How and why capitalism must change
924166
This original work by Harvard professor and intellectual Shoshana Zuboff, and philosopher and former CEO James Maxmin may seem utopian. And, to an extent, perhaps it is. The book presents a fantastic future world of commerce, and does so within the strictures of an academic tone, including extensive footnotes. The authors' ideas seem shy of practicality but quite worthwhile. Surely some businesses already serve their customers more than their shareholders or executives; of course, some companies already provide superior customer service. But even among those stars, few create commercial transactions that not only satisfy customers, but also fulfill and energize them - that's the authors' utopian vision. Spreading this attitude throughout the realm of business may be a fantasy, but it sure sounds good. getAbstract thinks this insightful book conveys an imaginative, fresh corporate vision. Will this consumer-based new world unfold precisely as the authors suggest? Probably not. But at least they show what could be, as well as what should be averted: capitalism in its business-as-usual, perverse, anticonsumer mode. If you've ever become aggravated trying to make a simple purchase, you'll understand.
3076876
If you've ever listen to people rail about how capitalism is the source of all societal evils and felt that they were missing something important, this book is a must-read. The author does a wonderful job at pointing out how companies practicing conscious capitalism not only provide an ethical and moral compass for doing business in a sustainable way, it shows how they outperform similar businesses because of the way they care for their supply chain, clients and employees and offers practical ways you can do the same.
3260932
An excellent case for capitalism written with real passion.
3469517
This is not an easy read, but those who stick with it will get a thorough education in why capitalism, and only capitalism, will produce the societal benefits that most of us want. Solid reasoning at its finest.
4326543
The Failure Of Laissez Faire Capitalism (And Economic Dissolution Of The West) by Paul Craig Roberts is an excellent expose of the economic crisis of our times, and the more general crisis of capitalism that is bringing globalization to its endgame. Since Roberts was once a Reagan cabinet figure as Assistant Sec. of the Treasury, his take is the more astonishing. Although I am wary of his take on the Euro and/or the future of Germany, the basic thrust of his critique of economics is must reading. We have been sold down the river by the illusory mirages of the economics cadre, the agitprop about free trade, and the parallel rise of the interior fascist state. This is one of the best exposes of both the economic and political deceptions being played on the American public. We are so bemused by capitalist ideology that the shock of discovering the massive distortions of theory required to perpetrate the fiction can be unsettling. Important reading: Kindle only
2317441
Friedman has written a classic book on capitalism that has sold over half a million copy. The most interesting element of his book is that Friedman has accused the Federal Reserve Bank to be responsible for the depression of the 1930s due to their lack of interference by not helping the failed banks and by contracting the money supply. The Federal Reserve Bank is in charge of creating money whenever it is needed, in order to prevent such occurences as major recessions and depression.(The Federal Reserve Bank is embodied in five to six privately owned banks in Europe and America that took over the central financing of the United States in 1913 during the Woodrow wilson presidency when the Federal Reserve act was passed, which marked the beginning of the privatization of American financial and political institutions into the hands of the global corporate world).
Friedman has borrowed most of his concepts on capitalism and freedom from the father of free market economy the brilliant Austrian economist Friedrich Von Hayek, and made them his own.
This book will provide the reader with an interesting perspective on free market economy and the elusive concept of freedom.
433672
This books is well written for the policy wonk and the concerned citizen. It illustrates why the old guard of economic development struggles to enact better policies in an era where workers seek meaningful jobs and well paying jobs. The personal anecdotes, historical review of past economic challenges, and economic data presented offer a strong argument that we need to begin a new line of policymaking that throws out the old "managed economy" model and experiments with new, small, and highly targeted policies for economic development.
709943
Ha-Joon Chang's iconoclastic book on the follies of untrammelled free-market economics was published shortly after the financial meltdown of 2008, but its messages remain relevant today: we still live in a world that teeters on the brink of monetary collapse. The damage wrought by the global crash was second only to the Great Depression, and its legacy - in terms of poverty, social stability and the impact on economic growth - may last for decades.

The author's premise is that thirty years of free-market ideology was at the root of the catastrophe and that, worryingly, the world has not learned from the experience. The next disaster may be just around the corner.

In spite of what the title suggests, "23 Things" is not a rabid attack on capitalism itself. There is much here to anger those from both the Political Left and the Political Right. It is more a thoughtful analysis of some of the underlying assumptions relating to the American 'brand' of capitalism, how they have spread across the globe and how such underpinning philosophies can be short-sighted and dangerous.

Ha-Joon Chang (who teaches at the Faculty of Economics at Cambridge, if you're interested) slices and dices economic statistics from the 1960s to the present day to show us that many of our deeply-held beliefs about education, the world's poor and the so-called 'post-industrial age' contain fatal flaws. Tellingly, he points out that the very free-market policies being forced on the developing nations are precisely NOT the policies pursued by the developed countries of the world while they were building their wealth.

The author is an economist who knows the limitations of economics as a means of building a world fit for people to live in. He echoes Winston Churchill's view on democracy by asserting, "Capitalism is the worst economic system except for all the others", but unlike many merchants of doom he offers eight concrete suggestions on how to rebuild the world economy.

All in all, "23 Things" is a thought-provoking book and one which is written in a style that makes it accessible to the general reader not just to the disciples of the 'dismal science' of economics.
2015980
This book is a Marxian-influenced outline of the functioning of capitalism (a commodity-based system driven by the imperative to make accumulate capital), without getting caught up in the details of a theory of value. It deals with the essential drive to accumulate, the role of the state, the function of ideology, the course of development of capitalist society. It is very clear and well-written (as is to be expected of Heilbroner). It is succinct and somewhat prosaic.
1616477
And it still doesn't work. Dismiss the critique with a right wing wingnut comment, but it's still the same old rehash of a fail ideology. You can harp on the negative aspects of Capitalism, but it still survives and has worked a heck of a lot better than the other isms.

No matter how poorly they perform, every decade or so, someone comes along to try and revive these failed experiments. "Socialism or Communism is better and would work if only we could find the right people to lead us".

There have been ghettos and poor people in this world since day one. More Utopian dreams will still not eliminate it. Love it or hate it, but Capitalism has done more to lift more people out of poverty than these progressive pipe dreams.
4459101
I am not an Economics expert but this book strikes me as true. Captitalism has to have a heart and it does need to be responsible to society. Market forces don't necessarily help the common good. It is important to have parameters in which capitalism works. This book is very clear in what parameters Crouch believes are necessary.
4222652
This book is a magisterial critical evaluation of Max Weber's thesis 'The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism'.
Tawney argues rightly that there is an interaction between religion and the social/economical environment because 'it seems a little artificial to talk as though capitalist enterprise could not appear till religious changes had produced a capitalist spirit. It would equally be true, and equally one-sided, to say that the religious changes were purely the result of economic movements.' (p. 312)
As an example, the Christian Church itself had changed mightily in the Renaissance. It persecuted the Spiritual Franciscans who followed St Francis' rule of evangelical poverty. It was the richest company in the Western world (see W. Manchester: 'A world lit only by fire').
Tawney remarks rightly that what Calvin did for the bourgeoisie of the sixteenth century, Marx did for the proletariat of the nineteenth. Calvin's success was firmly prepared by Puritan moralists, who stressed thrift, work as an end in itself, efficiency and rational calculation. They paved the way for a shrewd commercial and powerful midldle class, which adopted the Calvinist religion and its ethic as a natural ally.
This very rich book shows the real impact of Calvinism on the whole society. One example: wages. Calvinism considered 'that high wages are not a blessing, but a misfortune, since they merely conduce to weekly debauches.' (p. 267)
This is a brilliantly written, colourful, metaphorical and yet scientific work. It should be an example for many historians, of how 'essential historical evolutions' can be presented to the public in a comprehensive and attractive language.
This is an essential read for the understanding of out modern society.
581394
The author is correct about many of the problems we are seeing in our economy, such as the growing wealth gap and bank bailouts. But sadly he is wrong about the cause and the solution. True Capitalism requires a truly free market (we currently have neither). This book seeks to justify big government and increase government intervention. The big government approach can only attempt to print prosperity and seeks to force equality.
3478796
Very well written book, where you don't need to be trained in economics to appreciate it fully. It gives substance to the "feeling" of rising inequalities, and why it does nothing really good for society.

Piketty also clearly describes that he believes capitalism is the only real viable economic system; but there is more than one way to implement capitalism, and lower taxes on income, inheritance and capital gains do nothing to improve capitalism.
287373
This reads as though it is a summary of academic papers and assumes the reader has some background in the subject matter. The authors start with the premise that the existing model of capitalism has failed, evidenced by the economic downturn in 2008 and suggest the concept of Civic Capitalism, with a focus on more than economic indicators, such as environmental sustainability,  or quality of life,  or  balanced improvements/increased equity. In the second part, additional writers offer other ideas. Part 3 offers next steps for Civic Capitalism to take root.

The two biggest detractions are the academic language and the vagaries of some concepts that the authors say "will be worked out at a later time." To really be convincing to an audience beyond preaching to the choir, it needs to have more detail.

The authors do rightly note that this concept would take years (or decades) to truly implement. It is an interesting read (although dense) and has some concepts that are engaging to read and debate with others.
1157232
Jefry Sacks ignores the fact that the ever-wider use of smart machines in the production of material goods eliminate capitalism because it requires different rules of the allocation of GDP between firms, their workers, their owners and the state. Namely, if smart machines completely expel human labor from the production process of material goods, then it will no longer be worthwhile to talk about the monetary value of produced goods, because their cost of their production will be reduced to zero. Distribution of GDP in these conditions of production can only be parametric i.e. participation of firms, employees, owners and the state in the produced quantities of material goods must be previously defined.
Such a World will significantly differ from today's one, but Author did not take that facts into account when he considered the problem of how to improve the state of the American economy and the goals that should be achieved on that path. The goals to be achieved are realistically necessary, but the way the author thinks that they can be achieved is not realistic. That's the basic flaw of the book.

Mirko Katic
Author of  "The Future of Market Econmy" (2015)
mikatic@interlog.com
1393869
Bishop and Green have done it again with a carefully researched and entertaining book on the way out of the world's financial morass.  It's more than a roadmap, though; it's a call to action.  The authors argue convincingly that capitalism has to be inclusive and more mindful of its own long-term interests in order to endure and thrive - and that everyone, especially in mature economies like the United States, can help to make that change happen.