The Battle for the Soul of Capitalism [Paperback]

John C. Bogle (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 27, 2006

An astute, longtime observer of the business world, the founder and former CEO of Vanguard mutual funds explains the failures of the American financial system and the abuses that have plagued it in recent years. More important, John C. Bogle offers a host of practical reforms to restore integrity to corporate and investment America and to protect small investors' interests.

"If you read no other book the rest of the year, you must read The Battle for the Soul of Capitalism."—Mike Clowes, Investment News

"When the writer is John C. Bogle, ignore the bombast and pay attention. . . . Emboldened by the flood of scandals since the bubble burst, Bogle has written his broadest broadside yet."—Peter Lattman, Forbes

"Mr. Bogle tells it like it is, like it was and, most important, tells what needs to be done to restore the values of faith, integrity, and trust that were once hallmarks of corporate America and the financial sectors."—Wall Street Journal (Recommended Reading)

"John Bogle has been making Wall Street a better place for decades. His book is yet another important contribution in an illustrious career."—Jeff Madrick, New York Times Book Review

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Despite its inflated title, this volume is a worthy jeremiad against corporate excess, especially the kind hastened by the mutual fund industry that Bogle, former CEO of low-cost Vanguard, knows well. Among the problems: inflated executive compensation and creative accounting that allows companies to claim profits even when they're in the red. Mutual fund companies, Bogle charges, care more about short-term results than long-term value, and many of them gain profits for larger parent corporations by charging investors unnecessary fees that undermine the funds' net returns. To remedy such problems, Bogle writes, mutual fund owners and their fiduciaries must exercise the corporate responsibility they now shirk, and fund boards must be reshaped to serve the interests of shareholders. He advances in all seriousness Warren Buffett's once-joking idea for a high tax on short-term trading gains and calls for a federal commission to examine the way pension funds are managed, as well as the state of our retirement systems in general. While other recent books, such as David Swensen's Unconventional Success: A Fundamental Approach to Personal Investment, marry similar criticisms with more advice for individual investors, Bogle—a rock-ribbed Republican businessman—still deserves attention in the precincts of power. (Oct.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"If you read no other book the rest of the year, you must read The Battle for the Soul of Capitalism." Mike Clowes, Investment News "... exceptional both because of Bogle's standing and the insights he brings." David Lascelles, Financial World "When the writer is John C. Bogle, ignore the bombast and pay attention... Emboldened by the flood of scandals since the bubble burst, Bogle has written his broadest broadside yet." Peter Lattman, Forbes "Mr. Bogle tells it like it is, like it was and, most important, tells what needs to be done to restore the values of faith, integrity and trust that were once hallmarks of corporate America and the financial sectors." Wall Street Journal (Recommended Reading) "John Bogle has been making Wall Street a better place for decades. His book is yet another important contribution in an illustrious career." Jeff Madrick, New York Times Book Review"

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Yale University Press (November 27, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0300119712
• ISBN-13: 978-0300119718
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #653,869 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

John C. Bogle (Bryn Mawr, PA) is Founder of The Vanguard Group, Inc., and President of the Bogle Financial Markets Research Center. He created Vanguard in 1974 and served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer until 1996 and Senior Chairman until 2000. He had been associated with a predecessor company since 1951, immediately following his graduation from Princeton University, magna cum laude in Economics. The Vanguard Group is one of the two largest mutual fund organizations in the world. Headquartered in Malvern, Pennsylvania, Vanguard comprises more than 100 mutual funds with current assets totaling about $742 billion. Vanguard 500 Index Fund, the largest fund in the group, was founded by Mr. Bogle in 1975. In 2004, TIME magazine named Mr. Bogle as one of the world's 100 most powerful and influential people, and Institutional Investor presented him with its Lifetime Achievement Award. In 1999, FORTUNE designated him as one of the investment industry's four "Giants of the 20th Century." In the same year, he received the Woodrow Wilson Award from Princeton University for distinguished achievement in the nation's service."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

123 of 132 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "The Battle for the Soul of Capitalism", October 1, 2005

By 

Patricia S. Larimore (Miami, Florida) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Battle for the Soul of Capitalism (Hardcover)

Jack Bogle, often called the "concience of the industry," has written a powerful book on a subject that concerns every American--"capitalism." As founder and retired CEO of the second largest mutual fund company in the world, Mr. Bogle understands capitalism. He has the unusual ability (for a businessman) to write beautifully, logically and understandably for the average reader. "The Battle for the Soul of Capitalism" is the result.

The thrust of Mr. Bogle's message (documented over and over) is that corporations are now controlled by their managers--not by their owners (shareholders). (The average CEO compensation has soared to 280 times that of the average worker.) Mr. Bogle deftly lays out the problem, but more importantly, he gives us the solution that will return capitalism to its owners and value creation. I could not put the book down.

Taylor Larimore,
Miami, Florida

76 of 83 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A True Friend of Capitalism, October 8, 2005

By 

Alfred Rappaport (La Jolla, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Battle for the Soul of Capitalism (Hardcover)

The individual investor has no better friend than Jack Bogle. Not only did he introduce index funds as a significant investment alternative some thirty years ago, but he has consistently and uncompromingly spoken out against the shareholder-unfriendly practices of his own mutual fund industry. "The Battle for the Soul of Capitalism" is a beautifully written, persuasively argued overview of how corporate and investment fund shareholders are short-changed. More importantly, Bogle offers sensible reforms to fix the problems. This is more than an investor's book, it is an essential book for all caring citizens.

56 of 63 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Wake Up Call, October 1, 2005

By 

Mel Lindauer "Co-author The Bogleheads' Guide... (Daytona Beach Shores, Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Battle for the Soul of Capitalism (Hardcover)

In his usual tell-it-like-it-is, no-holds-barred fashion, Jack Bogle names names and affixes blame where it belongs as he outlines the major problems facing our present system of capitalism, with special emphasis on the greed and coruption in corporate America and in the investment arena, and the failure of our "gatekeepers" to do their jobs properly. Like the true leader and visionary that he is, Bogle not only identifies the problems, but offers sound solutions as well. Powerful stuff! A must-read for investors as well as those who care about the future of American capitalism.