Customer Reviews

Ethics, Efficiency and the Market

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This is a book that every student of economics or political philosophy should read. Indeed, anyone with an opinion about capitalism, socialism, Marxism, etc. should read a copy of this book. It's concise. It's well-written. It's fair. It demolishes bad arguments for and against free markets.

This book considers all of the most important arguments for and against the free market, both on the grounds of efficiency and on the grounds of morality. It concludes with a chapter on arguments for and against market socialism. Buchanan's goal is to give an overview of each argument, pinpoint the assumptions behind the arguments, and review some of the most important challenges that have been put forth to the arguments. The reader will come away with a much greater understanding of the debate over markets as well as a good sense for where certain arguments may be further developed.

I've spent a lot of time thinking about the market on my own, and I was familiar with Adam Smith, Karl Marx, John Maynard Keynes, Friedrich Hayek, etc. before reading the book. This book still changed my thinking about quite a few aspects of the market. This is a great book.