Saving Capitalism

Finished December 3
Saving Capitalism: For the Many, Not the Few by Robert B. Reich

This book looks at the myths of capitalism and the facts of capitalism, showing how those in power misrepresent government's role and how the current trend is not sustainable nor good for anyone in the long run. The author gives a brief introduction and then the book is separated into three parts.
The first part talks about the "Free Market", and has nine chapters. The first chapter gives the prevailing view (widely portrayed) of the free market. The second chapter introduces the five building blocks of capitalism: property, monopoly, contract, bankruptcy, and enforcement. These five things are elements the government determines the nature of. It is the way the government determines these elements that defines how the market operates. Free market is a misnomer, as it is determined by how the government determines these elements. The third chapter looks are the nature of freedom and power.
The fourth chapter discusses property, the fifth monopoly, the sixth contracts, the seventh bankruptcy, and the eighth enforcement. The ninth chapter summarizes the market mechanism as a whole.
The second part looks at work and the myths that surround it, and consists of six chapters. The first looks at the myth of meritocracy, the idea that we earn what we deserve. The second looks at the underlying, not always visible mechanisms that determine CEO pay. The third does the same for Wall Street pay. The fourth looks at how the bargaining power of the middle class has been in decline for decades. The fifth looks at the rising numbers of working poor, those people that work hard, yet can never earn enough to survive without assistance. The sixth looks at the rising numbers of non-working rich, those who don't work yet still have much more than they need to survive and how the rules have changed gradually to create this growth.
The third part looks at the nature and need for countervailing power, and consists of nine chapters. The first is a summary of where we stand now. The second looks at how the current market mechanisms are a threat to capitalism. The third looks at how countervailing power has declined over the years. The fourth gives a number of ways to restore countervailing power to the market. The fifth discusses the issues of pre-distributions upwards and how to end that. The sixth discusses ways to redefine the corporation. The seventh discusses ways to deal with the ways that technology has replaced jobs. The eighth discusses the role of the citizen in the market. The ninth looks at new rules for the capitalistic market that will make it for the many and not the few.
Reich explains everything very well, uses lots of real world examples, and gives real solutions to the current problems. I highly recommend this book.

The Renaissance Society

Finished May 4
The Renaissance Society: How the Shift from Dream Society to the Age of Individual Control Will Change the Way You do Business by Rolf Jensen and Mika Aaltonen

This book provides a hopeful look at the future. It posits that society will shift into a post-materialistic outlook starting with the West and followed by the East, now coming into its materialistic phase. It looks at the route societies take as they develop, with motivations moving up Maslow's pyramid to the top level of self-actualization. One example is the gradual shift from sporting brand names, to brand names that have been given an individual twist, a personalization that is yours alone. The shift in economic heft will also move from material objects to services, those that require a real human touch.
The current trend in the west to think short-term, current or next quarter will move to the "extended now", a view with more long term outcomes in mind. This will include such things as retail theatre, emotional marketing with a focus on relationships between providers and users, and a move toward green products. I found the chapter on leadership dilemmas very interesting as it looks at the relationship within organizations and the motivations that drive the employees as recognized by the leaders.
Two things I found missing. One is that the emphasis on the move to a new Renaissance with its numerous comparisons to the historical renaissance makes no mention the large loss of human life that preceded the historical renaissance, a loss that led to many of the opportunities that brought a true renaissance in thought and culture. We don't have such a population loss now, nor are the authors anticipating one preceding their posited renaissance, and no mention of what takes the place of that cause in their theory.
The second is in all their talk of the rich nations of the West and the middle class, there is no acknowledgement of the growing gap in incomes within many of those nations, and the resultant disappearance of the middle class and growth of the poor. With the large number of people facing real hardship within these rich nations, how does that impact their theory?
Lots of interesting ideas, and a hopeful outlook for the world as a whole, but not an entirely convincing package for this reader.

Don't Buy It

Finished October 16
Don't Buy It by Anat Shenker-Osorio

I found this book fascinating. It deals with two subjects I find interesting, economics and language. The author talks about the use of language around the economy in the United States and how that use feeds the political arguments around the economy. She is progressive politically and shows how the conservatives language is dominant right now and how progressives can work to change that.
Right now the dominant view of the US economy (and indeed economy in general) is as an entity unto itself. Some refer to it like a god, with people being asked to sacrifice for the sake of the economy. Some refer to it as a living organism that does what it does without outside influence. Neither of these are true, but they work to the conservative's agenda.
One of the biggest problems is the lack of understanding by most people about how the economy actually works, that what we do changes the direction of the economy. One common fallacy is that spending is using up money. Spending money transfers that money to someone else, who can also use it and that can continue again and again. 70% of the US GDP is from consumer spending, which means that consumers have a huge influence on the economy. Another common fallacy is economic mobility, which conservatives sell as the ability of anyone to move up. Mobility actually works both ways, but no one mentions downward mobility. Financial literacy has actually decreased in recent years, with fewer people with a good understanding of how even basic finance like mortgages work. This makes it easier to create false stories that influence these people. As the author emphasizes time and time again, the economy is NOT an independent entity, but the result of our collective endeavours.
Progressives can change this in several ways. One, is changing the language to one that uses metaphors of man-made things like cars (i.e. drive the economy) to indicate that some control is needed and that the economy is something we created. Another is to tell people what they can do as individuals to change the economy to something that works for the people and the planet.
Many talk of economics as a science, with rules that govern it, but the author shows in vivid ways how these "rules" aren't rules at all, but merely convenient constructs to illustrate behaviours.
She also suggests four things that can be done to move the economy in the right direction, a direction that will  work for the majority of people and for the planet. If only everyone from politicians to those that vote for them would read and understand these lessons.

The Accident

Finished October 20
The Accident by Linwood Barclay, performed by Peter Kerkrot
As usual, Linwood Barclay delivers a fast-moving thriller. Themes in this book are around the economic downtown and people caught between rising costs and either stagnant or decreasing incomes. There are many accidents in this book, and many aren't accidents at all. The first accident is one whose aftermath is witnessed by two women tourists making their way to the garment district in NYC looking for deals. They are also among the first victims as they end up in the wrong place at the wrong time (another theme).
We are then taken by to our main  character Glen Garber, a building contractor whose wife, Sheila, is taking a business course at night to be able to offer assistance to him at work. The couple have an 8-year-old daughter, Kelly. When Sheila dies in an accident that doesn't fit with her character for Glen, he can't let go of it. Barclay's characters are ordinary people like you and me, and that is what adds to the intensity of his books. People, even ordinary good people, aren't always what they seem, and you don't always know them as well as you think you do.
There are many twists and turns, when you think you have things figured out and then new information shows you don't. A great, intense, page-turner that also makes a commentary on the current situation many people find themselves in.

Identity Economics

Finished May 20
Identity Economics by George A. Akerlof and Rachel E. Kranton, narrated by Sean Pratt
Grabbed this book from the new book shelf at work as I needed something to listen to on my commute.
It was interesting, but I am glad I have a degree in economics, as some of the terminology was definitely subject specific. It talked about a relatively new aspect of economics that uses individual or group identity perception to predict behaviour. Some types of identity are generally fixed (race, gender), while others are temporary and may change over time. Standard economics says that people would choose economic behaviours that would be of most benefit to them, but that doesn't always happen. Identity economics shows that how a person identifies themselves influences their behaviour (one example: they want to do what the rest of their peer group is doing so they fit in). The authors use examples from work, school, and home to show different ways this happens. They also show examples of both fixed identity and temporary identity and how behaviours can change over time.
It was quite interesting and can explain a lot of things that don't seem to make sense otherwise (like election results ;->) It made me think about things in a different way.