Customer Reviews

The Soul of Capitalism: Opening Paths to a Moral Economy

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Edit of 21 Dec 07 to add links.

The author has written a book that outlines an implementable vision worthy of the Nobel Prize.

If you buy just one book this year, if you read just one book prior to voting in the primary and general elections of any country, this is the book. It combines common sense, a deep understanding of the flaws of a capitalist system that has been hijacked by unethical elites, and an extraordinary diversity of interviews and sources that I found compellingly sensible and straight-forward.

Politically and economically, this book offers the citizen-voter-consumer-stockholder an objective and balanced account of exactly what is wrong with the existing American way of capitalism (both at home and abroad), and how we might, over time, fix it.

Most importantly, the author destroys all of the myths and lies about the rising American standard of living, and demonstates that when one revises the Gross Domestic Product calculations to substract rather than add the negative products such as prisons and health care stemming from unsafe products and practices, the over-all national economic indicators have been steadily declining for over thirty years.

The author is brilliant--truly brilliant--in studying the work of others and putting together a case for redefining capitalism and the financial accounting for capitalism to include social costs and benefits as part of the evaluative calculus. He excells at understanding and explaining the benefits to be had by introducing long-term sustainability, worker-friendly labor and management cultures, and balanced work force composition (save the middle class) and compensation (end the looting of America and its pension funds by an out of control corporate elite).

In discussing the soul of capitalism, the author is in fact discussing America's soul. His book is not only a handbook for grassroots and collective bargaining actions by all communities and assocations, it is a reference point by which Americans specifically, but all national in all nations, should be judging their political and economic and social leaders. People *can* take back the power, but first they must understand that the existing economic situation is so unstable and unhealthy that it virtually guarantees life on Earth will end within the next 100 years.

Although the book clearly mandates a reordering of both the American economic and the American political systems, and the author addresses those, he placed the bulk of his emphasis at the grass-roots level, and discusses how specific organizations and communities across America are "by-passing Washington" and establishing revolutionary new covenants for community-based, labor-friendly, sustainable economics.

The book as a whole draws a clear distinction between what one might call Bush Economics (loot the commonwealth, enrich a very tiny elite that already has most of the wealth) and Dean Economics (recover the $500 billion a year in unwarranted corporate subsidies and financial fraud, restore the social side of the capitalist value system, share the wealth, sustain the environment).

The author is a man of faith. Throughout the book, but especially when discussing the Social Gospel movement and reform theologians with close ties to extreme suffering in communities that have lost everything, he can inspire tears of both sadness at what we have done to ourselves, and joy at the possibilities for the future if we the people take back the power.

At every turn in the book one reads about the connection between capitalism and democracy--between corrupt capitalism and the falseness and injustice of American democracy and foreign policy (see our reviews of Paul Krugman's "The Great Unraveling", Jonathan Schell, "The Unconquerable World", and Mark Hertsgaard, "The Eagle's Shadow")--and between moral capitalism and democracy restored.

Drawing on the work of David Ellerman, William Greider discusses the master-servant relationship between corporate employers and human employees, and concludes, as does Ellerman, that all of the injustices of capitalism are based on a legalized fraud. "The 'fraud' is the economic pretense that people can be treated as things, as commodities or mahcines, as lifeless property that lacks the qualities inseparable from the human self, the person's active deliberation and choices, the personal accountability for one's actions."

Three additional notes (this review barely scratches the surface and cannot do justice to the wealth of knowledge the author is communicating in a very effective manner):

1) If the labor unions come together to use their pension funds as sledge hammers, they can do a great deal of good in both reforming Wall Street and nurturing labor-friendly and environmental-friendly corporate behavior.

2) The retired population in America represents an untapped national asset--a wise President would find ways to use this virtually unlimited pool of social and functional talent to revitalize communities, schools, families, businesses, and non-profit endeavors.

3) Both the corporate governance model and the enforcement model are so severely flawed that they must be over-turned. Corporations should not have legal personalities that eliminate accountability for the individuals managing them, and the enforcement process needs to be turned on its head, focusing on incentives for higher social performance rather than punishments for the occasionally prosecuted rogue corporation.

In relation to foreign economic relations, the author provides a superb complementary reading to Clyde Prestowitz's book, "Rogue Nation: American Unilateralism and the Failure of Good Intentions." As he puts it so nicely, in today's world walls do not work and there is no place for corporations to hide once the anger of the people is aroused. America must not only clean its own house, but in so doing, in restoring the morality of capitalism and the realiy of democracy, America will again be a land of ideals instead of hypocrisy, a land of liberty instead of looting, a land that inspires the world instead of corrupting it.

America, and the world, are at a turning point. I pray that no fewer than 50 million Americans will read this book, and I urge every faithful Amazon customer to buy 5 copies of this book and give them out as part of re-engaging every adult in the vital process of restoring democracy and restoring morality to capitalism.

High recommended books, with reviews:
The Battle for the Soul of Capitalism: How the Financial System Underminded Social Ideals, Damaged Trust in the Markets, Robbed Investors of Trillions - and What to Do About It
Blessed Unrest: How the Largest Movement in the World Came into Being and Why No One Saw It Coming
The Tao of Democracy: Using Co-Intelligence to Create a World That Works for All
Society's Breakthrough!: Releasing Essential Wisdom and Virtue in All the People
The Wealth of Networks: How Social Production Transforms Markets and Freedom
One from Many: VISA and the Rise of Chaordic Organization
A Power Governments Cannot Suppress

I'm sure many players in the marketplace are not ready to embrace what Greider is reporting, essentially the call in many quarters for a new economic paradigm that takes into account such off-the-book realities as environmental and technological sustainability and corporate accountability.

But it should be required reading. As he shows, the tide is turning, consciousness is building, and there are certainly a growing number of constituencies, from private and institutional investors, business owners, academics, and government officials, who recognize the need for deep rooted change and revisionist thinking when it comes to the basic precepts of capitalism, a 19th century system that no longer reflects the complexities of today's marketplace. Instead, this maze of antiquidated legal and financial rules continues to create winners and losers, though the victims are certainly becoming the greater,from the environment itself to employees, union workers, investors and retirees to the generations of the future. And the winner's circle keeps narrowing to those few in the academic legal and economic community who expouse shareholder primacy, that a corporation exists to serve its shareholders and shareholders well, and then within those confines, the very few in the ensuing debacles of this past bull market, who actually profited from the internet bubble, not to mention those scamming executives from the likes of World Com and Enron, who managed to escape with their stock options entact before all the cookies crumbled.

Bravo, William Greider, who marches on as both a keen observer and visionary who points out that people certainly aren't going to change, but the system had better do a better job in reflecting the reality of greed and imbalance that is taking a toll globally. This book is a decade ahead of its time and could help build a better future if many take it seriously. A reviewer for The Washington Post dubbed Greider an "optimist" because of his viewpoint that large scale change wasn't only possible, but was forthcoming. But true label is "realist" because the ground swell for many of the issues he tackles has already begun. Not that you'll read about it in Forbes, The Wall Street Journal or hear about it from the usual business talking heads on cable, where contributors aren't brainy or reflective enough to grasp the big picture, if not willingly blinded to it. But Greider offers up what's taking place and why, and the historical context that our marketplace is operating in, in effortless and eloquent prose. And what he's written is an accurate protrayal of change, not just some positive thinking of the possibilities. Within many academic circles, both here and abroad, mulitnationals, stock exchanges, investment funds and business concerns, both profit and non-profit, the pressures egging on the evolution of the capitalist system are already embraced and understood.

I suggest reading Greider's book to not only understand what's at stake, but as way to align your future investment portfolio, employment possiblities, even political beliefs, because the factions he reports on in this book will have increasing power in coming years to change the status-quo to benefit our society at large.

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 has both complicated and corrupted the social, economic, and political landscape of the countries in which it has flourished. His writing skills are superb, and the ordinarily dry and stuffy stuff of economics come alive in this highly readable and quite entertaining work. Moreover, Greider demonstrates his understanding of the Marxian critique of postmodern capitalism as well as its relevance for what appears to be a critical point in capitalism's history.

This is a brilliant and perceptive book, one which both recognizes the dangers that confront us as well as the opportunities lingering beneath the surface of the sputtering global economy, which has seemingly turned inward and against itself, with some quite disturbing retrogressive long-term effects for both the workers and middle classes of the societies in which it is most advanced. Yet, Mr. Greider's perspective is more sanguine than one might expect, expressing both concern over the many ways in which this fundamentally anti-democratic strain of global 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, and yet at the same time giving signs of some irresistible movements toward greater responsiveness and attention to actual consumer needs, as opposed to those they manufacture and market so well today.

In summary, Greider argues that while the world is still likely to experience a period of difficult & chaotic 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, there is also the opportunity for new directions from new sources as the sheer size and scale of global corporations make them seemingly more and more ossified and less and less able to serve the public from which it hopes to maintain its profit margins.

Thus, 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. We need to recognize the genius of capitalism, and refocus the forces of it toward more human and vital needs in order to build a more sustainable economy for the future.

William Greider has written a well informed, sharp critique of capitalism. In this book, he devotes individual chapters to analyzing the dysfunctional ways that capitalism impacts us as workers, consumers, investors, citizens and as human beings. In each chapter, he gives some suggestions about how we can leverage the many strengths of capitalism improve it from within.

Although Greider *does* acknowledge that capitalism has improved our standard of living significantly and lengthened our lives, this acknowledgement is merely a nod; he definitely leans to the left in this book and suggest many interesting ideas for reform. Some of those ideas seem impractical, but he also gives many examples of how some are working successfully today.

Although he is well informed and a fluid writer, some of Greider's arguments and examples seemed one-sided, and this is one weakness of the book. I had wished he could have anticipated obvious counter-arguments and refuted them, instead of leaving them lingering in the readers mind. Nevertheless, his ideas will provide food for thought and an easy, enlightening read.

Some of his main points are as follows. In the chapter on consumerism, Greider notes that despite our material wealth, we're still consumed with the relentless pursuit of "more" - working more hours for more material goods, status goods, or entertainment. Furthermore, companies produce the products we demand in low-cost ways that degrade the environment. To counter this, Greider notes several examples about how organized consumer boycotts have changed corporate behavior more effectively than government regulation.

As workers, our fortunes are tied to the corporations we work for, yet we have little or no say in the big decisions. Democracy stops at the company's door. Vast hierarchies of workers maintain the uneven distribution of money we see in the rest of a capitalistic society. Workers - or "human resources" - are rented by the hour, and those labor costs are often trimmed by reducing healthcare and pension coverage for employees. To fix this, Greider argues for and gives examples of firms with more participatory decision making, employee ownership, and executive accountability.

In the chapter on capital, he notes that corporate investments are controlled by just a small group of executives, investment bankers, and large fund managers. Whether they are serving the stockholders, clients, or investors, this group makes decisions with a heavy emphasis on economic factors, and little or no emphasis on larger social issues or goals. Yet the soft qualities that are hard to put a price on - like dignity, freedom, a clean environment, democratic expression - aren't a byproduct of a strong economy; they are necessary for it, and the fact that they're "priceless does not mean worthless." Thus, Greider believes that when the quest for profits and productivity trumps social responsibility, the economy will suffer. He'd encourage huge pension funds to invest for the long term in socially responsible companies, and cites those that do.

In the chapter on government, Greider highlights the subsidies & other "corporate welfare" doled out by governments. Large corporations on the verge of bankruptcy are rescued by the federal governement (think Chrysler, Savings & Loans, airlines, etc). States compete to draw in new corporations by giving them special tax breaks. Rather than just occasionally intervening in the economy whose direction is set by corporations, Greider believes government should lead more via grand public works projects (Erie canal, the highway system, airports, parks, etc.) or through sweeping social programs (New Deal, etc.) Also, companies that are funded or rescued using tax dollars should spell out exactly what they will deliver to the public in return, or else their corporate charters must be amended to include a social mission.

In a final chapter, Greider notes that we should come up with a collective vision of what kind of society we want, one in which we are more than just consumers and workers striving individually; one in which we are citizens building the society we want.

Overall, I thought some of Greiders ideas were food for thought, some weren't, and some seemed well-intentioned but unworkable. Nevertheless, I found it enjoyable to read, since Greider is a fluid writer since he is a journalist. However, there are other books in a similar vein by economists that argue some of Greider's points slightly better --- in particular, "The Future of Success" by Robert Reich on the work/spend cycle, or "The Affluent Society" by John Kenneth Galbraith on increasing government investment in infrastructure.

It could be said that our economy functions at a level that has basically eliminated scarcity, but Greider is concerned with the tremendous costs imposed on the greater society and on the environment by our economic system. His argument is that corporate capitalism with the complicity of government at all levels has had significant deleterious effects notwithstanding the obvious material abundance. Greider is improbably optimistic that isolated actions of dedicated citizens - he calls them pioneers - or socially-oriented bodies can modify capitalism and its destructive consequences through grassroots approaches or special leverages.

The author emphasizes that corporate capitalism is in fundamental conflict with society in its consideration of human beings. Corporate employees are little more than factors of production, essentially divested of their humanity. Individual and social concerns are secondary to the almost obsessive corporate fixation on the bottom line. The author makes it exceedingly clear that the "master-slave" relationship imposed on workers in virtually all private companies stands in distinct contradiction to the notion of "free American citizens," able to fully participate in all social affairs. Lost in corporate thinking, is the fact that corporations are in fact small societies.

One would scarcely know today that the general citizenry once indirectly controlled corporations. Corporations were chartered by state legislatures for specific, limited purposes with public obligations. But in an attempt to attract corporations, some states began eliminating those limitations. The Supreme Court, in 1886, solidified corporate standing by declaring them to be legal "persons" with 14th Amendment rights to due process. As the author notes, society now must react after the fact to corporate excesses rather than exerting up front control.

Greider contends that for workers to be able to exercise the democratic-like rights necessary to ensure that companies operate without harming the larger society or the environment, it is fundamental that they become "owners" of their firms. Beyond "do-no-harm" standards, corporations need to take the initiative to become more efficient, to develop biologically degradable materials, and to recycle their products. However, authentic worker ownership is extremely rare in the United States. The author readily admits that ESOPs, a touted form of employee ownership, do not carry with them any inherent rights to participate in corporate decision making.

The financial system in the United States, consisting of investment and banking institutions, among others, has become ascendant over the last thirty years in shaping the nature of American capitalism. Those institutions emphasize short term profits and rising stock market prices while downplaying the long term interests of both the economic system and society. The author suggests that it is mostly a convenient fiction that these pressures are exerted to benefit anonymous shareholders. However, CEO compensation and the ability to leverage buyouts are rewarded by the short term manipulation of stock prices.

The author suggests that structural conditions do exist within the financial system that have the potential to exert reforming pressures on corporations. Pension funds are huge owners of corporate financial assets. Those ownership stakes can often enable funds to force corporations to not opt for short-term gains achieved by such measures as downsizing workforces or degrading the environment. Pension funds do have the fiduciary responsibility to act in the long-term interests of their beneficiaries, that is, employees. In addition to pension funds, the author points to investment funds that rate corporations on the socially beneficial effects of their operations.

Though the author points to new ownership forms, socially conscious investing, and positive environmental actions, he makes no claim that those efforts are widespread or having much impact. And the political system, as it is presently constituted, will not hold corporations accountable for the "externalities" that they generate. The political process has been captured by special interests (mostly big business) that produces, at best, pseudo legislation loaded with loopholes designed for evasion by those same special interests.

However, it is difficult to understand the author's greater confidence that political action at the local and state level can readily alter corporate practices. Politicians at those levels are in competition with similar governments to gain favor with corporations. It was, in fact, the federal government that mandated inescapable, nation-wide reforms that brought the country out of the Great Depression. Of course, corporations have increasingly defeated or avoided that regulatory framework that was concerned with "legal rights for workers, antitrust standards, and social and economic regulations."

The author recognizes that American capitalism subtly encourages the distancing of citizens from the operational centers of key social and economic institutions. The citizenry is scarcely aware that its formal democratic control of society has been usurped by autocratic corporations. Consumerism has essentially replaced the practice of democracy as the primary exercise of freedom. However, all is not well.

There are feelings of distress in our modern society. But for a public debate to occur concerning the structure and purpose of corporations, there has to be a perception that they may be at the root of societal dysfunctions. The reform efforts that Greider has noted cannot be discounted, but contrary to his hopes, there is no doubt that it will take a New Deal type of effort through federal legislation to counter corporate power. Fundamental is the need to surpass the scope of current labor law and establish formal democracy within corporations for workers. Citizens must have a voice in our primary economic institutions that have such large societal effects. From that must flow other corporate reforms such as ecological sustainability.

It is a mild criticism of the book that little direct attention is paid to the profound ability of media conglomerates and educational institutions to greatly sway public thinking. It is hardly surprising that American capitalism is, for the most part, unquestioned. The author's optimism for reform is ultimately tempered: "As it presently functions, the economy is certain to generate still greater inequality, still more pointless impoverishment of lives, more social destruction, more empty political combat, and more wreckage for future generations to clean up."

Don't mistake the Soul of Capitalism for some kind of new get-rich-quick on Wall Street book. Greider suggests that American capitalism as it's currently practiced has no soul. In eight, beautifully written, almost poetic chapters, he describes ways to change this.

Despite this critique, the book is not anti-capitalist. Greider wants to change the culture of capitalism, not the system itself. In fact, he suggests repeatedly that such changes would be beneficial to society in general, including capitalists.

Every businessmen in the country ought to read this book, but probably won't. If you do, you'll never be able to read the business pages or watch CNBC and think the same way again.

A stimulating read for those who feel stiffled by the current world of work. Here's why your feelings are justified and what you can do about it.

There are many critiques of American capitalism. Greider stands out from the crowd for his thoughtfulness and even-handedness. But in the midst of the powerful negatives, Greider finds the genius of the American spirit re-forming the system from within, from the bottom up.

One is left with a sense of optimism. With some sign-posts along the way to a brighter, more fulfilling future for America, for the world and for the individuals who can find joy when they have considered all the facts.

Two minor complaints: There are footnotes but no bibliography. For those who want to study further, finding the sources is a bit more difficult than needs be. The apple pie with American flag crust on the cover seems designed merely to pander to current super patriotism. Greider's point is not that the capitalist pie is partially eaten but that the future offers opportunity to creater more and bigger pies.

"One of this book's implicity objectives is to encourage a little impudence, especially among younger people. I do not expect my prose to blow away their caution and skepticism. but I do hope they keep their minds open to the possibility that some of what I have observed may be right and that it speaks to their own experiences and thinking. If so, they need to ask some questions, to entertain more doubts about the system, less doubt about themselves. Curiosity and doubt are the first steps toward action, especially when accompanied by well-earned anger at the way things are."

This book is thought provoking and full of ideas yet is easy to read and stick with. Greider puts forth the concept of pension funds as the "universal owner" of major corporations and thus a possible force to enact changes. He explains how Innovest, a financial advisory firm applies "Eco-Value" ratings to corporations, thus giving investors a tool for positive screening.

I learned that the Nature Conservancy is starting a Center for Compatible Economics which is "trying to create jobs and incomes in order to protect nature". Greider lays out the problems of capitalism and government as he sees them and gives examples of how these problems are being tackled from the bottom up, one person at a time. He encourages us all to step up and contribute to that effort.

This book is well documented, using sources such as Wendell Berry and Paul Hawken and many others.

Any ardent supporter of capitalism, at least any honest supporter, should hear alarm bells going off over recent economic trends and developments. Globalization, the rise of sweatshops, Wal-Mart, exploiting illegal immigration for economic gain at the cost of American jobs, and the whole Enron/cooking the books imbroglio that's claimed numerous companies in the past five years all set my teeth on edge. You can throw NAFTA, CAFTA, and reckless deregulation into the mix as well. I'm about as conservative as one can get, and I don't like the way the economy is going--not at all. Maybe I've retained a trace of the liberal sentiment from my youth, but I believe the economic elites of this country are selling us all down the river. That's why I'm happy to recommend William Greider's "The Soul of Capitalism: Opening Paths to a Moral Economy." The author is a liberal, no doubt about it, but many (not all) of the claims and arguments he sets forth in this highly readable tome will smack you in the head with their clarity, sanity, and inventiveness. Greider's book should bear the title, "Common Sense 101: Wake Up Before It's Too Late!"

The main thesis of "The Soul of Capitalism" is, essentially, that the way the current market system operates is unsustainable. A mania for short-term profits over long-term stability, a corporate culture that resembles in no small way medieval feudalism, and the destruction of the environment form the core of Greider's insightful critiques. He argues that the supposedly "free" market is actually presided over by a select elite increasingly invulnerable to democratic processes. The average investor has little say over how executives run companies, whether corporations will operate with their workers' interests at heart, or how a company treats the environment. Only large shareholders and financial analysts have real power, and most of these groups and individuals are far more concerned with making money now than worrying about what could happen fifty years down the road. As for the actual composition and daily functioning of the American corporation, Greider states the obvious by arguing that workers have little to no say in how their employers do business, and are in fact tacitly encouraged to shut up and do their work. His claims that the current market system works night and day to subvert environmental safety need no elaboration.

So what we should we do to take back our markets, improve our workplaces, and ensure that we have land to stand on and water to drink in the future? Turn to socialism, right? Wrong. Greider is a liberal, but he's definitely not a rock-ribbed statist. He believes that capitalism is a great force for humanity that should serve man instead of the other way around. He wants the pension fund managers, who control billions upon billions of dollars in market investments, to exert their influence and bring stability to the economic system. The author also hopes to reform the corporation so that each worker has their own financial stake in the workplace, and he provides several examples of how some companies and venture capitalists have created such entities. "The Soul of Capitalism" examines the environmental issue, and discovers that the best way to guarantee future ecological solvency is to redesign the fundamental tools of capitalist enterprise, i.e. rebuilding the factories and products to operate in more efficient ways that save energy, save money, create less waste, and work as well as, if not better than, current designs. Greider offers several examples of how this process is already underway. It's exciting stuff, no doubt about it.

I liked many most aspects of the book. For someone who probably hasn't held a job in a corporation, he knows the culture with shocking intimacy. We've all worked at places that issue nonsensical rules by fiat while ignore shocking amounts of waste because they won't deign to include workers in decisions. His understanding of the market seems solid as well, especially the increasingly dangerous influence of financial analysts. These sharks, many of whom never held a real job in their lives, not only applaud but also encourage layoffs and other socially damaging policies because they think such things improve the bottom line. I've actually read articles where these dolts grouse because a certain company won't play their slash and burn game. We also know that we harm the environment every time we throw a television set or computer monitor away. Why aren't companies making more ecologically friendly gadgets? Well, they are, but the current market system generally prefers to throw their cash to the big business concerns, the same organizations that have a vested interest in stifling potential competition and innovations that threaten their bottom line. I think it's safe to say that one of Greider's main reasons in writing this book is to throw open capitalism, to make it more democratic in all of its varied aspects.

"The Soul of Capitalism" isn't perfect. While Greider is pessimistic about the government changing the economic system, he's perfectly willing to let them create a sort of "last resort" works program that will act as a safety net for society's poorest members. Uh huh. Sounds an awful lot like a new welfare program to me. Wait until the statist liberals grab hold of that idea! I also had to chuckle over his idea of introducing a course on capitalism in the universities. You want a bunch of Marxists teaching a course on capitalism? Not me. Those idiots in the professoriate have done enough damage already. I'll end with an elaboration on calling Greider a liberal. He is, but he's more a liberal in the classical sense. The author believes in empowering the individual by giving them more choices in how they earn a living, which will ultimately lead to more choices in living a fulfilling life. Sounds like a plan to me.

William Greider is a gifted critic of the downside of capitalism, although his proposed changes are somewhat wanting. To his credit he attempts to be realistic in both his analysis and his suggested alternatives although he has excessive confidence in the efficacy of the state to rectify wrongs.

Greider actually has little confidence in the national government to make the changes he deems necessary, however, this lack of faith owes to what he sees as the unwillingness of leaders rather than the inability of government to reorder the economy by fiat. If inertia could be overcome, Greider would have the government be the employer of last resort and a co-owner of many businesses where it would exercise its wisdom to re-order priorities of the modern corporation. This already happens elsewhere (i.e. Europe and Japan) and the results are decidedly mixed.

Greider has an almost patriotic fervor for American innovation but much of what he advocates would tend to stifle the same innovation he lauds. His faith in the virtues of unions tends to ignore their side-effects: arcane work rules and excessive protection for unproductive employees, neither of which are a net benefit.

For all his critiques of American corporations and government he saves his fiercest vitriol for the profession of economics. While he is familiar with the theories of neoclassical economics, one wonders if he only views them as clever propoganda. Its hard to see how Joseph Schumpeter's "creative destruction" could occur in William Greider's ideal economy.

While his criticism sometimes is over the top, he touches on real concerns, particularly in the area of environmental degradation. Contrary to his accusations, neoclassical economics does recognize this as a problem, but they don't offer much in the way of solutions. At least this aspect of his book offers useful, if not fully viable, ideas for change.