UNLIMITED WEALTH: The Theory and Practice of Economic Alchemy

by Paul Zane Pilzer ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 1, 1990

Add Pilzer to the list of cockeyed optimists, which includes such names as Pangloss and Pollyanna. The Dallas-based real-estate man who coauthored an estimably tough-minded appreciation of the S&L scandal (Other People's Money, 1989) here offers a six-point theory of economics in which abundance, not scarcity, is the driving force. He argues, for instance, that a sufficiency of technology (roughly defined as applied science) can transcend the putative limits imposed on the global village by finite supplies of physical resources. Among other examples, Pilzer cites sand--the base material in fiber-optic transmission lines that are replacing copper wire. In the brave new world he envisions, however, only societies that can undertand and exploit so-called technology gaps will reap the full, wide-ranging benefits of alchemic economics. In this iffy context, the author relegates Japan to the also-ran ranks, well behind a prospering US. An earnest, intermittently intriguing exercise that cushions future shocks by the simple expedient of viewing them through rose-colored spectacles.

Pub Date: Jan. 1, 1990

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Crown

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 1990

Categories: NONFICTION