his case he needs do explain why these theories are wrong and provide valid evidence. He does neither.

His evidence is at best, anecdotal. At worst it is from questionable or unnamed sources. Discussion of the free market concepts he opposes is almost totally lacking. The author claims that free market economics is unscientific and derides it as 'dogma' and 'a value laden form of prophecy' (p48). But, he tells his audience little about these supposedly false ideas. In fact, he admits (p53) that he does not argue much with this 'dogma'. So he admits to evading a serious discussion of the concepts he slanders.

He speaks in terms of absurdly simplistic supply and demand type reasoning, and mentions arbitrage, but he ignores the real issues that pertain to his subject matter. His chapter on wages and work ignores the issue of labor productivity- he barely mentions it (p67+76). The economic arguments that he dismisses hinge on marginal productivity, but it is not clear that knows anything about this supposed dogma. Instead, he focuses on income distribution between capital and labor. He sees international competition in labor markets as benefiting capital- consumers seem not to benefit from this at all. Later in this book (p122), he stumbles into the notion that competition benefits consumers, but fails to realize that he has damaged his own argument.

Greider claims that the most successful Asian economies rejected Laissez Faire and free markets (p87). But, the most successful postwar Asian economies (including Japan) have some of the freest markets. They have some governmental intervention, but far less than other nations. This is not Laissez Faire in the strictest sense, but who would deny that Hong Kong has a high degree of Laissez Faire? Successful Asian nations developed after considerable (not complete) privatization and deregulation.

He writes that the general claim by economists that free trade benefits people generally and causes only temporary and narrowly focused dislocation (p73) is wrong. His condemnation of trade theory is strong, yet he fails to demonstrate an understanding of important concepts, like the principle of comparative advantage. If he wants to engage in idle conjecture that is fine. But if he is going to claim that the experts are generally wrong, he could at least demonstrate a basic understanding of what the experts actually say.

Greider is fond of labor unions. He employs a simplistic high wages=prosperity argument to argue that labor competition benefits capital only and is per see bad for workers (p59). Efforts to restrict competition do raise wages for some workers. It also renders other workers unemployable (productivity matters) Greider provides an example of this principle in action with his Thailand example of job losses following higher minimum wages (p 70). This contradicts his dismissal of economic theory. Greider also writes much about things like social cohesion, shared responsibility, and collective identity. These are catchy phases, but indicate little more than his own dissatisfaction with current trends. He claims that people are helpless in the face of global capitalism, but voluntary consumer spending drives it. There is 'someone' at the wheel of global capitalism- global consumers.

Greider also has nice things to say about Veblen and Keynes (p51-2). In Veblen's case, there is some reason to show some admiration. Veblen was an interesting, though mistaken thinker. Keynes is a different matter. Greider tries to substitute discredited Keynesian ideas regarding overproduction for sound economic theory. He explains neither theory, provides no relevant evidence, and instead assumes the superiority of the demand-side economics of Keynes. This is mere conjecture rather than argument.

Greider complains that America is the worlds 'buyer of last resort' that absorbs surplus production. We supposedly buy imported VCR's, TV's, cars, beer, and clothing not because we derive consumer satisfaction from these goods. We are desperately trying to prop up global Capitalism by spending beyond our means! This, of course, is doomed to failure because we cannot accumulate debt forever. So he accepts Keynesian theory, which promotes deficit spending, but complains about he practice of deficit spending.

Greider admires Keynes' optimism about the supposed possibility of abundance (p440). Once having solved the economic problem, we can 'become social beings on a larger scale, discarding barbarism' and so on. Instead of private property in capital, we should have universal capital ownership- in other words, socialism. Greider dodges all the economic objections concerning socialism, all the incentive and knowledge problems. Instead he whines about how Capitalism induces 'infantile responses'- the pursuit of self interest and evasion of responsibility for collateral consequences of actions. This all reveals that Greider is merely a utopian dreamer. Limited life spans and physical resources put abundance permanently out of reach. Self interest is a part of human nature. As for evading responsibility, that is what socialism does. It socializes costs. Property rights enforcement under Capitalism forces people to bear responsibility for their actions. Some try to avoid this, but that is a violation of Capitalist ethics, not a consequence of them.

Perhaps his most obvious error is in blaming industrial capitalism for the rise of Nazism (p38). Everybody knows that the treaty of Versailles and hyperinflation wrecked German economy and led to Hitler's rise to power- everybody but Greider.

Grieder derides professional opinion rather than criticizing it. Of course, there is no reason why amateurs cannot criticize professional opinion. But Greider does not do this. He offers conjecture, derision, and utopian fantasies, but no substantive analysis. This book should not be taken seriously. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Professor Thurow once again demonstrates his insights into the globaleconomy and a genius for pithy explanation in this masterful analysis of how the falling of Communism is leading, as inexorably as Continental Drift, to a new form of Capitalism. He identifies the challenges -- and opportunities -- in the shape-shifting of the world economy.His analyses of the rise of the capital of brainpower over traditional physical capital will be of especial interest to Internet users such as yourself. But the entire book is essential reading to anyone interested in oursocioeconomic future. Highly recommended! ... Read more

Reviews (15)

Be wary of an author scorned.
It is so sad how wrong someone can be proven over and over again and still, he/she is rewarded, called a genius and is allowed to teach our youth. Here is a quote from the author: "Can economic command significantly... accelerate the growth process? The remarkable performance of the Soviet Union suggests that it can... Today the Soviet Union is a country whose economic achievements bear comparison with those of the United States." This was in 1989, just shortly before the Societ Union collapsed. Unfortunately, being this wrong in economics gives one awards and allows you to teach college students while being described a genius. Sad. Mr. Thurow may be a 'genius', but geniuses can be wrong too.

Packed With Knowledge!
This is a particularly important book for two types of people to read: those who believe economic instability and inequality will lead capitalism to implode (they're wrong); and those who believe the economic engine of capitalism is running just fine, especially in the United States, and simply needs to be left alone by meddling do-gooders, thank you (they are wrong too). Neither view is realistic. Lester C. Thurow is quite well suited to explain why. He is practically a brand name on national television, known for making more sense of the economy than anyone could possibly expect from a dean at MIT. Although Thurow wrote this book in 1996, the trade deficit, the skewed distribution of revenue and the disparity between rich and poor continue to demonstrate the validity of his conclusion that fewer and fewer can get more and more for only so long. We highly recommend his insightful analysis, wishing only that Thurow proposed deeper solutions for the problems he so ably diagnosed.

One of the morden classics
This book can be considered as one of the morden classics. I receommend this book to anyone. Sure there are some "factual mistakes" and most people can find arguments that they don't agree with. Recommendations for United States such as better education for the "bottom 2/3 of population", more R&D spending, better training, more national saving are something that everyone can agree upon. In fact it is exactly the same conclusions that were drawn in Michael Ports' . Yes on a scholarly level, Ports's book may be better. But personally I find Thurow's book more entertaining and a much more interetsing read. (I guess I am not a serious scholar, but how many of us are?) This book is targeted for the general public and thus cannot be too scholarly.

An Interesting Economist
I enjoyed the book although I cannot claim to have fully grasped everything he mentions.There are some profound implications regarding the future that Mr. Thurow makes.I believe that some of these transcend the theme of the book and are present realities in the world.For example, I think we will have to dealwith the present growing selfishness that exists in the world today-- on a societal and personal level.So overall, a good book to help us understand our present condition and the issues of the future.

Ruthless and objective
Mr. Thurow has explained, in a neoliberal way, at least, the problems ahead; capitalism had worked, and will continue to work; that is not the point; the point is SPEED, because all developed countries are, in one way or another, slowing down, and it does not seems to be a fast method to "jumpstart" them again, because all the "glory" of consumption has reached a limit, and such limit appears unbreakable unless some mayor measures are taken; unfortunately, in the political short-term sense, these measures are not quite popular, but they will work in some way in the mid and long terms. Contradictions in the system COULD be very dangerous, as the author pointed out. His main critic is that we know what we have to do is more than just GDP's and consumption, but nobody wants to take any risks. ... Read more

Book Description

Democracy is overrated. Capitalism, on the other hand, doesn't get enough credit. In this provocative and engaging book, John Mueller argues that these mismatches between image and reality create significant political and economic problems--inspiring instability, inefficiency, and widespread cynicism. We would be far better off, he writes, if we recognized that neither system is ideal or disastrous and accepted instead the humdrum truth that both are "pretty good." And, to Mueller, that means good enough. He declares that what is true of Garrison Keillor's fictional store "Ralph's Pretty Good Grocery" is also true of democracy and capitalism: if you can't get what you want there, "you can probably get along without it."

Mueller begins by noting that capitalism is commonly thought to celebrate greed and to require discourtesy, deceit, and callousness. However, with examples that range from car dealerships and corporate boardrooms to the shop of an eighteenth-century silk merchant, Mueller shows that capitalism in fact tends to reward behavior that is honest, fair, civil, and compassionate. He argues that this gap between image and reality hampers economic development by encouraging people to behave dishonestly, unfairly, and discourteously to try to get ahead and to neglect the virtuous behavior that is an important source of efficiency and gain.

The problem with democracy's image, by contrast, is that our expectations are too high. We are too often led by theorists, reformers, and romantics to believe that democracy should consist of egalitarianism and avid civic participation. In fact, democracy will always be chaotic, unequal, and marked by apathy. It offers reasonable freedom and security, but not political paradise. To idealize democracy, Mueller writes, is to undermine it, since the inevitable contrast with reality creates public cynicism and can hamper democracy's growth and development.

Mueller presents these arguments with sophistication, wit, and erudition. He combines mastery of current political and economic literature with references to figures ranging from Plato to P. T. Barnum, from Immanuel Kant to Ronald Reagan, from Shakespeare to Frank Capra. Broad in scope and rich in detail, the book will provoke debate among economists, political scientists, and anyone interested in the problems (or non-problems) of modern democracy and capitalism. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

A challenging look at capitalism and democarcy
Although capitalism and democracy are regarded by many as the twin engines propelling the United States into its present position of world leadership, discussions of what these institutions mean for Amercians in practical, everyday terms are exceedingly rare. John Mueller, a professor of political science at the University of Rochester, has taken a giant step toward examining the reality of capitalism and democracy...As he puts it, capitalism and democracy consistently fall short of the images and ideas conveyed by theorists and pundits.

Mueller is convinced that the free-market economy has proven its value. Government intervention cannot instill the values essential to successful enterprise, and over the long run it undercuts them...In any event, economic inequality is inevitable, whatever the economic system in place, and capitalism has the advantage over other systems of providing greater prosperity and rewarding moral behavior...

Whereas Mueller focuses on the negative images frequently associated with capitalism, his discussion of democracy concentrates on the unattainable ideal by which it is often judged...Especially important from Mueller's perspective is recognition of the fact that special interests and inequality are inherent in democratic systems...

Democracy may be grubby, chaotic, and constantly compromising, but it soundly beats any of the alternatives. Mueller concedes that authoritarian forms of government may occasionally produce great leaders, but he argues that in no nation have such leaders existed for any length of time. Democracy constantly reevaluates its leaders and provides the means for replacing them, and it has consistently demonstrated a capacity to thrive even with large amounts of citizen apathy, cynicism, and even ignorance...

Obviously, Mueller's bare-bones approach to democracy drives a stake into the core assumptions of many texts and courses on the history of political thought. Traditionally, the rise of democratic institutions in the West has been traced to religious, economic, and ideological forces that not only forced change but also provided a basis for the survival of democratic institutions...Mueller rejects all such appeals to specific preconditions-primarily, it appears, because he fears that reliance on such historical developments will inhibit the promotion of democracy in today's world...In Mueller's view, democracy now is in "fashion" (p. 204), and the only serious threat to it is the appearance of groups of armed "thugs" (p. 203)...

As the United States moves into the twenty-first century, it has established itself as the dominant political, economic, and military power in the world. Yet its leaders and intellectuals lack the sort of architectonic theoretical paradigms that have emerged on the continent and to which many American scholars continue to feel obliged to genuflect as models to be emulated. Mueller seems singularly unimpressed by the need to formulate overarching theoretical explanations...Mueller's position is that individual liberty propelled by self-interest has made a better, if imperfect and untidy world that can be justified on its own terms.

This book should be in every poly sci classroom
If a friend told me that he was flying to a deserted island in the South Pacific to start a new country, first I would tell him he was crazy. Next, I would give him this book, insist that he read it, and use it as a blueprint for a successful society. Mr. Mueller's book is an excellent defense of both capitalism and democracy, the twin pillars of our American society. The author points out that while neither system is perfect, both are superior to any other economic method or political institution. His book is filled with interesting facts and fascinating insights. For example, Mr. Mueller insists that capitalism, far from extinguishing virtue, actually encourages it. This is because businessmen who treat their customers and co-workers with fairness and compassion have an economic advantage over their brooding colleagues. This seems counterintuitive but is born out by evidence. Service was especially poor and rude in former communist countries. Today, American companies from McDonald's to K-Mart, much maligned by the press, are teaching benevolent business practices to Third World nations from Africa to the Orient. Mr. Mueller also makes the interesting point that economics is approaching a level of sophistication similar to medicine at the turn of the twentieth century. Today, for the first time ever, economists can offer truly effective remedies for policy makers. Such a development, if true, promises an era of truly spectacular growth. The author also makes the sobering point that capitalism is a poor tonic for increasing personal happiness. Money has never substituted for family, faith, and meaningful work. Nor will it in the future. When it comes to democracy, Mr. Mueller believes that we expect too much from our political process. The 1994 health care debate, to some commentators, is an example of our failed democracy. In contrast, Mr. Mueller suggests that this episode proves the resiliency of our institutions. Legislation was proposed and debated, constituencies were mobilized and addressed, and the outcome was largely favorable. Democracy can be messy but it is incredibly responsive and self-correcting. It is the only political system that provides the average citizen with the instruments of political power. As more and more nations embrace the virtue of capitalism and democracy, colossal progress can be made in alleviating poverty, ensuring human rights, and achieving self-actualization. There is no realistic alternative to democracy or capitalism on the horizon. Nor should we want one.

This book should be in every poly sci class
If a friend told me that he was flying to a deserted island in the South Pacific and starting a new country, first I would tell him he was crazy. Next, I would give him this book, insist that he read it, and use it as a blueprint for a successful society. Mr. Mueller's book is an excellent defense of both capitalism and democracy, the twin pillars of our American society. The author points out that while neither system is perfect, both are superior to any other economic method or political institution. His book is filled with interesting facts and fascinating insights. For example, Mr. Mueller insists that capitalism, far from extinguishing virtue, actually encourages it. This is because businessmen who treat their customers and co-workers with fairness and compassion have an economic advantage over their brooding colleagues. This seems counterintuitive but is born out by evidence. Service was especially poor and rude in former communist countries. Today, American companies from McDonald's to K-Mart, much maligned by the press, are teaching benevolent business practices to Third World nations from Africa to the Orient. Mr. Mueller also makes the interesting point that economics is approaching a level of sophistication similar to medicine at the turn of the twentieth century. Today, for the first time ever, economists can offer truly effective remedies for policy makers. Such a development, if true, promises an era of truly spectacular growth. The author also makes the sobering point that capitalism is a poor tonic for increasing personal happiness. Money has never substituted for family, faith, and meaningful work. Nor will it in the future. When it comes to democracy, Mr. Mueller believes that we expect too much from our political process. The 1994 health care debate, to some commentators, is an example of our failed democracy. In contrast, Mr. Mueller suggests that this episode proves the resiliency of our institutions. Legislation was proposed and debated, constituencies were mobilized and addressed, and the outcome was largely favorable. Democracy can be messy but it is incredibly responsive and self-correcting. It is the only political system that provides the average citizen with the instruments of political power. As more and more nations embrace the virtue of capitalism and democracy, colossal progress can be made in alleviating poverty, ensuring human rights, and achieving self-actualization. There is no realistic alternative to democracy or capitalism on the horizon. Nor should we want one.

A Tremendous Read
This is a fine book and should receive much more attention. It's well researched, but accessible and entertaining. If you, like me, believe it's near paradise to live in a society where you can be left alone to live in relative comfort so long as you don't mind working for it, you'll love this book. If, on the other hand, you think that there was some prehistoric Shangrila, or that the constitution gurantees everyone a color TV and self esteem, don't bother unless you're prepared to learn something. ... Read more

Book Description

Clear, insightful, and nondogmatic, this book gives us a new appreciation for one of our most ubiquitous institutions.

From the wild swings of the stock market to the online auctions of eBay to the unexpected twists of the world's post-Communist economies, markets have suddenly become quite visible. We now have occasion to ask, "What makes these institutions work? How important are they? How can we improve them?"

Taking us on a lively tour of a world we once took for granted, John McMillan offers examples ranging from a camel trading fair in India to the $20 million per day Aalsmeer flower market in the Netherlands to the global trade in AIDS drugs. Eschewing ideology, he shows us that markets are neither magical nor immoral. Rather, they are powerful if imperfect tools, the best we've found for improving our living standards. A New York Times Notable Book. ... Read more

Amazon.com

After nearly a decade of bull markets, Americans have come to equate free markets with democracy. Never one for mincing words, social critic Thomas Frank, editor of The Baffler and author of The Conquest of Cool, challenges this myth. With his acerbic wit and contempt for sophistry, he declares the New Economy a fraud. Frank scours business literature, management theory, and marketing and advertising to expose the elaborate fantasies that have inoculated business against opposition. This public relations campaign joins an almost mystical belief in markets, a contempt for government in any form, and an "ecstatic" confusion of markets with democracy. Frank traces the roots of this movement from the 1920s, and sees its culmination in market populism as a fusion of the rebellious '60s with the greedy '80s. The overarching irony is the swapping of roles--suddenly Wall Street is no longer full of stodgy moneygrubbers, but cool entrepreneurs "leaping on their trampolines, typing out a few last lines on the laptop before paragliding, riding their bicycles to work, listening to Steppenwolf while they traded." Meanwhile, "Americans traded their long tradition of electoral democracy for the democracy of the supermarket, where all brands are created equal and endowed by their creators with all sorts of extremeness and diversity." Frank's close reading of the salesmen of market populism nails such financial gurus as George Gilder, Joseph Nocera, Kevin Kelly, and Thomas Friedman. Their writings, he contends, have served to make "the world safe for billionaires" by winning the cultural and political battle--legitimizing the corporate culture and its demands for privatization, deregulation, and non-interference. Frank's incisive prose verges on brilliant at times, though his yen for repetition can be exasperating. In either case, his boisterous reminder that markets are fundamentally not democracies is worth repeating as the level of wealth polarization in America reaches heights not seen since the 1920s. --Lesley Reed ... Read more

Reviews (39)

Good Work
Good work, Thomas Frank. This book is a revealing transcoding of the corporate mythology of the 90's, a rabidly hyped symbolic order cooked up by admen, marketers, and management gurus at the behest of the top 1%. It goes by the name market populism. If you've read Fredric Jameson, you will recognize the practical, real-world analyses of the 're-narratavized' cultural fragment. Capital takes cultural artifacts which may have opposed it previously, (e.g. revolution, class war, freedom, democracy), and re-appropriates it for use in its' own narrative, to justify its own ends (the inflation of securities and paper wealth). Thus historical data, or ideological conflict or even Marxist utopianism is re-narrativized by big money in the mass media. Plenty of explanation of how Capital effaces the differences between all those dialectical poles,like a home-grown Baudrillard with easy-to-follow examples. Where the book lacked was in it's not drumming home what exactly the costs were, especially in terms of the destructive effects of international finance capital, the dis-lodging of a billion people into shanty towns by Global Capital, and the environmental destruction rent by Trans-national Capital. You might take a look at one of David Korten's book for this, or George Soros' On Globalization. But most important about the book is the fact that it questions what has been so vigorously sold as 'inevitable' to the rest of us, it maintains the possibility of negating what seems so Universal on CNN or Fox News. It is a supreme act of historical transparency, pointing to a way we might go from a way we've already been.

Valuable Counter-Point to Blind Faith in "Markets"
While I disagree with Thomas Frank a lot, I am forced to admit that there is more than a grain of truth in his criticism. At times polemic, other times ranting, sometimes he just says something that blows away a lot of the "conventional wisdom" that we are fed and many times accept.

The largest strength of this book is not that it offers any sort of alternative (It really doesn't), it is that he is criticizing things that need to be criticized. Over the last 20 years or so, critical writing and commentary has lapsed, and offered little voice of reform or change. It is nice to see that someone offers dissent to many cultural values that have become solidified and crusty (even if it is at 90+dB).

In an age of blind faith in "The Market" there is a voice of skepticism in Thomas Frank's _One Market Under God_. If you are a God fearing, Capitalist-loving, Market Driven, person, this book may be especially valuable to read -- if for no other reason, to hear from someone who disagrees with you and has no fear in stating it clearly!

I disagree with a lot of his thesis, but I cannot give this book anything less than 5 stars!

What's the fuss all about?
This thoughtful, well researched, highly praised, and cogently written book was published three years ago, so why all the recent vitriol from negative reviewers? In fact, these harshly negative reviewers are *really* annoyed at the favorable response to the author's new book (see the just-published WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH KANSAS?). And in their zeal to trash the author and his useful discussion of how conservative voters have ceded their own true economic interests to calculated -- but essentially dead-end -- appeals to conservative values, these frustrated rightwing critics have extended their campaign to all things Tom Frank-related. If they actually read any of Frank's books, they might find much in his work that is sympathetic and fair-minded. Unfortunately, they have yielded to the right-wing preference for shrillness and black and white thinking over nuanced argument and real debate (but alas, that's what's the matter with liberals). Ignore the bombast and read this book -- and decide for yourself.

Can you say "Whiner"?
In the war for hearts and minds, the left lost BIG TIME economically (socially is another matter, but that's also a subject for another day). The ideas spelled out by Frederich Hayek a few generations ago and popularized by as diverse a crowd as Ayn Rand, Ronald Reagan and Alan Greenspan have won out. Gone are the days when even a Republican president might occasionally backslide into anti-free market practices (ala Nixon's price fixes). Nowadays, less than half the Democrats in office support protectionism and market tampering.

So here we have what amounts to an all-out whine. Frank marks himself as anti-capitalism and, thus, anti-freedom. Oh, what is a good little social planner to do when the peons begin to take responsibility over their own economic conditions?

Lack of perspective and attacks New Democrats
I guess I was hoping this would be an updated version of Robert Kuttner's Everything for Sale: The Virtues and Limits of Markets. But this book treats the Clinton Democrats as if they were the far right wing of the political spectrum. After 3 years with Bush, I have little tolerance for left wing attacks on Clinton's New Democrats. I have not read beyond the first chapter, but potential readers should know that the author is focusing his complaints on the pro-business policies of the Democrats, seemingly without cognizance of the Republicans. Perhaps in early 2000 the author felt they were irrelevant. Big surprise! Extreme lack of perspective here! This says it all: the author chooses to cite Paul Krugman as the typical economist promoting the triumph of markets. If you are looking for a book that provided a backdrop for the downfall of Gore at the hands of the Nader left, this will read well. But these days, accusing the Democrats of being too pro-business seems quaint. ... Read more

Book Description

A back roads ride through the yellow cab industry of New York City by lead Taxi Workers' Alliance organizer Biju Mathew.

As the point of entry for many of the city's visitors, the yellow cab has become an enduring metaphor for New York City and its exuberant twenty-four-hours-a-day rush. But just as the city has changed in recent years, so too has the industry that keeps it on the move. Indeed, as Biju Mathew reveals in this highly readable, fast-paced survey of New York's taxi business, just about everything has been dramatically altered except the yellow paint.

Drawing on conversations with the drivers themselves, Taxi! details both the pressures and triumphs of life behind the wheel, from the effects of ex-Mayor Giuliani's "quality of life" and "zero tolerance" programs and the structure of car and medallion ownership that often results in minimal earnings after a 12-hour shift, to the unexpected ease with which a workforce representing 80 ethnicities—and at least as many languages—organized, culminating in the 1998 strike of 24,000 taxi workers. One of the organizers of the Taxi Workers' Alliance, Mathew is uniquely qualified to survey the fascinating world of the yellow cab. Buckle up, sit back, and enjoy the ride. ... Read more

Book Description

In this collection of his latest essays, John H. Dunning - renowned authority in international business - elaborates his theories on the current situation of the foreign direct investment and multinational enterprises. ... Read more

Book Description

powerful and prophetic challenge to globalization from a former partisan of the New Right. Hailed by Kirkus Reviews as both "a convincing analysis of an international economy" and a "powerful challenge to economic orthodoxy," False Dawn shows that the attempt to impose the Anglo-American-style free market on the world will create a disaster, possibly on the scale of Soviet communism. Even America, the supposed flagship of the new civilization, risks moral and social disintegration as it loses ground to other cultures that have never forgotten that the market works best when it is embedded in society. John Gray, well known in the 1980s as an important conservative political thinker, whose writings were relied upon by Margaret Thatcher and the New Right in Britain, has concluded that the conservative agenda is no longer viable. In his examination of the ripple effects of the economic turmoil in Russia and Asia on our collective future, Gray provides one of the most passionate polemics against the utopia of the free market since Carlyle and Marx. ... Read more

Reviews (24)

a sober critique of american chauvinism
For most of the world, this book is unnecessary for the simple reason that the hollow ring of the self-congratulatory rhetoric of unitedstatesian freemarketeers has always been apparent to those who exist on the poorer borders of its rule. The WTO and World Bank protests in the US echoed what so much of the developing world already knew for so long. It's rare that someone who is so critical of contemporary capital formations -- and american triumphalism -- is heard, let alone promoted in mainstream bookstores, as well as Gray seems to be. I found much to admire in this book -- in particular, his insistence that economic markets have historically always been, and still are, embedded within social institutions -- it's just that freemarketeers have a real interest in concealing the particular social vision they're promoting with their claptrap. It is this vision, the central lie of freemarket ideology, that Gray is interested in pointing out: he convincingly argues that freemarket ideology relies heavily on a strong state and is really aimed at eliminating those vestiges of civil society which still exist that have the power to check the ambition of corporate capital. For those of us who still promote the idea that some aspects of human activity should not be subordinated to the profit motive, this book provides some analysis and some comfort: as Gray points out, this moment of American hegemony is not destined to last forever (as Greenspan's followers would believe) -- global capital in the american mold? This too shall pass! My only complaint is that much of Gray's argument is repetitive -- perhaps a habit of working for Thatcher for as long as he did?