Political economy Books

Book SynopsisStudents of history, politics, economic change, social hierarchy, and even Fascism will view this book as provocative and indispensable. It illuminates how plagues, blockades, migrations, and such world-changing innovations as the invention of printing precipitate political and social revolutions in some societies but peaceful adaptation in others.Trade Review'From the pandemic-induced shocks to the labor supply, to electoral support for right-wing populists, to war-related malnutrition, this historical work seems 'ripped from the headlines.' In fact, it is the culmination of an idea the author advanced decades ago in Commerce and Coalitions. In demonstrating how political action can be understood as one possible response to economic shocks, Rogowski has, once again, provided the closest thing political economy has to a unifying theory.' William Roberts Clark, Texas A&M University'As the world reels from crippling supply shocks, this book could not be more timely. In it, Rogowski explores how unforeseen events can cause sudden and significant disruptions to economic and political life … a must-read for anyone seeking a better understanding of the complex dynamics of supply shocks and their impacts on society.' Stephanie Rickard, London School of Economics'Ranging from the Black Death to World War One, with many stops in between, Rogowski analyzes how major events worked their way through economics and politics. Full of important lessons for a world newly sensitive to the importance of reliable sources of supply, Shocking Contrasts will be read with great benefit by anyone interested in the interaction of technology, the economy, and politics in modern societies.' Jeffry Frieden, Harvard UniversityTable of ContentsPreface and acknowledgments; 1. How supply shocks arise and why political responses to them vary; 2. Who adjusts to a supply shock and who resists it: three determining factors; 3. Why a technological solution does, or does not, emerge; 4. Exogenous loss of labor: the black death in fourteenth century Europe; 5. Exogenous gain of labor: railroads, reproduction and revolution: the Russian population explosion between 1850 and 1914; 6. Exogenous loss of land: blockade, hunger and the Nazi pursuit of Lebensraum; 7. Exogenous increase of human capital: French Huguenots in German cities and principalities, 1685-1715; 8. When the endogenous becomes exogenous: the printing press as a multiplier of human capital; 9. Conclusion: the role of other factors, including institutions, ideas and human agency.

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Book SynopsisThis book is a timely study of an important political economic phenomenon: ESG investing and stakeholder capitalism. This book encourages new ways of thinking about corporate responsibility and how to contest it. -- .

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Book SynopsisThis is a book that none of us can afford to ignore – an agenda-setting, campaigning investigation that shows how global finance works for the few and not the many.** A Financial Times Book of the Year **‘Essential reading’ YANIS VAROUFAKISWe need finance – but when finance grows too big it becomes a curse.The City of London is the single biggest drain on our resources, sucking talent out of every sphere, siphoning wealth and hoovering up government time. Yet to be ‘competitive’, we’re told we must turn a blind eye to money laundering and appease big business with tax cuts.Tracing the curse back through economic history, Nicholas Shaxson uncovers how we got to this point. Moving from offshore tax havens to the bizarre industry of wealth management, he tells the explosive story of how finance established a stranglehold on society – and reveals how we can begin to break free.‘A radical, urgent and important manifesto for improving our country’ Oliver Bullough, Observer‘Superbly written… A must-read’ Misha Glenny, author of McMafia‘Hard-hitting, well written and informative’ Financial TimesTrade ReviewUtterly convincing… The Finance Curse is a radical and important manifesto for improving Britain -- Oliver Bullough, author of MONEYLANDThis is a splendid polemic against modern finance, in general, and the City of London, in particular. It is hard-hitting, well written and informative. Instead of enabling productive investment, the predominant activity of contemporary finance is rent extraction. This comes in many different guises: modern finance does not only promote tax avoidance and evasion, but, argues Shaxson, enables gangsterism and corruption on an enormous scale. I fear he is right. -- Martin Wolf * Financial Times *This superbly written book shows definitively how global finance has been grossly mis-sold to us all. It’s a must-read for anyone who lives, works and spends in this country -- MISHA GLENNY, author of McMafiaGripping . . . a superbly written overview * Times Literary Supplement *Searing… Shaxson has form on being prescient ... his ideas should not be dismissed lightly -- Caroline Binham * Financial Times *

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Book SynopsisEconomics and the Left presents interviews with 24 leading progressive economists, whose life work has been dedicated to both interpreting the world and changing it for the better. They all deploy the technical tools of their trade-the "dismal science"-in various ways. Much more importantly, they are all people dedicated to the principles of egalitarianism, democracy and ecological sanity. The result is a combustible brew of ideas, commitments and reflections on major historical events, including the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting global economic recession.Interviewed are: Michael Ash, Nelson Henrique Barbosa Filho, James K. Boyce, Ha-Joon Chang, Jane D'Arista, Diane Elson, Gerald Epstein, Nancy Folbre, James K. Galbraith, Teresa Ghilarducci, Jayati Ghosh, Ilene Grabel, Costas Lapavitsas, Zhongjin Li, William Milberg, Léonce Ndikumana, Ozlem Onaran, Robert Pollin, Malcolm Sawyer, Juliet Schor, Anwar Shaikh, William Spriggs, Fiona Tregenna, Thomas WeisskopfTrade ReviewPraise for Chomsky and Pollin: Climate Crisis and the Green New Deal, Verso, 2020:This book is a survival manual for civilization. I want everyone-yes, every person on the planet-to learn its message and to face the challenge it poses: 'What am I doing to help bring about a global Green New Deal in the early years of this decade?' For Americans, the first steps are clear: consign all climate deniers to permanent political oblivion and force all other policymakers to match fine words with deeds-i.e. commit to the Pollin-Chomsky global program for climate stabilization, a massive expansion of good jobs, and just transition. -- Daniel Ellsberg, author of The Doomsday MachinePraise for Chomsky and Pollin: Climate Crisis and the Green New Deal, Verso, 2020:The project that is the Green New Deal is enriched by the insights of two great minds: those of Noam Chomsky and Robert Pollin. Both understand that the GND will fail if it does not protect the jobs and livelihoods of the working class. They explain how a transformation needed to restore the ecosystem can, and will transform the organizations and lives of working people worldwide-for the better. -- Ann Pettifor, author of The Case for The Green New DealPraise for Chomsky and Pollin: Climate Crisis and the Green New Deal, Verso, 2020:Chomsky and Pollin argue it is possible to tackle climate collapse over the next 30 years. A capitalist system that fails to respond does not deserve to survive. * Irish Times *Praise for Chomsky and Pollin: Climate Crisis and the Green New Deal, Verso, 2020:Emphasizes the crisis our planet faces but also says 'there is a solution at hand.' * Irish Examiner *This fascinating collection of interviews with 24 leading progressive economists is profoundly entertaining, revealing, more directly than in their published work, how they came to believe what they believe. The lively interviews convey the infectious excitement of doing research on substantive questions of great social importance and a deep commitment to bringing about equitable and sustainable progress in a mixed economy. Each interviewee offers rare insights into their intellectual biographies and motivations that readers will find nowhere else. Each interview has important intellectual lessons to teach to anyone wishing to understand the world and to improve it. Unendingly gripping. -- Servaas Storm, Professor of Economics, Delft University of TechnologyAs James Galbraith argues in this book, 'economics needs two things: glasnost and perestroika.' This book offers 'glasnost' to anyone interested in the work of some of the most remarkable economists working today, economists whose work is effectively censored by the orthodoxy of the profession. The women economists interviewed- including the remarkable Jane D'Arista - are testament to the need to restructure economics so that women's genius can finally be recognised and celebrated. -- Ann Pettifor, author of The Case for the Green New DealProgressive economists, long voices in the wilderness, have had new influence lately, because the reality they have long described has become demonstrably evident, even to the orthodox. For an introduction to these prophetic voices, you can do no better than to read Economics and the Left: Interviews with Progressive Economics. -- Robert Kuttner, co-editor, The American ProspectThis is a wonderful collection of interviews with a wide variety of inspiring progressive economists who do not only try to understand the world, but also to change it. I learned a lot from it, even about the economists I thought I knew quite well. Reading this book is an enriching and uplifting adventure! -- Irene van Staveren, Professor of Pluralist Development Economics, Erasmus UniversityThis collection of engaging, spirited interviews with economists who have put rigorous economic analysis to work for the common good belongs in the hands of every aspiring economics student. Their accounts of the winding paths that led them to economics are unsparingly honest and contain little-known details that illuminate how their early years influenced their later interests. These economists reject the mainstream, neoclassical framework but embrace economic modes of thinking inspired by a large number of writers- Marx among them - and the tools of rigorous economic analysis including statistics and econometrics. These are used to analyze how class and power, and for some the legacies of slavery and patriarchy, structure labor, commodity and financial markets and market outcomes - persistent wage disparities, unequal burdens of care, food and housing insecurity, environmental degradation, financial instability, and wealth inequality. Intellectually rigorous and morally passionate, their analyses lead to solutions that reside in collective action that respects individual rights, in regulation of markets, and - as the Covid-19 pandemic made clear - in the role of the state in the planning, administration, and allocation of key resources. -- Eileen Appelbaum, Co-director, Center for Economic and Policy AnalysisEconomics and the Left opens a unique window to the hearts and minds of 24 progressive economists -men and women- marked by an extraordinary combination of, on the one hand, brilliance in their academic contributions and of, on the other hand, a passionate commitment to apply their talents -through policy making and advising- to make a better, more equal and sustainable world. This work will be highly enjoyable reading by any economic practitioner, academic or student undergrad and graduate interested in what is -and what is not- the Left in Economics and also by anyone with avid curiosity on how the world economy works and how we can overcome its problems and challenges. -- Juan Carlos Moreno-Brid, Professor of Economics, National Autonomous University of Mexico

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"A New Statesman Best Book of the Academic Presses""An Australian Most Anticipated Book""In his new book, As Gods Among Men, Bocconi University economic historian Guido Alfani outlines how in the past, rich individuals contributed more to the common good in times of war, famine, plague and financial disaster. Today, that sense of shared responsibility is gone."---Rana Foroohar, Financial Times"In this study of 1,000 years of economic inequality, the historian Guido Alfani looks not just at the means by which wealth was accumulated and kept – both largely unchanged ­– but also at the attitudes of less fortunate members of society towards the rich. Croesus-like riches have been seen as a sin, an obligation and a fact of life." * New Statesman *"In his fascinating history, As Gods Among Men, Guido Alfani shows how the super-rich have always bailed the rest of us out- until now." * The Telegraph *"If ever there was a moment to take stock of the relationship between the haves and have-nots, it is surely now, during the gilded age 2.0."---Geordie Williamson, The Australian"[An] exhaustive history of the super-rich through the ages."---Ferdinand Mount, Times Literary Supplement"Alfani notes a pattern that unfolds 'repeatedly and systematically across history': when economic élites become ingrown, impenetrable, and 'insensitive to the plight of the masses,' societies tend to become unstable."---Evan Osnos, New Yorker"The rich, like the poor, are always with us. In fact, over many centuries - as this wide-ranging and ambitious book tells us - the richest in society have captured more and more of the overall wealth of Western societies."---Roderick Floud, History Today"Guido Alfani’s magisterial As Gods Among Men offers a sweeping and welcome historical perspective on who the super-rich really are and how they got that way, blending data, biographical sketches and sociological observations reaching back to the European Middle Ages."---Martin Sandbu, Financial Times

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Book SynopsisThe climate crisis is not primarily a problem of 'believing science' or individual 'carbon footprints' - it is a class problem rooted in who owns, controls and profits from material production. As such, it will take a class struggle to solve. In this ground breaking class analysis, Matthew T. Huber argues that the carbon-intensive capitalist class must be confronted for producing climate change. Yet, the narrow and unpopular roots of climate politics in the professional class is not capable of building a movement up to this challenge. For an alternative strategy, he proposes climate politics that appeals to the vast majority of society: the working class. Huber evaluates the Green New Deal as a first attempt to channel working class material and ecological interests and advocates building union power in the very energy system we so need to dramatically transform. In the end, as in classical socialist movements of the early 20th Century, winning the climate struggle will need to be internationalist based on a form of planetary working class solidarity.Trade ReviewHuber has written a 'What Is To Be Done?' for all of us who are vexed by the failure of progressive climate activism to produce a blueprint for a national action with clear strategic goals. In a blazing critique, he skewers 'radical' as well as liberal environmentalists who advocate market solutions to a crisis whose very cause is the cost-and-profit logic of energy markets. Equally he shows that the electoral road to a Green New Deal is a dead-end without a massive public struggle, integrally involving labor, for public ownership of the power industry. The shelves groan with books on the coming apocalypse , but here, at long last, is a concrete strategy for socialists. -- Mike DavisMore and more people recognize capitalism as a primary driver of climate change. Matt Huber takes the crucial next step. He powerfully demonstrates not just why working class power is indispensable to a just transition but how we build it. -- Jodi DeanThe most powerful missile yet hurled against bourgeois climate politics. With a laser-sharp focus, it strikes at the central fortress: the sphere of production, where one class dominates another and wrecks the planet in the process. A book for every union organiser and every climate activist and everyone who wishes for the two to join forces - to be read, studied, debated, aimed and fired. -- Andreas MalmThis book represents an important and timely contribution to the climate fight. -- Jonathan Rosenblum * Jacobin *We know we need to challenge the power of fossil capital to preserve a habitable planet - but how? Climate Change as Class War injects a necessary dose of strategic thinking into debates about the way forward, arguing for a mass climate politics rooted in the decommodification of basic needs and an organizing strategy focused on workers who can exert power at the point of electricity production. Huber's sharp analysis and challenging arguments open up debates that climate, labor, and socialist movements badly need to have. -- Alyssa BattistoniClimate Change as Class War is an audacious argument, particularly in its unabashed revitalization of Marxism. -- Ryne Clos * Spectrum Culture *

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“This ambitious and eye-opening book shows what political science at its best — based on real-world knowledge, free of jargon and focused on substantive concerns rather than disciplinary marginalia — can contribute to pressing contemporary debates.”—Ricardo Soares de Oliveira, TLS“Dictators without Borders is mandatory reading for those wishing to understand the power dynamics in the region, without falling into the trap of erroneously viewing Central Asia as a region that is closed off from the rest of the world.”—Ana-Maria Anghelescu, Journal of Soviet & Post-Soviet Politics & Society “Among a growing body of literature on the politics of Central Asia’s post- soviet states, Cooley and Heathershaw’s book occupies a distinctive position. [. . . ] The book provides a platform for future theoretical and empirical work on the interplay between global and domestic structural factors and agency in promoting, sustaining, and, perhaps, challenging “dictators without borders.” —Dinissa Duvanova, Canadian-American Slavic StudiesDictators Without Borders was shortlisted for the Central Eurasian Studies Society 2018 book award.“This insightful, ground-breaking book goes to the heart of why such governments are among the worst human rights abusers in the world—all the more reason it should be widely read.”—Hugh Williamson, Europe & Central Asia director, Human Rights Watch'This book shines an important light on the role international financial centres such as London play in facilitating grand corruption and reinforces the urgent need to address this continuing financial system weakness.'- Tom Keatinge, Director, Centre for Financial Crime & Security Studies at RUSI"Insightful and topical—a comprehensive take on a neglected region."—Edward Lucas, senior editor, Economist'This panoramic survey of cronyism and corruption in five Central Asian republics delivers a sobering insight into how the dictators in this quarter salt away their ill-gotten gains in offshore funds. But the greatest shock comes from revelations about the apparent complicity or indifference of Western companies, banks, regulators and politicians.' - Tristram Riley-Smith, Director of Research, Department of Politics & International Studies, University of Cambridge

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Book Synopsis''A superb book'' Financial Times, Books of the YearAdam Smith is now widely regarded as ''the father of modern economics'' and the most influential economist who ever lived. But what he really thought, and what the implications of his ideas are, remain fiercely contested. Was he an eloquent advocate of capitalism and the freedom of the individual? Or a prime mover of ''market fundamentalism'' and an apologist for inequality and human selfishness? Or something else entirely? Jesse Norman''s brilliantly conceived ook gives us not just Smith''s economics, but his vastly wider intellectual project. Against the turbulent backdrop of Enlightenment Scotland, it lays out a succinct and highly engaging account of Smith''s life and times, reviews his work as a whole and traces his influence over the past two centuries.But this book is not only a biography. It dispels the myths and debunks the caricatures that have grown up around Adam Smith. It expTrade ReviewThis splendid book not only presents an excellent introduction to the life and ideas of Adam Smith, but also explains why - and how - Smith's insights can help us solve some of the most difficult social and economic problems of the contemporary world. Smith loved lucidity and relevance, and I think he would have been very happy with Norman's book. -- Amartya SenMasterly ... amid the superficiality and hysterics of modern British politics, an admirably thoughtful brain is lurking -- Edward Lucas * The Times *An important work of revisionist biography with a direct and important impact on the intellectual underpinnings of liberal free-market thought -- Oliver Letwin * Telegraph *Superb ... Norman succeeds in demonstrating the coherence and subtlety of Adam Smith's thought -- Martin Wolf * Financial Times (Books of the Year) *A remarkable and intensely readable book ... a rejoinder to those who fear that the intellectual has disappeared from politics -- John Kay * Financial Times *This book is well-written, well-argued and intensely thought-provoking, and it will rightly raise Smith's posthumous reputation -- Simon Heffer * Spectator *

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Book SynopsisThe highly engaging introduction to thinking like an economist, updated for a new generation of readers. When economists wrestle with any social issuebe it unemployment, inflation, healthcare, or crime and punishmentthey do so impersonally. The big question for them is: what are the costs and benefits, or trade-offs, of the solutions to such matters? These trade-offs constitute the core of how economists see the worldand make the policies that govern it. Trade-Offs is an introduction to the economic approach of analyzing controversial policy issues. A useful introduction to the various factors that inform public opinion and policymaking, Trade-Offs is composed of case studies on topics drawn from across contemporary law and society. Intellectually stimulating yet accessible and entertaining, Trade-Offs will be appreciated by students of economics, public policy, health administration, political science, and law, as well as by anyone following current social policy debates.Table of ContentsPreface to the Third Edition Acknowledgments 1 Stepping into Social Policy Analysis 2 Do You Want to Trade? 3 Is Saving Lives Repugnant? 4 Organ Donor, I Presume? 5 Stop Bothering Me 6 The Government Taketh Away 7 To Create and Protect 8 Don’t Do the Crime If You Can’t Do the Cane 9 What a Fine Mess 10 Three Strikes and You’re In 11 For Shame 12 A Valuable Life to Some Extent 13 No Insurance for You 14 A Pound of Prevention 15 Hazardous to Your Morals 16 Doctors Behaving Badly 17 You’re Offsetting Me 18 Smoke If You Got ’Em 19 Joe Camel Wants YOU 20 A Safer Cigarette? 21 Fast-Food (Expla)Nation 22 The Addictive Choice 23 Consistently Inconsistent 24 We Will Make You Better Off—Like It or Not 25 There Are No Solutions Index

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Book SynopsisAbby Innes argues that the Soviet revolution and British neoliberalism failed for many of the same theoretical and practical reasons. She shows how Britain championed radical economic liberalisation only to weaken and ultimately break its own governing institutions.Trade Review'Abby Innes is one of the most original and provocative analysts of politics in Britain. Her inventive, erudite explorations of both right and left and the many pathologies that make them mimic each other explain so many of the problems which beset the country today.' Rory Stewart, Director of Give Directly, former UK Secretary of State for International Development and co-presenter of the podcast The Rest is Politics'Innes has written a creative, original and deeply insightful account of the modern British state. In comparing the utopianism of neo-liberal thinking and policymaking to that of the Soviet system, she shows how the attempt to translate closed theoretical models into practice leads to weakened forms of governance. This book is critical reading for those trying to understand both contemporary Britain and the nature of modern statecraft.' Jane Gingrich, Professor of Social Policy at the Department of Social Policy and Intervention (DSPI), University of Oxford'The neoclassical project of withdrawing the state from the market ironically rested upon the same fallacy as Soviet planning: that a self-regulating material utopia was possible. The result in both cases was stifling bureaucratic overreach, economic stagnation and system crisis, as the utopia could never be realised. That which is opposite is really the same. Innes offers us more than an analogy of decline. She gives us a forensic dissection of the same pathology in two quite different bodies. A bold and important book.' Mark Blyth, Professor of International Economics at the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs, Brown University, Rhode Island'Political dogmatism kills, no matter what its ideological shape and pedigree. Abby Innes has given the most meticulous articulation of an insight that, through Václav Havel's writing, nourished the insurrections against the totalitarian regimes in Eastern Europe. Thanks to her merciless dissection of the totalitarian logic of neo-liberalism and her scrupulous account of the damage it has inflicted on Britain, we should be better equipped to find a way out. In Late Soviet Britain, Abby Innes has recast the Enlightenment project by cleansing it of its modernist hubris. Emancipation without utopia requires politics without dogma, and this book charts a new road ahead.' Albena Azmanova, Author of The Scandal of Reason and the multiple-award-winning Capitalism on EdgeTable of ContentsIntroduction: the Gods that failed; Part I. The Materialist Utopias: 1. Rationality and closed-system reasoning; 2. General equilibrium and the balanced plan; 3. On bureaucracy; 4. On 'organised forgetting' in the governing science; Part II. Britain's Neoliberal Revolution: 5. The new public management, or Enterprise planning in capitalist form; 6. Quasi-markets in welfare, or The non-withering state; 7. Tax competition, or The return of regulatory bargaining; 8. Efficient markets and climate change, or Soviet cybernetics 2.0; Part III. The Rise and Fall of the Neoliberal 'Movement Regime': 9. Neoliberalism: the Brezhnev years; 10. A politics for the end of time.

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Book SynopsisOffers an introduction to the latest research on political inequality and its relationship to economic inequalities in North America and Western Europe. Explores why economic inequality has risen in all affluent democracies, yet governments have done little to compensate low- and middle-income citizens.Trade Review'Why have advanced democracies so broadly failed to address the growth of economic inequality? This rich volume brings together a wide range of leading scholars to explore the roles of citizens, elites, government policymakers, and the mass media. This is a vital contribution at a time when many citizens are disillusioned with their governments and, perhaps, with democracy itself.' Martin Gilens, University of California, Los Angeles'Based on cutting-edge research by the leading experts in the field, this book tackles the important political puzzle: why did the redistributive efforts of many governments decline over recent decades even as income inequality increased? Its wide-ranging and illuminating essays will be of interest to everyone concerned about issues of inequality.' Peter A. Hall, Harvard University'Why don't democratic governments respond to what their citizens want? Unequal Democracies fills a massive lacuna in the literature with nuanced answers and sophisticated analyses of cross-national evidence. By distinguishing opinions, preferences, and interests and then considering how they are formed and represented by institutions, the authors transform our understanding of how to promote more equitable policies and polities.' Margaret Levi, Stanford University'This volume offers a set of crucial contributions to our understanding of the political consequences of rising inequality. The editors have put together a truly impressive group of scholars who provide state-of-the-art analysis of the political puzzles linking unequal economies to unequal democracies. A must-read for students of comparative politics.' David Rueda, University of OxfordTable of Contents1. The political puzzle of rising inequality Noam Lupu and Jonas Pontusson; Part I. Government Responsiveness: 2. Unequal responsiveness and government partisanship in Northwest Europe Ruben Berge Mathisen, Wouter Schakel, Svenja Hense, Lea Elsässer, Mikael Persson and Jonas Pontusson; 3. Democracy, class interests, and redistribution: what do the data say? Mads Andreas Elkjær and Torben Iversen; 4. Measuring political inequality Larry M. Bartels; 5. Why so little sectionalism in the contemporary United States? The under-representation of place-based economic interests Jacob S. Hacker, Paul Pierson and Sam Zacher; Part II. Political Inequality and Representation: 6. On the mechanisms behind unequal representation in legislatures Michael Becher and Daniel Stegmueller; 7. How do the educated govern? Evidence from Spanish mayors Marta Curto-Grau and Aina Gallego; 8. Working-class officeholding in the OECD Nicholas Carnes and Noam Lupu; 9. Political participation and unequal representation: Addressing the endogeneity problem Ruben Berge Mathisen and Yvette Peters; Part III. Voters and Demand for Redistribution: 10. Fairness reasoning and demand for redistribution Charlotte Cavaillé; 11. The news media and the politics of inequality in advanced democracies J Scott Matthews, Timothy Hicks and Alan M. Jacobs; 12. Deflecting from racism: local talk radio conversations about the murder of George Floyd Katherine J. Cramer; 13. Class and social policy representation Macarena Ares and Silja Häusermann; Bibliography; Index.

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Book SynopsisNow in its fourth edition, A Short History of Economic Thought provides an elementary overview of the history of economic thought.This new edition continues to offer its trademark of clear and concise coverage of the main schools of thought and paradigm shifts in the field of mainland Europe, as well as addressing Anglo-American trends. The book has been thoroughly updated throughout in order to reflect changes in the landscape of the field. Details on key thinkers, on early developments outside the Western world, and on the recent evolution of scholarship in quantitative and non-orthodox turns have been added or expanded, while not compromising on the book's concise approach. A chapter is devoted to each of the major developments in the history of the discipline, concluding with a chapter in which the authors draw together some of the key strands and comment on major works and textbooks in the history of economic ideas. They also reflect on the changes in economic thiTable of Contents1. Introduction 2. Pre-classical economic thought 3. Classical political economy 4. Neoclassical economics 5. Historical schools and institutionalism 6. Monetary macroeconomics 7. Orthodoxy and change

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Book Synopsis''Smart. Informative. Overdue'' Eric Schmidt, former CEO of Google Political risk - the probability that a political action could significantly affect an organisation - is changing fast, and it''s more widespread than ever before.In the past, the chief concern used to be whether a foreign dictator would nationalise the country''s oil industry. Today, political risk stems from a widening array of agents, from Twitter users and terrorists to hackers and insurgents. What''s more, the very institutions and laws that are supposed to reduce uncertainty and risk often increase it instead. This means that in today''s globalised world there are no ''safe'' bets. Political risk affects companies and organisations of all sizes, operating everywhere from London to Lahore, even if they don''t know it.Political Risk investigates and analyses this shifting landscape, suggests what businesses can do to navigate it, and explains how all of us can better Trade Review'Rice and Zegart's Political Risk should be read by every business leader. Well-written and chock-full of compelling case stories wrapped inside a coherent conceptual framework, Political Risk gets and keeps your attention, page after page. We cannot predict the future, but - with the help of this marvellous masterwork - we can prepare for it' -- Jim Collins, author of Good to Great and co-author of Great by Choice and Built to Last'Smart. Informative. Overdue. Will completely change the way you think about political risk' -- Eric Schmidt, former CEO of Google and Alphabet, Inc.'This book is truly excellent, both for tracing how far the political risk field has come in the last two decades, and how much further it has left to go' -- Ian Bremmer, president, Eurasia GroupClearly written and timely, this book will interest not only current and future business executives but also would-be-whistle-blowers and corporate watchdogs * Publishers Weekly *'Secretary Rice and Dr Zegart have melded their professional experiences of managing political risk at the highest levels with other case studies into a uniquely useful and profound book' -- Frederick W. Smith, chairman & CEO, FedEx Corporation

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Book SynopsisWe live in a culture of credit. As wages have stagnated, we’ve seen a dramatic surge in private borrowing across the western world; increasing numbers of households are sucked into a hopeless vortex of spiralling debt, fuelled by exploitative lending. In this book Johnna Montgomerie argues that the situation is chronically dysfunctional, both individually and collectively. She shows that abolishing household debts can put an end to austerity and to the unsustainable forward march of debt-dependent growth. She combines astute economic analysis with the elements of an accessible guide to practical policy solutions such as extending unconventional monetary policy to the household sector, providing pragmatic and affordable refinancing options, and writing off the most pernicious elements of household debt. This framework, she contends, can help us to make our economy fairer and to tackle both the housing crisis and accelerating inequality.Trade Review"Abolishing household debt is heresy to the politicians who brought us bank bailouts and austerity. Johnna Montgomerie explains why so many families in Britain are dependent on borrowing and offers concrete proposals for ending the debt-fuelled growth."—Paul Mason, journalist and author "In this book, Johnna Montgomerie demonstrates that an apparently radical idea, abolishing household debt, is just common sense. Buy it, read it, tell others to do the same."—John Weeks, Coordinator of the Progressive Economy Forum "It is not often that I read a non-fiction book that is an easy read, explains complex economic concepts with metaphors that are simple enough to understand, and make perfect sense. Should we abolish household debts? by Johnna Montgomerie is such a book."—Financial Times "Concise, informative."—Morning Star

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Book SynopsisWith protectionist sentiment and economic nationalism on the rise, international trade and how it is governed is at the heart of some of the most important contemporary economic and political debates. Comprehensive and clear, this book skilfully outlines and analyses the dynamics of trade in the 21st century. Ken Heydon examines three broad themes: the nature and distribution of the gains from trade, the institutional and governance framework of the international trade system, and the contentious practical issues confronting policy-makers across the world. He considers pressing contemporary debates surrounding issues ranging from agriculture and food security to the links between trade and environment protection, core labour standards and intellectual property rights. He demonstrates the importance of a change of mindset in terms of how we see trade policy: it should not, he argues, be simply a question of international negotiation, but also a key component of sound domestic economic management. In short, we need to put commerce in context. Drawing on the author’s experience as a policy practitioner, trade policy analyst and teacher, the volume is informed by an extensive analysis of the literature and by relevant case studies. It is designed for students and scholars of international political economy and trade policy, trade officials, and the general public.Trade Review"[A] well-written introduction to the world trading system as it actually exists today"Foreign Affairs"At a time of instability and change in the multilateral trading order, the issues raised by this book deserve critical, ongoing consideration."Journal of Australian Political EconomyTable of ContentsList of Case Studies List of Figures Abbreviations Structure: The Building Blocks Introduction: Echoes of Mercantilism Part 1: The Gains from Trade: Winners and Losers Chapter 1: The Political Economy of Trade: The Domestic Setting Chapter 2: Trade, Growth and Development Chapter 3: Trade, Investment and the Global Value Chain Part 2: The Institutional Framework Chapter 4: The Systemic Threats to the Multilateral Trading Order Chapter 5: The Rise of Preferential Trade Agreements Part 3: Confronting the Issues Chapter 6: Distortions to Trade in Manufactures Chapter 7: The Special Case of Agriculture Chapter 8: Negotiating Services and Investment Chapter 9: Competition Policy and the Role of the Firm Chapter 10: Trade Links to Environment, Labour Standards and Property Rights Conclusion: Putting Commerce in Context Acknowledgements Notes References Index

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Book SynopsisIn the countries of the global North, workplace democracy may be thought of as a thing of the past. Increasingly, working relations are regulated primarily by contract; workforces are fissured and fragmented. What are the consequences of this? How should we respond? Ruth Dukes and Wolfgang Streeck argue that the time is ripe to restate the principles of industrial democracy and citizenship for the post-industrial era. Considering developments within political economy, employment relations and labour law since the postwar decades, they trace the rise of globalization and the ‘dualization’ of labour markets – the emergence of a core and periphery of workers – and the progressive insulation of working relations from democratic governance. What these developments amount to, they argue, is an urgent need for political intervention to tame the new world of ‘gigging’ and other forms of highly precarious work. This, according to the authors, will require far-reaching institution-building designed to fill legal concepts such as ‘employment’ with political substance. This eloquent call for a reimagining and renewal of the institutional and material conditions of freedom of association and the reinvention of industrial democracy will be crucial reading for anyone interested in work in the twenty-first century.Trade Review"Advanced economies are faced with changing forms of work that depart more and more from the employment contract model. We have empirical evidence on all sorts of aspects and problems related to them but still lack the conceptual tools that can guide the analysis and enable a clearer public debate. This book by Dukes and Streeck is a timely rescue that lucidly updates the frameworks of labour law and of social theory to today's challenges around work."Guglielmo Meardi, Scuola Normale Superiore, Florence"Democracy at Work provides a compelling analysis of the past and future of employment relations and of the attempts to regulate them, building on classic thinkers of the past to analyse the consequences of digitalization, liberalization and globalization. Professors Dukes and Streeck have produced a work of outstanding depth and scope that will be essential reading for anyone interested in labour law, employment and the future of work."Alexandre Afonso, Leiden UniversityTable of ContentsPreface1. Introduction2. Justice, Productivity and Power at Work3. The Rise and Fall of Industrial Citizenship4. Liberalization as Emancipation?5. Post-Industrial Justice?References

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Book SynopsisThis text sets Russia's current economic transformation in the context of economic and political change, and provides an overview of issues central to the economic reform debate in Russia. It also highlights the human dimension of large-scale economic change through case studies and interviews.Table of ContentsIntroduction, From NEP to Yeltsin, Russian and Western Voices on Radical Economic Reform, April-December 1992, 'The Smooth Reformist Period Has Ended...', New Money New Business, The Anatomy of Privatization: Structure, Pace and Scope, Perspectives from the Work Force, Politics and the Promise of Economic Reform.

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Book SynopsisBanks have taken a backseat since the global financial crisis over a decade ago. Today, our new financial masters are asset managers, like Blackstone and BlackRock. And they don't just own financial assets.The roads we drive on; the pipes that supply our drinking water; the farmland that provides our food; energy systems for electricity and heat; hospitals, schools, and even the homes in which many of us live-all now swell asset managers' bulging investment portfolios.As the owners of more and more of the basic building blocks of everyday life, asset managers shape the lives of each and every one of us in profound and disturbing ways. In this eye-opening follow-up to Rentier Capitalism, Brett Christophers peels back the veil on ""asset manager society.""Asset managers, he shows, are unlike traditional owners of housing and other essential infrastructure. Buying and selling these life-supporting assets at a dizzying pace, the crux of their business model is not long-term investment and careful custodianship but making quick profits for themselves and the investors that back them.In asset manager society, the natural and built environments that sustain us become one more vehicle for siphoning money from the many to the few.Trade ReviewAt its best when [Christophers'] passion comes through, stripping away the spin of an industry that likes to portray itself as benefiting teachers, nurses and firefighters but which disproportionately enriches itself. -- Philip Augar * Financial Times *An illuminating interrogation of asset-manager society and its pathologies. -- John Cassidy, author of How Markets Fail: The Rise and Fall of Free Market EconomicsIf big banks were the villains of the 2008 financial crisis, big asset managers may well be at the heart of the next global economic trauma. In this must read book, Brett Christophers outlines how the world's top fund managers and private equity titans have taken over not only our portfolios, but the homes in which we live, the hospitals we go to when we are sick, the food we eat and the water we drink. Our very lives are now financialized - with disturbing consequences that have yet to be understood, or grappled with -- Rana Foroohar, Global Business Columnist and Associate Editor, Financial TimesThere are few financial topics as deserving of more thorough examination than asset management and its myriad modern manifestations. What insiders often blandly call "non-bank financial institutions" are in reality the new powerhouses of modern capitalism. Brett Christophers ably shows that their dominion has increasingly extended from financial assets to "real" assets - the roads we drive, the water we drink, the homes where we live, and sometimes even the hospitals where we die. As Christophers points out, the broader societal consequences are significant. -- Robin Wigglesworth, Editor, FT Alphaville, and author of Trillions: How a Band of Wall Street Renegades Invented the Index Fund and Changed Finance ForeverAn excellent book that sheds light on the grim reality of modern asset management unfolding at the heart of our society: the homes where we live and the energy infrastructures we depend on. The study of the asset-manager 'society' provides a sobering mapping of the relentless control exerted by asset managers - their portfolios establishing commercialised dependencies across our economy. Christophers successfully uncovers how such investment operations-often under a veil of non-transparent ownership-- put families and their livelihoods at the mercy of rent-seeking corporations. His book is a captivating take on a consequential multitrillion-dollar industry for everyone seeking to understand the configurations of an increasingly unequal and non-transparent economic system. -- Mariana Mazzucato, Professor at University College London and author of The Value of Everything: making and taking in the global economyWhen we shop, park, care for our loved ones, pay rent or our utilities bills, you and I are often little more than tiny trickles of income for companies whose names are not on our bills and that we may not even know. How did this happen and what does it say about where power lies? As ever, Brett Christophers makes a lucid, knowledgeable and impressively unimpressable guide to terrain usually fenced off from the public. -- Aditya Chakrabortty, Senior economics commentator, The GuardianChristophers lays out an essential guide to the many ways a poorly understood force in the global economy - asset management - structures our physical world, from housing to food to clean energy. As useful for curious academics as for organizers on the ground, Our Lives in Their Portfolios is a forensic account of an industry so ubiquitous as to go unnoticed. Christophers' engaging, easy to grasp account shines much-needed light on an industry that thrives in darkness, busting open the dangerous myths it tells about itself. -- Kate Aronoff, co-author of A Planet to Win: Why We Need a Green New DealIf you are interested in politics, but don't know much about asset managers like Brookfield and Blackstone, you need to read this book. What Brett Christophers reveals in Our Lives in Their Portfolios is the secret fight over who controls our social infrastructure, and whether it will be a small clique of financiers who live in gilded cities, or whether it will be the public. From the rent we pay on our housing to energy grids, sewer systems, and telecom networks, these firms are as important as they are opaque. Christophers shines a light into this secretive arena, and exposes how power works and what the real stakes of our political debates over finance really are. -- Matt Stoller, author of Goliath: The 100-Year War Between Monopoly Power and DemocracyChristophers takes up the global money trail, highlighting how investors have been quietly buying up critical infrastructure in Europe and beyond. -- Joe Humphreys * Irish Times *An incisive overview of the outsized returns made on physical assets by a small class of global elites, and the price the rest of society may ultimately pay. * Spear's *Worth persevering for the good stuff. Christophers chronicles how Britain has become the focus for Macquarie and the like. -- John Arlidge * The Sunday Times *An impressive feat...Christophers does what few other economists are able to convincingly undertake in less than three hundred pages. He has written a book on the creeping financialization of our daily lives that an informed, generalist audience can understand, and told it through engaging and relatable case studies. -- Adam Almeida * Jacobin *Incisively dissects - and criticises - the landscape of this novel stage of capitalism. -- Chris Dorrell * City A.M. *[One] of the best analysts of contemporary global capitalism. -- Kojo Koram * Times Literary Supplement *Christophers' neat dissection of the industry ... reveals how, while purporting to work for our retirements, it disproportionately enriches itself. -- Moira O’Neill, Best summer books of 2023 * Financial Times *Necessary reading for anyone wanting to stay abreast of our dysfunctional economic times. -- Will Davies * New Statesman *

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Book SynopsisThis book studies the main characteristics of the operation of the Chinese economy and the world economy after the financial crisis in 2008. The analysis starts from the core logic of the dilemma of the anti-crisis and rebalancing growth of the world economy. It further analyzes the impact of major countries' macro-economic policies on the global economy and the external risks and countermeasures faced by the Chinese economy. In addition, this book studies the development of foreign direct investment and the service industry in major countries after the crisis.

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Book SynopsisIn 2008, the first Green New Deal was devised by Pettifor and a group of English economist and thinkers, but was ignored within the tumults of the financial crash. A decade later, the ideas was revived within the democratic socialists in the US, forefront by Alexandria Ocasio Cortez. The Green New Deal demands a radical and urgent reversal of the current state of the global economy: including total de-carbonisation and a commitment to fairness and social justice.Critics on all sides have been quick to observe that the GND is a pipe dream that could never be implemented, and would cost the earth. But, as Ann Pettifor shows, we need to rethink the function of money, and how it works within the global system. How can we bail out the banks but not the planet? We have to stop thinking about the imperative of economic growth-nothing grows for ever. The program will be a long term project but it needs to start immediately.Trade ReviewThe Case for the Green New Deal succinctly explains what the GND is, where the idea came from, why it's necessary, and how to make it happen. As an economist and expert in monetary theory, Pettifor is uniquely well placed to describe how the GND can be funded. * Morning Star *Demanding drastic, even impossible change as...Pettifor [does] may just be a way to ensure that something is done. * Financial Times *This awareness-raising contribution to an important debate should expand our understanding of what's possible and encourage us to take action * Labour Briefing *The Case for the Green New Deal...serves to inform and inspire a politics of alternatives to the otherwise forthcoming destruction of our planet. * Counterfire *Crucially, Pettifor debunks the idea that we could not afford to fund [a Green New Deal], arguing that the state is capable of financing a zero-emissions programme if constraints are put on moving capital. * Independent - Best Climate Change Books *

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Book SynopsisA comparative ethnography of the responses on the ground to austerity policies in Southern EuropeTrade Review'Grassroots Economies offers an astute and heart-breaking account of the toll decades of austerity politics have taken on southern Europe. Each chapter offers remarkable insights - taken together they present a sober and illuminating portrait of dispossession and loss.' -- Jane Collins, author of 'The Politics of Value: Three Movements to Change How We Think about the Economy’'This book vividly documents how people faced with austerity policies activated intergenerational solidarity and self-sacrifice. It is a splendid, rigorously documented and well-written account of people's resilience in difficult times that may be of even greater interest now as the pandemic crisis unfolds.' -- Enzo Mingione, Professor of Sociology, University of Milano-Bicocca'This book shows how the real economy works and thus redefines key concepts in economics such as competition, monopoly, regulation, work and value. All economists should read this book.' -- Isabelle Guérin, Economist at the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development'Susana Narotzky and her colleagues have inquired into the precarious lives of people confronted with austerity in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis. Their Grassroot Economies is a magistral endeavor to account for the current brutalisation of societies by capitalist practices and neoliberal policies.' -- Didier Fassin, author of 'Life: A Critical User’s Manual''This volume represents a major contribution to economic anthropology and to the comparative ethnology of southern Europe. It is a rich, evocative ethnographic portrait of lives and livelihoods under conditions of austerity in southern Europe.' -- Sharryn M. Kasmir, Professor of Anthropology, Hofstra UniversityTable of ContentsList of Abbreviations Series Preface Acknowledgements 1. Introduction: Grassroots Economics in Europe - Susana Narotzky PART I: MAKING A LIVING 2. Bondage Unemployment and Intra-class Tensions in Greek Energy Restructuring - Theodora Vetta 3. Work, Wage and Subsidy: Making a Living Between Regulation and Informalization - Antonio Maria Pusceddu 4. Criminalizing Livelihoods: “Illegal Vegetables” and the Return to the Home - Carmen Leidereiter 5. Austerity, Social Values and Value: The Social Economy and Entrepreneurship in Catalonia - Patricia Homs PART II: SOCIAL REPRODUCTION 6. Austerity Welfare and the Moral Significance of Needs in Portugal - Patrícia Matos 7. Family, Housing as an Asset, and the Production of Welfare - Jaime Palomera 8. Social Reproduction in Times of Crisis: Inter-Generational Tensions in Southern Europe - Susana Narotzky and Antonio Maria Pusceddu PART III: EXPERIENCING AND EMBODYING AUSTERITY 9. The Entrepreneur’s Other: Small Entrepreneurial Identity and the Collapse of Life Structures in the “Third Italy” - Giacomo Loperfido 10. The Body Politics of Austerity in Portugal and Spain: Women, Dispossession and Agency - Diana Sarkis and Patricia Matos 11. Austerity from Below: Class, Temporality and Scale in Grassroots Analyses of Crisis - Diana Sarkis and Stamatis Amarianakis Notes on Contributors Index

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Book SynopsisA timely and important examination of the environmental crises, investigating their biophysical, political, economic, and socio-cultural aspects, that reveals why previous conservation efforts failed.The eastern part of the Mau Forest, the most important closed-canopy forest in East Africa, has come under severe threat since the 1990s. In this political ecology Lisa Fuchs exploring the failure of the government-led forest restoration and rehabilitation initiative to 'Save the Mau', launched in 2009, the author examines two of the most contentious issues in Kenya since colonial times: land and the environment. She sheds light on the structural factors and the role of individuals in the forest's destruction and of non-protection and traces the colonial legacy of post-independent environmental conservation policies and practices. In doing so, Fuchs demonstrates that the Mau crisis is more than an environmental crisis: it is also a political, an economic, and a socio-cultural crisis.Though a detailed empirical analysis, the author shows that the 'Mau crisis' led to the near collapse of landscapes and livelihoods in the Mau Forest ecosystem. She traces the implementation of insufficient conservation programmes, which resulted from historical path-dependency and the adoption of global environmental governance blueprints, forest allocation and benefits, and exposes a forest management system that prioritises commercial forest production over biodiversity conservation. Access and entitlements to the highly fertile forest land, and the amalgamation of forest rehabilitation with the reclamation of grabbed public forest are emphasised as a further core contributor to the crisis. The socio-cultural dynamics within and among various forest-dwelling communities, including the indigenous hunting and gathering Ogiek and 'in-migrant' groups, are also analysed. The book highlights that local types of environmentalism are caught between the 'invention of traditions' and 'perverse modernisation' and shows the contradictory effects of the celebrated, highly anticipated but poorly executed 'Save the Mau' initiative, and how the presence of political will to maintain the crisis conditioned its perseverance. Finally, the book proposes realistic alternatives to sustainable forest management in politicised environments, whose relevance and applicability are considerable in this age of anthropogenic 'environmental' crises and conflicts.Published in association with IFRA/AFRICAE

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Book SynopsisA comprehensive study of cooperation among the advanced capitalist countries. It analyzes the institutions, or 'international regimes', through which cooperation has taken place in the world political economy and describes the evolution of these regimes as American hegemony has eroded.Trade ReviewWinner of the 1989 Grawemeyer Award for Ideas Improving World Order One of Choice's Outstanding Academic Titles for 1984 "Can cooperation increase if there is no hegemony? Yes, says Professor Keohane in this outstanding book... The author's painstaking consideration of difficulties and objections should show how often narrow assumptions and obscurantist jargon have led to loose thinking and worse policy conclusions."--Foreign Affairs "[T]he 'state-of-the-art' publication on the influential, and somewhat controversial, idea of 'regime' in the study of international political economy. The concept is provided with its most thoroughgoing, cogent and stimulating defence."--R. J. Barry Jones, Political Studies "This is vital and powerful stuff. It makes a major contribution towards breaking the destructive polarization between realism and idealism which for far too long has obscured intellectual middle ground of real importance to policy-making."--Barry Buzan, International Affairs "This book takes a major step toward bringing economic reasoning and understanding of politics to bear on questions of international political economy."--James E. Alt, Journal of Economic Literature From review of Princeton's original edition: "The 'state of the art' publication on the influential, and somewhat controversial, idea of 'regime' in the study of international political economy."--Political Studies

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Financial Times Best Economics Book of the Year 2021""A CapX Book of the Year""Winner of the Gold Medal in Business Commentary, Axiom Business Book Awards""Eloquent. . . . Thought-provoking."---Felix Martin, Financial Times ​​​​​​​"Coyle’s contribution is valuable. The book reads like a timely intervention delivered by a perceptive friend, in the kindest tone they can muster. Economists would do well to listen."---James Plunkett, Prospect"[Coyle] is extremely wise, and the best friend economics could have—one willing to offer some serious tough love."---Tim Harford, timharford.com"Full of illuminating anecdotes about the gap between theory and practice."---Simon Torracinta, Boston Review"An inspiring read for those developing, using or seeking to understand economics in a rapidly changing world."---Dr Anna Valero, London School of Economics Blog

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Book Synopsis*FEATURED IN BILL GATES''S 2019 SUMMER READING RECOMMENDATIONS* ''This is a beautifully written and important book. Read it'' Martin Wolf, Financial TimesFrom world-renowned economist Paul Collier, a candid diagnosis of the failures of capitalism and a pragmatic and realistic vision for how we can repair itDeep new rifts are tearing apart the fabric of Britain and other Western societies: thriving cities versus the provinces, the highly skilled elite versus the less educated, wealthy versus developing countries. As these divides deepen, we have lost the sense of ethical obligation to others that was crucial to the rise of post-war social democracy. So far these rifts have been answered only by the revivalist ideologies of populism and socialism, leading to the seismic upheavals of Trump, Brexit and the return of the far right in Germany. We have heard many critiques of capitalism but no one has laid out a realistic way to fix it, until now. In a passionate and polemical book, celebrated economist Paul Collier outlines brilliantly original and ethical ways of healing these rifts - economic, social and cultural - with the cool head of pragmatism, rather than the fervour of ideological revivalism. He reveals how he has personally lived across these three divides, moving from working-class Sheffield to hyper-competitive Oxford, and working between Britain and Africa, and acknowledges some of the failings of his profession. Drawing on his own solutions as well as ideas from some of the world''s most distinguished social scientists, he shows us how to save capitalism from itself - and free ourselves from the intellectual baggage of the 20th century.These times are in desperate need of Paul Collier''s insights. The Future of Capitalism restores common sense to our views of morality, as it also describes their critical role in what makes families, organizations, and nations work. It is the most revolutionary work of social science since Keynes. Let''s hope it will also be the most influential - George Akerlof, Nobel Laureate in Economics, 2001 In this bold work of intellectual trespass, Paul Collier, a distinguished economist, ventures onto the terrain of ethics to explain what''s gone wrong with capitalism, and how to fix it. To heal the divide between metropolitan elites and the left-behind, he argues, we need to rediscover an ethic of belonging, patriotism, and reciprocity. Offering inventive solutions to our current impasse, Collier shows how economics at its best is inseparable from moral and political philosophy'' - Michael Sandel, author of What Money Can''t Buy and JusticeFor thirty years, the centre left of politics has been searching for a narrative that makes sense of the market economy. This book provides it - John Kay, Fellow of St John''s College, Oxford and the author of Obliquity and Other People''s Money For well-to-do metropolitans, capitalism is the gift that goes on giving. For others, capitalism is not working. Paul Collier deploys passion, pragmatism and good economics in equal measure to chart an alternative to the divisions tearing apart so many western countries. -Mervyn King, former Governor of the Bank of EnglandTrade ReviewCollier is one of the UK's most distinguished economists. In this important book, he analyses what has gone wrong with contemporary capitalism, focusing on the growing divide between the educated and the less educated and between booming metropolis and the declining provinces. Rejecting the illusions of the ideologues and the populists, he puts forward pragmatic, provocative and perceptive ways to deliver widely shared prosperity, by restoring an ethical basis to our national politics, companies and families. -- Martin Wolf, The Best Books of 2018 * Financial Times *I'm a big fan of Paul Collier. When I saw that The Future of Capitalism was about the polarization we're seeing in the U.S., Europe, and other places, I was eager to see what he had to say. I'm glad I did. The Future of Capitalism is an ambitious and thought-provoking book. . . . I think he is right more often than not. Ultimately, I agree with him that 'capitalism needs to be managed, not defeated.' -- Bill Gates, Summer Reading Recommendations 2019These times are in desperate need of Paul Collier's insights. The Future of Capitalism restores common sense to our views of morality, as it also describes their critical role in what makes families, organizations, and nations work. It is the most revolutionary work of social science since Keynes. Let's hope it will also be the most influential -- George Akerlof, Nobel Laureate in Economics, 2001For me the most gripping [2018 book on capitalism] was Paul Collier's The Future of Capitalism: a deep exploration of the ethical institutions underlying our market society -- and an impassioned argument about how to restore them. -- Jesse Norman * The New Statesman *Collier has set for himself [the task] to re-establish the ethical character of social democracy. This is an important book for anyone concerned at the state of modern politics and our liberal democracies. -- Jon Cruddas MPThis book is not an easy read but it is an important one - the revenge of the clever provincial biting the metropolitan hand that has fed him so generously. -- David Goodhart * Evening Standard *In this bold work of intellectual trespass, Paul Collier, a distinguished economist, ventures onto the terrain of ethics to explain what's gone wrong with capitalism, and how to fix it. To heal the divide between metropolitan elites and the left-behind, he argues, we need to rediscover an ethic of belonging, patriotism, and reciprocity. Offering inventive solutions to our current impasse, Collier shows how economics at its best is inseparable from moral and political philosophy' -- Michael Sandel, author of What Money Can’t Buy and JusticeFor thirty years, the centre left of politics has been searching for a narrative that makes sense of the market economy. This book provides it -- John Kay, Fellow of St John's College, Oxford and the author of Obliquity and Other People's MoneyFor well-to-do metropolitans, capitalism is the gift that goes on giving. For others, capitalism is not working. Paul Collier deploys passion, pragmatism and good economics in equal measure to chart an alternative to the divisions tearing apart so many western countries. -- Mervyn King, former Governor of the Bank of England

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“Mercilessly exposes the downside of the cult of measurement and managerialism.”—The Economist“Muller delivers a riposte to bean counters everywhere with this trenchant study of our fixation with performance metrics.”—Barbara Kiser, Nature “Highly readable.”—Luke Johnson, Sunday Times“Many of us have the vague sense that metrics are leading us astray, stripping away context, devaluing subtle human judgment, and rewarding those who know how to play the system. Muller’s book crisply explains where this fashion came from, why it can be so counterproductive and why we don’t learn. It should be required reading for any manager on the verge of making the Vietnam body count mistake all over again.”—Tim Harford, Financial Times

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Book SynopsisCan the Euro be saved? Should it be?Nobel prize-winning economist Joseph E. Stiglitz dismantles the prevailing consensus around what ails Europe - arguing that economic stagnation is a direct result of the Euro''s flawed birth, demolishing the champions of austerity and offering solutions that can rescue the continent from further devastation.''Stiglitz could hardly have timed The Euro better ... one of those economists with a rare ability to help readers understand complex ideas'' Philip Aldrick, The Times''Original, hard-hitting ... Much more than a demolition job. These chapters are full of constructive proposals'' Martin Sandbu, Financial Times''Terrific and clarifying'' Peter Goodman, The New York Times''Coolly analytical ... he is surely right: without a radical overhaul of its workings, the Euro seems all but certain to fail'' EconomistTrade ReviewHighly readable ... passionately written ... this important book will unnerve millions * Sunday Telegraph *Stiglitz could hardly have timed The Euro better ... one of those economists with a rare ability to help readers understand complex ideas -- Philip Aldrick * The Times *Coolly analytical ... he is surely right: without a radical overhaul of its workings, the Euro seems all but certain to fail * Economist *

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Book SynopsisThe logics and ethics of neoliberal capitalism dominate public discourses and politics in the early twenty-first century. They morally endorse and institutionalize forms of competitive self-interest that jettison social justice values, and are deeply antithetical to love, care and solidarity. But capitalism is neither invincible nor inevitable. While people are self-interested, they are not purely self-interested: they are bound affectively and morally to others, even to unknown others. The cares, loves and solidarity relationships within which people are engaged give them direction and purpose in their daily lives. They constitute cultural residuals of hope that stand ready to move humanity beyond a narrow capitalism-centric set of values. In this instructive and inspiring book, Kathleen Lynch sets out to reclaim the language of love, care and solidarity both intellectually and politically and to place it at the heart of contemporary discourse. Her goal is to help unseat capital at the gravitational centre of meaning-making and value, thereby helping to create logics and ethical priorities for politics that are led by care, love and solidarity.Trade Review“The force of this book demands that the reader viscerally engage with the destructive and life-threatening ideas, values, practices and consequences of capitalism and its servant neoliberalism, for human subjects, for non-human beings and the planet.... Lynch presents readers with a new language for social change.​”Irish Times“[A]n ambitious and impressive blockbuster […]at once a scholarly exploration and review of many of the most important contributions to care theory over recent years, and an inspiring, manifesto-like call for action.”Michael D. Fine, International Journal of Care and Caring"One of the most significant books I have read in years. Lynch challenges many of the key assumptions underpinning neoliberalism and the norms that guide it. At the same time, she provides powerful and insightful alternatives."Michael W. Apple, Beijing Normal University and University of Wisconsin–Madison"Kathleen Lynch brings her well-known understanding of care as affective relations to new realms. She deepens thinking about care’s relation to violence and extending care to non-human animals. Most importantly, she explains why capitalism is so hostile to care at all levels."Joan C. Tronto, University of Minnesota"This beautifully written indictment of neoliberal capitalism articulates a new definition of justice that goes beyond unfair appropriation to call out failures to reward necessary contributions to the public good. Impressive scholarship and passionate intensity make this book a stellar addition to the emerging discourse of care."Nancy Folbre, University of Massachusetts AmherstTable of ContentsIntroduction 1 Care and Capitalism: Matters of Social Justice and Resistance Part I Care Matters Inside and Outside Capitalism 2 Care as Abject: Capitalism, Masculinity, Bureaucracy, Class and Race 3 Making Love: Love Labour as Distinctive and Non-Commodifiable 4 Time to Care Part II Challenges 5 Liberalism, Care and Neoliberalism 6 Individualism and Capitalism: From Personalized Salvation to Human Capitals 7 Care-Harming Ideologies of Capitalism: Competition, Measurement and Meritocratic Myths Part III Violence – the Nemesis of Care 8 The Violation of Non-Human Animals 9 Violence and Capitalism Part IV Conclusions 10 Resisting Intellectually, Politically, Culturally and Educationally Postscript: Care Lessons from the Covid-19 Pandemic

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Book SynopsisThere have been many attempts to build a socialist society, from the Soviet Union to Maoist China to Venezuela. All of them have ended in failure. But, according to socialism's adherents, that is only because none of these experiments were real socialism. This book documents the history of this response.

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Book SynopsisFrom Nobel Prize-winning economist and bestselling author Joseph Stiglitz, this account of the dangers of free market fundamentalism reveals what has gone so wrong, but also shows us a way out.We all have the sense that our economy tilts toward big business, but as Joseph E. Stiglitz explains in People, Power and Profits, a few corporations have come to dominate entire sectors, contributing to skyrocketing inequality and slow growth. This is how the financial industry has managed to write its own regulations, tech companies have accumulated reams of personal data with little oversight, and government has negotiated trade deals that fail to represent the best interests of workers. Too many have made their wealth through exploitation of others rather than through wealth creation. If something isn''t done, new technologies may make matters worse, increasing inequality and unemployment.Stiglitz identifies the true sources of wealth and increases iTrade ReviewThis eminent economist provides an authoritative defence of government intervention using mainstream economics and a justification for how to build a fairer society without sacrificing growth -- Gavin Jacobson * Financial Times *His conclusions are bleak, his prescriptions radical -- Gerard Baker * The Times *People, Power, and Profits builds on Stiglitz's earlier work and adds some pretty big ambitions -- Daniel W. Drezner * The New York Times *Urgent ... Unless rising inequality caused by mismanaged globalization, financial liberalization, and destabilizing technological change is addressed, Stiglitz argues, nostrum-peddling demagoguery will find a receptive audience * New Yorker *

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Book SynopsisArgues that state policies that created conditions conducive to financialization allowed the state to avoid a series of economic, social, and political dilemmas that confronted policymakers as postwar prosperity stalled beginning in the late 1960s and 1970s. This book also focuses on deregulation of financial markets during the 1970s and 1980s.Trade ReviewWith Capitalizing on Crisis, we finally have a persuasive account of the roots of the 2007-2008 financial disaster. While most studies focus on the proximate causes, Krippner makes sense of the dramatic expansion over decades of the financial sector of the U.S. economy. She explains brilliantly how and why government officials encouraged financialization as a way to solve the most vexing problems of our political economy. -- Fred Block, University of California at DavisIn this wonderfully researched and tightly argued book, Greta Krippner shows how the expansion of the financial sector in the United States not only helped delay the 'day of reckoning' for spendthrift American households, corporations and government, but also conveniently depoliticized the distributional conflicts that had plagued the nation since the 1960s. Nobody expected these providential outcomes, not even the policymakers who had opened up this space for finance in a rather ad hoc fashion, through repeated efforts to fend off crisis. By the end of the process however, the markets were in charge, and government officials were only too happy --and relieved-- to follow their lead. Capitalizing on Crisis is an absolute must read for anyone who cares to understand the origins of our current financial quagmire and the distributional dilemmas that policymakers inevitably and uncomfortably face. -- Marion Fourcade, University of California, BerkeleyAmidst the tsunami of books coming out in the wake of the recent financial crisis, Krippner's work stands out for its unusual approach. Rather than addressing the venality and incompetence of those with responsibility for regulating the economy, Krippner tells the history of the growth of financialization from the perspective of the regulators...In her account, the regulators were searching for ad hoc responses to what were deeper, perhaps even intractable problems. The high point of the book is her magnificent analysis of the erosion of Regulation Q, in which regulators cracked open the door to financial deregulation, unleashing the massive deregulation that came later. -- M. Perelman * Choice *

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewUses sound economics to map a path out of overshoot. Highly recommended. —Herman Daly An excellent primer on key insights and questions in ecological economics from a celebrated pioneer of the field. —Jason Hickel, author, Less is More Peter Victor provides a state-of-the-art overview of the drawings for the economic rocket humanity needs for a safe landing on Spaceship Earth. In our turbulent times, with multiple planetary boundaries breached and tipping points approaching fast, Escape from Overshoot provides the perfect launch pad for new economic thinking that reconnects the world with planet Earth. —Johan Rockström, Professor, Earth System Science; Director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research; and co-author, Earth for All The title of Peter Victor's important book says it all: the planet is in peril and a major factor is a global economy too big for nature to flourish. Human beings are animals and thus, like all other species, constrained by nature and nature's laws. An economy unfettered by the needs and limits of nature and propelled by a fool's goal of endless growth has created the twin ecological crises of climate change and biodiversity loss. All who care about the kind of world we are leaving to our grandchildren and what we can do to bring the economy into harmony with nature must read this vital book. —David Suzuki, emeritus professor and grandfather No one pulls it all together as well as Peter Victor. His Escape from Overshoot covers climate and other key issues with a compelling clarity. I highly recommend this book. —James Gustave Speth, former Dean, Yale School of the Environment, and author, America the Possible Victor draws a plausible pathway that nicely intertwines with a growing body of evidence and proposals for new economic models from across the globe. This book is timely and gives cause for hope! —Sandrine Dixson-Declève, co-president, the Club of Rome, and co-author, Earth for All Erudite and lavishly illustrated, Peter Victor's Escape from Overshoot is a sweeping analysis of the flawed economic mindset that has pushed us to the brink and an inspired prescription for the new economics needed to help pull us back. —William Rees, professor emeritus, University of British Columbia, former director of the School of Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), and co-author, Our Ecological Footprint I own hundreds of books, all carefully curated. But I reserve one short shelf for books that I think everybody needs to read right away in order to grasp the human condition and what needs to be done. Peter Victor's Escape from Overshoot is now at the front of that shelf. It is clearly and entertainingly written and elicits an aha! on every page. Escape from Overshoot would be a great book on those merits alone, even if it weren't the key to our collective fate. —Richard Heinberg, Senior Fellow, Post Carbon Institute, and author, Power An absolute must read— I could not put it down and read it in one sitting. Peter Victor masterfully ties the threads of economic thought together to demonstrate why— and how— we can collectively do our best to avoid climate and ecological breakdown. —David Miller, managing director, C40 Centre for City Climate Policy and Economy Escape from Overshoot is a tour de force of the latest research in ecological economics from one of the top researchers in the field. In a highly accessible style, with a helpful figure or illustration on almost every page, Peter Victor explains how the current economic system works, how it has pushed us to the precipice of environmental collapse, and how a post-growth economy could pull us back from the edge. —Dan O'Neill, Associate Professor in Ecological Economics, University of Leeds, and president, European Society for Ecological Economics If you want to enable the next generation to build a successful future, ditch the textbooks from the past and get this one instead. —Mathis Wackernagel, Ph.D., founder and president, Global Footprint Network, and author, Ecological FootprintTable of ContentsAcknowledgments Foreword Prologue: A Planet in Peril Chapter 1. Overshoot — A Look at the Evidence Overshoot The Economy as a Sub-System of the Planet Material Flows Forests Agriculture The Great Acceleration Biodiversity Chapter 2. How to Think About the Future Chapter 3. Voices from the Past — Economic Growth and its Critics From Progress to Economic Growth Classical Economics and Economic Growth Neoclassical Economics Takes Center Stage Critics of Economic Growth Environmental Economics Ecological Economics Conclusion Chapter 4. The Economic System — How Does it Work? The Neoclassical Capitalist Economy The Keynesian and Post-Keynesian Capitalist Economy The Marxian and Post-Marxian Capitalist Economy Conclusion Chapter 5. Current Trends to an Uncertain Future Economic Trends Demographic Trends Income Inequality Trends Investment Trends Consumption Trends Technology Trends Work Trends Energy Trends Conclusion Chapter 6. Green Growth — A Dangerous Distraction? Defining Green Growth Growth of Many Colors Does Increased Efficiency Lead to Decoupling? Future Prospects for Green Growth Stocks not Flows: The Achilles Heel of Green Growth Green Investment Barriers to Green Growth Conclusion Chapter 7. Post Growth Possibilities Steady-State Economy Circular Economy Wellbeing Economy Buen Vivir Doughnut Economics Regenerative Economy Degrowth Ecosocialism Conclusion Chapter 8. Modeling an Escape from Overshoot The Story So Far From Local to Global Overshoot Contraction and Convergence Reprising the Limits to Growth The Plausibility and Possibility of a Planned Contraction of a High-Income Economy Chapter 9. Planning an Escape from Overshoot Fourteen Propositions for Planning an Escape from Overshoot Living the Escape from Overshoot Reforms on the Path to Escape Conclusion Notes Index About the Author About New Society Publishers

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Book SynopsisChina's contemporary political economy features an emboldened role for the state as owner and regulator, and with markets expected to act in the service of party-state goals. This Element situates China's political economy in comparative analytic perspective with attention to adaptations of its model over time.Table of Contents1. Situating China's Political Economy; 2. Classic Conceptions and Models; 3. Evolution of China's Political Economy; 4. A New Model: Party-State Capitalism; 5. Explaining the Shifting Model; 6. External Backlash Against China's Model; 7. Conclusion: China's Development Model and Crises of Global Capitalism; References.

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Book SynopsisPaul Cairney is Professor of Politics and Public Policy, University of Stirling, UK.Trade ReviewPaul Cairney has done the near impossible and made an outstanding textbook even better. The public policy landscape is always evolving and this second edition captures the new features, colours and dynamics in rich and vivid detail. It should be the go-to work for experienced scholars and students alike. * Allan McConnell, University of Sydney, Australia *The study and content of public policies are central elements of political science. This volume stands as the essential guide for students who seek to understand the forces that shape political decisions and the policy process. Cairney untangles and demystifies the complex business of policy-making by using theories to take us through the key dimensions of structure, agency , networks and ideas. Clearly written and full of theoretical and empirical insights from contemporary issues, I have no doubt this book will have a prominent place in policy scholars’ reading lists. * Claire A. Dunlop, University of Exeter, UK *Rarely does a policy textbook title match its content better. Understanding Public Policy provides an efficient introduction to complex policy theory that is accessible to new learners by demystifying (necessary) policy jargon through plain language and current examples. Cairney’s work incorporates the views of top scholars across the policy process literature and around the world. New learners and experienced readers will find the book a useful reference for understanding and researching public policy. * Chris Koski, Reed College, USA *Paul Cairney’s book is the essential work for any public policy course. It clearly maps out all the key theories, and is packed with definitions and examples based on the latest research. It also offers a crucial insight into how policy works, and what happens when theory meets reality. It is usable, lucid and very well written. * Ben Worthy, Birkbeck, University of London, UK *Understanding Public Policy does what is says on the tin. It allows students, social scientists and those involved in public policy to access, understand and apply the most important findings of contemporary theories and empirical studies of the policy process. Cairney also outlines extremely valuable suggestions for improving the dialogue between policy researchers, policy-makers and society at large. This volume can be read with different purposes: to rapidly metabolise an impressive amount of knowledge on how policies are made and change; to get inspiration for new research; and, finally, to shape policy. In each of these perspectives, Cairney’s volume delivers with crystal clear language, powerful narratives and a rich repertoire of examples. * Claudio Radaelli, University College London (UCL), UK *The value of Understanding Public Policy comes from the fact it is the only introductory text about public policy that properly locates the subject within the larger theories and ideas of political science. This means that policy and politics can be taught and understood simultaneously through a single high-quality source. By introducing new sections on policy learning, psychology, complexity and narrative, this second edition extends this quality and ensures that Understanding Public Policy remains an essential text for any social science student seeking to understand the relationship between policy, politics and society. * Alastair Stark, University of Queensland, Australia *In the first edition of this text Paul Cairney showed us that the untamed study of public policy could be conveyed in a way that is both accessible and useful, and yet also comprehensive and sophisticated. In this second edition he extends these qualities – notably by incorporating views and knowledge usually boxed out of such discussions. At this point it is safe to say that Cairney’s aerial view of the study of public policy is itself becoming a standard in the field. * Michael D. Jones, Editor-in-Chief, Policy Studies Journal *Cairney’s second edition synthesizes the rich body of scholarship on public policy and policymaking to distil lessons on the multifaceted factors that structure, influence and produce public policy. This book masterfully weaves together insights from decades of policy research into a coherent explanation of both the component parts of policymaking and the functioning of policy processes as a whole. In doing so, this book serves as an essential resource for diagnosing the nature of policymaking while honouring its complexity and the diversity of lenses through which we can explore it. * Tanya Heikkila, University of Colorado Denver, USA *Table of ContentsPreface 1. Introduction to Policy and Policymaking 2. What is Policy and Policymaking? 3. Power and Public Policy 4. Bounded Rationality and the Psychology of Policymaking 5. Institutions and New Institutionalism 6. Structures, Environments, and Complex Systems 7. Collective Action Problems in Public Policy 8. Multi-level Governance and Multi-centric Policymaking 9. Punctuated Equilibrium Theory 10. The Advocacy Coalition Framework 11. Ideas and ‘Multiple Streams’ Analysis 12. Policy Learning and Transfer 13. Conclusion: policy theory as accumulated wisdom.

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Book SynopsisIn November 2020, The New York Times asked fifteen of its columnists to ''explain what the past four years have cost America.'' Not one of the columnists focused on President Trump''s racism. This book seeks to redress this imbalance and bring Black Americans'' role in our economy to the forefront. While all humans were created equal, economic history in the United States tells a different story. Reconstruction lasted for only a decade, and Jim Crow laws replaced it. The Civil Rights Movement lasted through the 1960s, yet decayed under President Nixon. The United States has been declining in the Social Product Index, where it now is the lowest of the G7 and 26th in the world. For health and happiness, Temin argues that we need lasting integration efforts that allow Black Americans equal opportunity. This book convincingly integrates Black and white activities into an inclusive economic history of America.Trade Review'The title Never Together perfectly conveys the steely message of this scholarly, sweeping, and scathing distillation of two centuries of economic and political exclusion of Black citizens from American prosperity. I'm deeply impressed with how Temin distilled a huge historical reservoir into a tight thematic argument. It's quite powerful.' David Autor, Massachusetts Institute of Technology'We live beneath the long shadow of slavery. How could one group have such lower income and wealth than the other? How could their housing and schooling still be so separate? Temin takes us, step by step, through our history to fathom these differences.' Claudia Goldin, Henry Lee Professor of Economics, Harvard University'Never Together is a true innovation in historical writing. Peter Temin retells the story of American Economic History, with African-Americans fully integrated into the tale. Highlighting the race issue accentuates the striking parallels between the Gilded Age and our own times. The book is a tour de force.' Gavin Wright, Stanford University'In Never Together, pioneering new economic historian Peter Temin offers a sweeping narrative of economic repression of Black America. In this timely volume, Temin starts with the imposition on African American of the status as a pariah class in the colonial period and traces this troubling history through US macro-economic booms and busts into the present day.' Paul Rhodes, University of Michigan'Never Together is utterly necessary right now—comprehensive yet clear-eyed, general yet precise. Temin sees race and the differences race makes without being blinded by race or heedless of discrimination's consequences over the course of two centuries. This is the economic history needed in our new gilded age.' Nell Irvin Painter, Princeton University, author of The History of White People'Many tellings of American economic history do not focus on the critical contributions Black Americans have made to our nation. In Never Together, Temin remedies this problem and gives us a rich, inclusive economic history from the American Revolution to the Civil War through the current day. The upshot of this careful historical examination is that progress toward racial equity is far from steady, with important triumphs often stymied by subsequent challenges - an important lesson for everyone seeking to achieve a fairer and more equitable society.' Raj Chetty, Harvard UniversityTable of ContentsIntroduction: Part I. The Nineteenth Century: 1. Slavery and the civil war; 2. Reconstruction; 3. The gilded age and jim crow laws; Part II. The Twentieth Century: 4. The great migration, depression and world wars; 5. Postwar prosperity and the civil rights movement; 6. A new gilded age and mass incarceration; Part III. The Twenty-First Century Begins: 7. Racism rises and America declines; Conclusion.

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Book SynopsisThis book offers a nuanced and detailed examination of two of the most important current debates about contemporary Russia's international activity: is Moscow acting strategically or opportunistically, and should this be understood in regional or global terms? The book addresses core themes of Russian activity – military, energy and economic - but it offers an unusual multi-disciplinary analysis to these themes. Monaghan incorporates both regional and thematic specialist expertise to give a fresh perspective to each of these core themes.Underpinned by detailed analyses of the revolution in Russian geospatial capabilities and the establishment of a strategic planning foundation, the book includes chapters on military and maritime strategies, energy security and economic diversification and influence. This serves to highlight the connections between military and economic interests that shape and drive Russian strategy.Trade Review'In Russian Grand Strategy in the Era of Global Power Competition, editor Andrew Monaghan brings together contributors to explore the military, political and economic features of Russian foreign policy. This book will be a useful starting point for researchers, policymakers, students of history and politics and all those looking to understand Russia’s long-term goals and sense of its place in the evolving world order.'LSE Review of Books -- .Table of ContentsForewordFlorence GaubPrefaceIan HillIntroduction Russian grand strategy and global power competitionAndrew Monaghan1 Mapping the globe and the revolution in Russia’s geospatial capabilityAlexander J. Kent2 Russia’s global maritime strategyMichael B. Petersen3 6th generation war and Russia’s global theatres of military activityCharles Bartles4 Looking to the global economy: Russia’s role as a supplier of strategically important goodsRichard Connolly5 Polar power: Russia’s 21st century power baseNazrin Mehdiyeva6 Strategic planning and management in RussiaJulian CooperConclusions Moscow’s strategy to become a ubiquitous powerAndrew Monaghan

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Book SynopsisThis agenda-setting book shows how freedom of movement has made the integration of Europe’s labour markets a contentious issue, for example in the aftermath of the eurocrisis, where workers had to make great sacrifices to enable the currency area to function. It argues that the process of market integration in Europe has undermined the power and influence of European workers and generated significant human costs. In starting from the position of labour, this book offers an alternative approach which balances the needs of justice and efficiency. With appeal across a wide range of readers interested in economic integration, it provides lessons for policymakers in how to integrate Europe’s member states to better protect workers and citizens.Table of ContentsI. A New Approach 1. Belaboured Europe 2. The Uniqueness of Labour 3. An Optimum Labour Area? II. Starting Points 4. From the Beginning 5. A Multitude of Labour Markets III. Adjustment Mechanisms 6. The Demise of Member State Policy Autonomy 7. Europe to the Rescue? 8. Money and People on the Move IV. Results 9. The Power of Labour 10. Reducing Workaway

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Book SynopsisMultiple crises have led many to conclude that the current economic and political system is broken. The present and future look increasingly precarious – if not outright dystopian Stephen McBride calls for radical solutions to these crises to provide a more rational and sustainable future. He critiques other potential responses which would further curtail democracy and increase the inequalities associated with neoliberal globalism. Demonstrating how mainstream ideas, powerful interests and political institutions face major challenges but block progressive alternatives, he argues that for radical transformation to succeed, institutional changes are necessary.Table of Contents1. Introduction 2. Trapped in Dystopia? 3. The Three Ds: Disaffection, Disarray, Democracy 4. Breaking the Mould through Anti-system Politics? 5. What Is to Be Done? Alternative Strategies 6. Restoring the Pre-crisis Neoliberal ‘Normal’ 7. Saving the System by Building Back Better? Liberal Reform 8. Radical Transformation 9. Obstacles to Progress 10. How Is It to Be Done? Democratic Process and Building the Public Domain 11. Escaping Dystopia

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Book SynopsisSHORTLISTED FOR THE FT & MCKINSEY BUSINESS BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD 2018 A Financial Times Book of the Year and an Amazon Top 100 Book of the Year India’s explosive rise has driven inequality to new extremes, with millions trapped in slums as billionaires spend lavishly and dodge taxes. Controversial prime minister Narendra Modi promised ‘to break the grip’ of the Bollygarchs, but many tycoons continue to thrive amidst the scandals, exerting huge influence over business and politics. But who are these titans of politics and industry shaping India through this period of breakneck change? And what kind of superpower are they creating? A vivid portrait of a deeply divided nation, The Billionaire Raj makes clear that India’s destiny – prosperous democratic giant or corrupt authoritarian regime – is something that should concern us all.Trade Review‘Compelling…vivid…Crabtree has given us the most comprehensive and eminently readable tour of economic India.’ * Meghnad Desai, Financial Times *‘An excellent survey of India’s economic and political transformation… Crabtree’s Indian story is a cautionary tale of globalization’s excesses and the consequences for one of the world’s most unequal societies.’ * Washington Post *‘A vivid comparison to America’s late 19th-century Gilded Age drives this account of 21st-century India, with a teeming, colourful cast of the super-rich, the ultra-poor, the politically ambitious and the irredeemably corrupt.’ * Financial Times, Books of the Year 2018 *‘Timely reading…Crabtree’s eye for detail…gives some nice close ups…With so many tasty details, it is the right sort of snack to fill a hole as we watch and wait.’ * The Times *‘The analysis really sings when Mr Crabtree finds new ways to capture the collision of profits, politics and public opinion. His account of India’s cut-throat network-TV industry, through the eyes of a star presenter, is thrilling.’ * The Economist *‘A pacey and perspicacious account… Crabtree’s unique achievement is to probe the peculiarities of Indian cronyism and lay out its structural causes… For sheer chutzpah, India’s billionaires provide tremendous value. All this makes for a thoroughly entertaining book, but also for a sadly enfeebled and unequal nation.’ * Oliver Balch, Literary Review *‘A reporting gem, The Billionaire Raj deserves to be widely read.’ * Ashutosh Varshney, Indian Express *‘An eye-opening book from someone who clearly loves his subject.’ * Oliver Bullough, Prospect *‘[A] stylish, sweeping survey of modern day India.’ * Times Literary Supplement *‘A lively and valuable blend of the empirical and the anecdotal… The best parts of Mr. Crabtree’s book, however, aren’t his observations on the civic state of India (although these are certainly valuable and wise). They are his reportage, in which he relates his encounters with several of the men who are emblematic of the billionaire raj.’ * Tunku Varadarajan, Wall Street Journal *‘A nuanced portrait…chock-full of profoundly revealing vignettes from various corners of India’s endlessly diverse society and economy.’ * New York Times *‘James Crabtree, once a hugely-admired star foreign correspondent, has transformed himself into a brilliant writer and analyst of the Indian super-rich. This timely, fascinating and eye-opening book is also – a rarity for a book about money – wonderfully witty and beautifully written.’ -- William Dalrymple‘An enlightening and engaging story of wealth and poverty in India, but also a sad indictment of the power of inequity in subduing and overwhelming its areas of success.’ -- Amartya Sen, winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics‘Crabtree’s stylish writing and sharp insights bring to life the extremes of a country changing with bewildering rapidity, and one the world will find increasingly hard to ignore. The Billionaire Raj is an essential guide if you want to understand modern India, as you must.’ -- Edward Luce, Chief US Commentator, Financial Times, and author of In Spite of the Gods: The Rise of Modern India‘Billionaire-watching may seem like voyeuristic fun, but it also provides serious insights about where a nation is headed. James Crabtree does just that in The Billionaire Raj, as he traces the incredible rise of India’s new super-rich and everything they reveal about the state of India’s political economy. Mixing colourful anecdotes with serious analysis, Crabtree’s urgent book gives us far more than just vicarious thrills about India’s new Gilded Age.’ -- Ruchir Sharma, author of The Rise and Fall of Nations‘A lucid, detailed and at times epic account of the new India… A must-read for all those interested in the political and economic destiny of the subcontinent.’ -- Robert D. Kaplan, author of Monsoon and The Return of Marco Polo’s World‘A fascinating look into the world of the Indian business elite…shedding considerable light on whether the country will sustain the miracle that is the Indian democracy or go the way of populism and authoritarianism as so many others have.’ -- Dani Rodrik, Professor of International Political Economy, Harvard University, and author of The Globalization Paradox‘James Crabtree distinguished himself as the most insightful journalist writing for the Financial Times from India. It is not surprising therefore that he has now written a book that offers a splendid overview of the issues that have been raised concerning India’s spectacular growth since the reforms began in 1991. It is bound to become a classic.’ -- Jagdish Bhagwati, author of In Defense of Globalization‘In this eye-opening rumination on wealth, power, and those who seek both…Crabtree brings a reporter’s precision and flair to his story… An inside look into the corridors of power, this is an invaluable commentary on Indian democracy and the forces that threaten it.’ * Publishers Weekly, starred review *‘A wonderful book! It artfully weaves together lively stories of India’s billionaires while retaining a balanced perspective on the big picture of the rise of India. It is not easy to write contemporary history but Crabtree manages to get to the heart of the matter – the problem of India’s state capacity and the need to reform the institutions of governance.’ -- Gurcharan Das, author of India Unbound and The Difficulty of Being Good‘Who are the Indian nouveau riche and what do they want? James Crabtree’s The Billionaire Raj will prove the defining work on these questions. It is a must-read for anyone interested in wealth, inequality, India, or the evolution of capitalism.’ -- Tyler Cowen, economist, blogger and author of The Great Stagnation

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Book SynopsisHow do we explain the strange survival of the forcesresponsible for the 2008 economic crisis, one of the worst since 1929? How do we explain the fact that neoliberalism has emerged from the crisis strengthened? When it broke, a number of the most prominent economists hastened to announce the 'death' of neoliberalism. They regarded the pursuit of neoliberal policy as the fruit of dogmatism.For Pierre Dardot and Christian Laval, neoliberalism is no mere dogma. Supported by powerful oligarchies, it is a veritable politico-institutional system that obeys a logic of self-reinforcement. Far from representing a break, crisis has become a formidably effective mode of government.In showing how this system crystallized and solidified, the book explains that the neoliberal straitjacket has succeeded in preventing any course correction by progressively deactivating democracy. Increasing the disarray and demobilization, the so-called 'governmental' Left has actively helped strengthen this oligarchical logic. The latter could lead to a definitive exit from democracy in favour of expertocratic governance, free of any control.However, nothing has been decided yet. The revival of democratic activity, which we see emerging in the political movements and experiments of recent years, is a sign that the political confrontation with the neoliberal system and the oligarchical bloc has already begun.Trade ReviewNever Ending Nightmare: How Neoliberalism Defeats Democracy comprehensively deconstructs the strategies of a global instrumental rationality that seeks to bring about the end of democracy. -- Cynthia Fleury * L’Humanité *This essay has a singular resonance at the contemporary moment; it echoes with urgency and immediacy. -- Céline Mouzon * Alternatives Économiques *For the most maximalist theorists of neoliberalism in thought and practice, look no further. -- Quinn Slobodian, author of Globalists : The End of Empire and the Birth of NeoliberalismDardot and Laval present the post-2008 radicalization of neoliberalism as a nightmare and an opportunity. The nightmare is the stranglehold of a system of norms and treaties that benefit the oligarchy while immiserating the rest of us. The opportunity stems from the complete break between the elites and everybody else; neoliberalism has lost even the veneer of legitimacy. The challenge facing the Left is whether we can develop the political vision - and capacity - that will make this an opportunity for us. -- Jodi Dean, author of The Communist Horizon and Crowds and PartyBuilding on their previous historical analysis of neoliberal rationality, Dardot and Laval now paint a much starker, more terrifying portrait of neoliberalism, that is alert to its violence and unyielding political logic. Never Ending Nightmare presents us with a bleak but compelling account of how neoliberal government has abandoned all pretence of democratic legitimacy. -- William Davies, author of Nervous States: How feeling took over the worldDardot and Laval's provocative study offers important insights with regard to the current state of radicalization of neoliberalism. Although the interpretation of the EU as a quintessential ordoliberal project will surely trigger objections, their emphasis on legal norms as social technology to advance neoliberal transformations is very well taken. Critical examination of forms of neoliberal oligarchy goes beyond staples of post-democracy. Aficionados of both national populism and traditional party organizations will dislike their message for those on the left who are keen to develop an alternative imaginary of the future. -- Dieter Plehwe, co-editor of The Road from Mont Pèlerin: The Making of the Neoliberal Thought Collective

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Book SynopsisConservation needs a revolution. This is the only way it can contribute to the drastic transformations needed to come to a truly sustainable model of development. The good news is that conservation is ready for revolution. Heated debates about the rise of the Anthropocene and the current 'sixth extinction' crisis demonstrate an urgent need and desire to move beyond mainstream approaches. Yet the conservation community is deeply divided over where to go from here. Some want to place 'half earth' into protected areas. Others want to move away from parks to focus on unexpected and 'new' natures. Many believe conservation requires full integration into capitalist production processes.Building a razor-sharp critique of current conservation proposals and their contradictions, Büscher and Fletcher argue that the Anthropocene challenge demands something bigger, better and bolder. Something truly revolutionary. They propose convivial conservation as the way forward. This approach goes beyond protected areas and faith in markets to incorporate the needs of humans and nonhumans within integrated and just landscapes. Theoretically astute and practically relevant, The Conservation Revolution offers a manifesto for conservation in the twenty-first century-a clarion call that cannot be ignored.Trade ReviewIn our era of unprecedented conservation needs and challenges, this hard-hitting, clear-sighted book offers a radical and timely way forward. Two eminent and committed political ecologists cut a path through old and new conservation debates and dichotomies - people vs. nature, capitalism vs. post-capitalism - to offer a new paradigm and politics around conviviality. Vital reading, and a vital manifesto for all concerned with how people and non-human natures can live well together -- Professor Melissa Leach, Director, Institute of Development Studies, University of SussexBuscher and Fletcher significantly advance radical alternatives to mainstream conservation, especially by locating them within the need for systemic alternatives to capitalism (and hopefully by implication, though not explicitly stated, patriarchy). Their notion of convivial conservation, building on innovative traditions that have broken away from dominant notions of progress and development, helps envisage an end to the human domination of the earth, so desperately needed. -- Ashish Kothari, co-author with A. Shrivastava of Churning the Earth: The Making of Global India (2012)This book is a remarkable intellectual and political achievement, demonstrating nothing less than how to organize and practice revolutionary conservation beyond the Anthropocene, but within the ruins of uneven socio-ecological capitalist development. A razor-sharp analysis of conservation and how to politicize its futures. -- Erik SwyngedouwThe debate over the conservation of creation is necessarily deep and contentious--this new approach deserves a careful reading from everyone who cares about human and more-than-human nature! -- Bill McKibbenA thoughtful, gentle and comprehensive overview...will become a mandatory read in political ecology, environmental history and conservation courses everywhere. * Journal of Political Ecology *Both a theoretical and practical guide for anyone looking to reevaluate their relationship with capitalism-and the future of life on earth. ... As the world experiences the catastrophic effects of political and economic systems that prioritize profits over people, The Conservation Revolution provides an essential foundation for reconsidering the status quo and prompts us to move toward a more equitable, sustainable future. -- Amelia Rina * BOMB Magazine *Both rigorous and accessible...an important addition to revolutionary thought in political ecology. -- Jordan Teicher * Uneven Earth *Highly recommend reading this book - it forces you to closer think about what is really needed in order to move from treating only symptoms to the much-needed real, efficient, sweeping change towards a sustainable society. -- Tina Heger * Basic and Applied Ecology *The Conservation Revolution was, for me, a refreshing read in bleak times. It struck the right balance between realism and hopeful optimism by putting forward ideas for conserving nature that do not simply imagine ways of being outside of capitalism, but that recognize the need to remedy capitalist conservation's cumulative negative effects -- Y. Ariadne Collins * Antipode *

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Book SynopsisWith the concept of the Imperial Mode of Living, Brand and Wissen highlight the fact that capitalism implies uneven development as well as a constant and accelerating universalisation of a Western mode of production and living. The logic of liberal markets since the 19thCentury, and especially since World War II, has been inscribed into everyday practices that are usually unconsciously reproduced. The authors show that they are a main driver of the ecological crisis and economic and political instability.The Imperial Mode of Living implies that people's everyday practices, including individual and societal orientations, as well as identities, rely heavily on the unlimited appropriation of resources; a disproportionate claim on global and local ecosystems and sinks; and cheap labour from elsewhere. This availability of commodities is largely organised through the world market, backed by military force and/or the asymmetric relations of forces as they have been inscribed in international institutions. Moreover, the Imperial Mode of Living implies asymmetrical social relations along class, gender and race within the respective countries. Here too, it is driven by the capitalist accumulation imperative, growth-oriented state policies and status consumption. The concrete production conditions of commodities are rendered invisible in the places where the commodities are consumed. The imperialist world order is normalized through the mode of production and living.Trade ReviewThe highly readable book by Brand and Wissen exposes an internal contradiction fraught with consequences: the imperial mode of living undermines its own operating conditions. Currently, the dominant reaction to this fact consists of desperate attempts to secure the exclusivity of this mode of living even under altered conditions. -- Stephan Lessenich * Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung *The facts of the "imperial mode of living" are nothing new. The merit of the authors lies in showing its related problems broadly, well founded in theory and substantiated by empirical material. -- Joachim Hirsch * Frankfurter Rundschau *To fight the ecological crisis, the realm of political economics ought to be included as well, because it would clearly show the problems with the global North's globalised norms of production and consumption. -- Jutta Bichl, Paolo Freire Zentrum, AustriaDeveloping a counter-hegemony to the imperial mode of living would mean articulating both structural and everyday alternatives. Brand and Wissen call for seeking out confrontation with the elites in contested societal (nature) relations and countering the imperial mode of living with a solidary one. -- Evelyn Linde * analyse & kritik *Empathy for the worries of people who are situated well above average on a global scale, but are increasingly unsettled in their sphere of life, would be needed for the transformation-oriented left, if it were to take a hegemonic project seriously. -- Andreas Novy * Austrian Journal of Political Science *An explosive book that not only helps in understanding the multiple crises of our times, but also shows approaches for overcoming them. -- Knut Henkel * die tageszeitung *The book shows that a sound analysis of society is not an academic end it itself but has a high relevance for the political discourse. -- Bernd Sommer * GAIA *Using the term "mode of living", the authors succeed in defining the embedding of global power relations in the everyday actions of people in the North without raising moral accusations. [.] The imperial mode of living has the hallmarks of compulsion, but at the same time enables, creates conveniences and expands scopes of action. While it can be sustained only for the price of intensifying economic and ecological crises, it contributes to the stabilization of the societies of the North, including their injustices, and remains attractive for those excluded, whose hope is not pinned on overcoming the imperial conditions, but on participating in the exclusive privileges. -- Gerd Schoppengerd * express *Brand/Wissen conceive the term "mode of living" [...] as a category of systematic connections between action and structure. The term connects the analysis of the everyday practices people use to reproduce social conditions to a critique of social structures that make just these practices appear to be the conditions for a good life [...]. Norms for modes of production and consumption are embedded in these practices just as much as are forms of state regulation that arose from social conflicts. In other words, the imperial mode of living forms part of a hegemonic combination that does not confront the social actors as something external but constitutes them as subjects and conveys a capacity for action to them, which they adopt and reproduce in their everyday practices. -- Jörg Reitzig * Politikum *With their effort to start with the daily normality of the imperial mode of living, Ulrich Brand and Markus Wissen managed an important strike, especially in the political realm. -- Klaus Dörre * Sozialismus *If you want to understand the multiple crises of our times and are searching for answers, you must read this book. It is an exceptional proof of the practical value of political science. -- Gerhard Klas * Südwestrundfunk. Die Buchkritik *An essential political read for our times. Spelling out the brutal contradictions of the 'imperial mode of living' and its 'green economy', Brand and Wissen invite the reader to consider a 'solidary mode of living'. Here, sociability and sustainability can be joined, and hopefully celebrate the rich plurality of global cultures. -- Ariel SallehThis lucid articulation of 'the imperial mode of living' as a pathbreaking concept, helps us to better understand the continuing neo-colonial relations of production and consumption between the Global North and South. It shows their devastating social and ecological consequences, and why 'green economy' like approaches will not save us and the planet. Rather, systemic, fundamental alternatives are needed, and this book brilliantly demonstrates why. -- Ashish KothariProudly wearing the cloaks of what they call revolutionary Realpolitik and radical reformism, Brand and Wissen offer both a bracing and radical assessment of the current ecological crisis and a roadmap of the pathways from fossil capitalism. The imperial model of living saturates everyday life resting upon the unlimited appropriation of resources, a disproportionate claim to global and local ecosystems and sinks and cheap labor from elsewhere. Yet the concrete production conditions of consumed commodities and their environmental destructiveness in the Global North and South alike are typically invisible, rarely crossing into critical reflection. The Imperial Mode of Living offers a brilliant analysis of how and why this sense of normality is produced in a time of multiple and overlapping crises, and how such a mode of living simultaneously creates these crises and stabilizes social relations in the countries where its benefits are concentrated. A tour de force. -- Michael Watts, University of California, BerkeleyThe Imperial Mode of Living introduces a much needed addition to our understanding of imperialism by looking at the ways in which global structures of imperial domination, extraction, and production have created consuming classes with imperial lifestyles that threaten the ecological survival of the planet. It also helps make sense of the new phase of imperial domination and extraction of the global South through engendering consuming classes in both the global North and South. By making visible the taken-for-granted daily practices of consumption and production and linking them to imperial structures, Brand and Wissen have produced an indispensable contribution. -- Michelle Williams, Professor of Sociology and Chairperson of the Global Labour University Programme, University of the Witwatersrand (Wits), South AfricaBrand and Wissen assert that it will only be possible to overcome the destructive global imperial mode of living by changing the current ways of working and of consumption, and by putting solidarity into practice across society. The German-language publication of the book garnered a discussion that was both broad and intensive, precisely because the authors insist on the need to rethink social transformation beyond hitherto concepts of reform or revolution. -- Joachim Hirsch, Goethe University, Frankfurt/M.The Imperial Mode of Living is a very enlightening and also useful conceptual tool to connect the mainstream essentialist criticism of capitalism and a critical analysis of the everyday life of people within it. With the help of it, we can have a better understanding of the political and economic dynamics of contemporary capitalism, a globalized as well as 'universalized' system or hegemonic mode of living, which constitutes a great challenge for the emerging global Green-left politics. -- Qingzhi Huan, Beijing UniversityThis book vividly illuminates what imperialism means today, elucidating the deep structures of social and ecological injustice on which prosperity is currently premised. Eschewing simple moral appeals, the book superbly threads together the cultural and economic forces that make the richer parts of the world feel comfortable with the status quo. Brand and Wissen lay the groundwork for a much-needed shift in the cross-border conversation over alternatives. -- Emma Dowling, author of The Care Crisis (2021)The Imperial Mode of Living is a powerful contribution to the Left's strategic debates worldwide. Its bold and controversial thesis on the everyday implications of global economic and ecological inequality deserves to be discussed widely. -- Marcel van der Linden, International Institute of Social History, AmsterdamA pathbreaking thesis - and a truly essential reading for making sense of the 'global constellations of power' that shape the world we live in. Looking at the socio-ecological contradictions of Western societies from the perspective of their manufactured elsewhere, and the normalized violence of extractive relations - this book magisterially complements the tradition of anti-imperialist, 'revolutionary Realpolitik' (Rosa Luxemburg). -- Stefania Barca, Centre for Social Studies, University of Coimbra, PortugalComing out of the Corona virus crisis, there has to be a radical transformation in the way that we live. This book is an excellent way into the discussion of the mode of living that is destroying the earth. A solidary mode of living or authoritarian neo-liberal corona capitalism: that, the authors suggest, is the choice we face. No debate could be more important. -- John HollowayIn the tradition of debates about imperialism, this book emphasizes its effects on the crucial level of everyday life and, more broadly, interrogates what constitutes our modes of living today. Bringing together consumption, extractivism and production, Brand and Wissen provide an updated reading and multilevel map not only of capitalist exploitation, but also of the underlying political elements behind migration, the rise of the right and the urgent need to rethink class and ecology from the point of view of social reproduction. Through the notion of themode of living as a constellation of elements, this book is a renewal of anti-imperialist theory. -- Verónica Gago, Universidad de Buenos AiresAn accessible and deep examination of imperialism's historical and present construction of a global economy designed to not only dominate the peoples and nations outside the capitalist core, but also to keep that economy's ecological destructiveness in those nations, too. -- Ron Jacobs * CounterPunch *In her great work of 1913, Rosa Luxemburg had shown that the accumulation of capital is only possible if there is an outside that enables the preservation and development of the inner core of the capitalist mode of production. Inevitably capitalism is an imperial order. Ulrich Brand and Markus Wissen link this insight of Luxemburg to the fact that the mode of living, including desires, everyday production and consumption patterns such as mobility in the centers of modern capitalism are also imperial. They describe the strategy for an alternative of a solidary mode of living, the emergence of which requires nothing less than a new Great Transformation beyond capitalism. -- Michael Brie, Head of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Rosa-Luxemburg-StiftungThis book is a must read, particularly poignant for scholar working on consumption and sustainability. The concept of an 'imperial mode of living' captures the idea that power relations permeate both everyday life, and political as well as economic spheres. Mundane and routine practices, performed without much reflexivity - such as driving a car or preparing a meal - reveal broader social inequalities and forms of environmental deterioration that become normalized, accepted, even respected, and thus difficult to change. From describing the problem and introducing the concept, the authors then lead us down a promising avenue: that of solidarity and social learning. Such measures are not the sole remit of heroic individuals, however, they require multiple and perhaps messy collective action. Because...Ya basta! -- Marlyne Sahakian, University of GenevaA book for these times ... The Imperial Mode of Living not only offers a novel grasp of the links of everyday life to crises and inequalities on a global scale, but it also takes a stand for the necessity of politics from below. -- Stefan Schoppengerd * LSE Review of Books *

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Book SynopsisTHE CLIMATE CRISIS has propelled nuclear energy back into fashion. Its proponents argue we already have the technology of the future and that it only needs perfection and deployment. Nuclear Is Not the Solution demonstrates why this sort of thinking is not only naïve but dangerous.Even beyond the horrific implications of meltdown and the intractable problem of waste disposal, nuclear is not practicable on such a large scale. Any appraisal of future energy technology depends on two important parameters: cost and time. Nuclear fails on both counts. It is more costly than its renewable competitors wind and solar. And, importantly given the need for rapid transformation, it is slow. A plant takes a decade to come online. If you include permits and fundraising, this adds another decade. And we should not forget the deep roots it has in the defense industry.M. V. Ramana’s powerful book destroys any illusion that nuclear is our answer to climage change, untangling t

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Book SynopsisThe question of ownership is the critical fault line of our times. During the pandemic this issue has only become more divisive. Since March 2020 we have witnessed the extraordinary growth of asset manager capitalism and the explosive concentration of wealth within the hands of the already super-rich. This new oligarchy controls every part of our social and economics lives.In the face of crisis, the authors warn that mere redistribution within current forms of ownership is not enough; our goal must be to go beyond the limits of the current system, dominated by private enclosure and unequal ownership. Only by reimagining how our economy is owned and by whom can we address the crises of our time - from the fallout of the pandemic to ecological collapse - at their roots.Building from this insight, the authors argue the systemic change we need hinges on a new era of democratic ownership: a reinvention of the firm as a vehicle for collective endeavour and meeting social needs. Against the new oligarchy of the platform giants, a digital commons that uses our data for collective good, not private profit. In place of environmental devastation, a new agenda of decommodification - of both nature and needs - with a Green New Deal and collective stewardship of the planet's natural wealth. Together, these proposals offer a road map to owning the future, and building a better world.Trade ReviewHowever queasily anxious it makes the political class, the question of who should own what in our economy still hangs in the air, unanswered. This pacy and accessible book unpacks the issues and offers solutions with a welcome dash of imagination and optimism. -- Aditya Chakrabortty, Senior Economics Commentator, The GuardianOwning the Future offers a vision for a future beyond capitalism. It will require nothing less than a radical democratization of ownership. An ambitious book that should inspire many to help workout the details of a much needed transition. -- Katharina Pistor, author of The Code of Capital: How the Law Creates Wealth and InequalityAmid a growing divide between those who own assets and those who don't, Owning the Future offers an essential guide to the shifting landscape of property, politics, and power today, from the enclosure of knowledge in vaccine IP to the outsized power of massive asset managers. Seamlessly blending social theory and case studies, Adrienne Buller and Mathew Lawrence lucidly diagnose the pathologies of private ownership across a range of sectors - housing, data, ecosystems - and make a powerful case for the necessity of public and democratic alternatives. -- Alyssa Battistoni, co-author of A Planet to WinA must-have guide for anyone interested in reimagining ownership in our age of compounding crises. Lawrence and Buller map out how we can escape from a world of escalating competition over dwindling assets towards a future where the inherent value of every person is recognised. Read this if you want to maintain any hope in a different vision of the twenty-first century. -- Kojo Koram, author of Uncommon WealthBuller and Lawrence imagine a world where corporates are democratized, the stock market loses its power, and the state invests in a common fund for citizens and makes real and substantial investments in decarbonization. This is no fever dream. It is a well-reasoned plan of action and far more possible than we think. -- Mark Blyth, author of Austerity: The History of a Dangerous IdeaYou will finish this gripping book equipped with the tools to rethink what property means, ready to reimagine and transform ownership so that we can effectively redistribute power, decommodify the provision of essential goods and services, and expand the meaning of the commons. A powerful exposé of how, together, we can own the future on an habitable planet. -- Isabelle Ferreras, author of Firms as Political EntitiesPraise for Planet on Fire * : *This clear and incisive book starts from the immensely important insight that we cannot understand climate breakdown outside of the capitalist social relations that produced it. Planet on Fire reminds us that climate breakdown is intimately linked to all the overlapping crises humanity faces - from the rise of the far right, to growing socioeconomic inequality, to the COVID-19 pandemic - and that ecosocialism is the only route to an equal and sustainable world. -- Grace BlakeleyEloquent, clear-sighted and erudite... an important analysis of the interlocking political and economic forces driving us towards ecological catastrophe, and a credible route-map towards an alternative -- Will DaviesOffers blueprints, rally-points for energies, and chronicles of useful pasts for a decarbonized future. In the end, the climate crisis, they remind us, is not about individual morality or scientific authority but power and politics. This is a handbook for the fights to come. -- Quinn SlobodianThe authors' vision of the path to climate justice is an antidote to disaster politics in so many ways, not least because it is both fair and unexpectedly luxurious. Each page is absolutely brimming with ideas as they meticulously take us through every important sector of the economy and reveal carefully thought through recommendations for reform. By focusing on power and who wields it they correctly identify the levers for change and who must now be empowered to push them. -- Michelle Meagher

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Book SynopsisThe Economics of Brexit – Revisited builds upon and extends the analysis contained within the authors' previous book, The Economics of Brexit: A Cost-Benefit Analysis of the UK's Economic Relationship with the EU, which arguably represented the most comprehensive and systematic evaluation of the UK’s economic relationship with the EU. The Economics of Brexit – Revisited continues where the previous volume left off, given that the UK has now formally withdrawn from the EU, and therefore the focus of the evidence presented concerns the potential economic implications arising from Brexit and considering the options available to those negotiating the UK's future economic relationship both regionally and globally. The Economics of Brexit – Revisited seeks to provide greater clarity to a range of issues that have been hotly debated over the past few years, ranging from the trade and fiscal implications of Brexit, to the economic impact of regulation and migration. The significance of different Brexit options are discussed in detail, including the significance of demands for regulatory harmonisation (the 'level playing field'), along with their implications for UK trade with the EU and the rest of the world. A wide range of economic analyses are evaluated to determine their relative methodological strengths and weaknesses, and ultimately whether their conclusions are sufficiently robust to engender confidence. Finally, noting that a key determinant of the effectiveness of any post-Brexit economic strategy depends upon the degree of flexibility created for economic policy, the book provides an extended examination of the potential relating to different economic policy options available to the UK government, depending upon the form of final trade settlement that is agreed with the EU. These policy options include more active forms of macroeconomic management, combined with industrial and procurement policy. The Economics of Brexit – Revisited therefore seeks to combine evaluation of the available evidence indicating the economic impact of Brexit, together with consideration of policy trade-offs that lie at the heart of the choices surrounding Brexit, and how these might be resolved. The Economics of Brexit – Revisited therefore maintains its position as the most comprehensive analysis of the economics of Brexit in the market today. Trade Review Table of ContentsChapter One. The Elusive Economic Consensus over Brexit.Chapter Two. The Fiscal Impact of Brexit.Chapter Three. Brexit and Trade.Chapter Four. Foreign Direct Investment.Chapter Five. Regulation.Chapter Six. Migration and the Labour Force.Chapter Seven. Economic Growth and Productivity.Chapter Eight. Economic Policy Considerations.Chapter Nine. Alternative Trading Models After Brexit.

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Book SynopsisEminent physicist and economist, Robert Ayres, examines the history of technology as a change agent in society, focusing on societal roots rather than technology as an autonomous, self-perpetuating phenomenon. With rare exceptions, technology is developed in response to societal needs that have evolutionary roots and causes. In our genus Homo, language evolved in response to a need for our ancestors to communicate, both in the moment, and to posterity. A band of hunters had no chance in competition with predators that were larger and faster without this type of organization, which eventually gave birth to writing and music. The steam engine did not leap fully formed from the brain of James Watt. It evolved from a need to pump water out of coal mines, driven by a need to burn coal instead of firewood, in turn due to deforestation. Later, the steam engine made machines and mechanization possible. Even quite simple machines increased human productivity by a factor of hundreds, if not thousands. That was the Industrial Revolution. If we count electricity and the automobile as a second industrial revolution, and the digital computer as the beginning of a third, the world is now on the cusp of a fourth revolution led by microbiology. These industrial revolutions have benefited many in the short term, but devastated the Earth’s ecosystems. Can technology save the human race from the catastrophic consequences of its past success? That is the question this book will try to answer.Table of ContentsChapter 1. Introduction.- Chapter 2. Fire and water: technologies extending nature.- Chapter 3. Extensions of the body.- Chapter 4. Words and music.- Chapter 5. Printing, movable type and books.- Chapter 6. The Enlightenment: the rise of science.- Chapter 7. The first stage of industrialization: coking and canals (1712- 1820).- Chapter 8. Machine tools and mechanization.- Chapter 9. The triumph of steam and steel (1820-1876).- Chapter 10. Petroleum and petrochemicals.- Chapter 11. Anesthesia, surgery, and modern medicine.- Chapter 12. Mobility: From rails to roads to space travel.- Chapter 13. Electricity and electrification of factories and homes.- Chapter 14. Communications: From carrier pigeons to telephones and radio (1876-1976).- Chapter 15. The history of artifiicial light.- Chapter 16. Electronic broadcast media: radio and TV.- Chapter 17. Photography and movies.- Chapter 18. The transistor transition: 1945-1969.- Chapter 19. Machine computation and digitization.- Chapter 20. The Internet and the Worldwide Web.- Chapter 21. The Eco-footprint of material wealth: pollution, climate change and epidemics.- Chapter 22. Nuclear power.- Chapter 23. Solar Power and renewables.- Chapter 24. Scarce elements and scarce metals.- Chapter 25. Food and agriculture.- Chapter 26. Biotechnology and Human Health.- Chapter 27. Can technology save Homo Sapiens from Extinction? Utopia 2120.

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