A short but thorough primer on modern political economy.
A defense of economic freedom as the linchpin of wealth creation.
Debates about economics and politics necessarily address the nature of inequality and distributive justice. To that end, Genetski (Classical Economic Principals & the Wealth of Nations, 2011, etc.), inspired by famed economists Adam Smith and Milton Friedman, argues that individual freedom is both morally and economically defensible, as it’s the most effective tonic to chronic poverty. First, the author defines wealth (“the value of those goods and services originally created to meet the demands of others”), plumbs the mechanics of its generation, and discusses the real difficulties of comparing the wealth of heterogeneous nations. He asserts that the most reliable way to comparatively measure wealth is by output per person; China is the world’s largest economy, but by this standard, it barely registers as a middle-class nation. A considerable portion of the book focuses on the United States, and according to Genetski, its wages and wealth creation have generally coincided with fidelity to free market principles. The author also provides a brief analysis of the world’s major economic regions, including Asia, Europe, Latin America, and Africa. Repeatedly, he discovers a causal relation between robust market liberalization and wealth generation, and he powerfully contends that involuntary wealth redistributions ultimately perpetuate poverty by dramatically reducing future output. Genetski’s analysis is remarkably concise, and the ground that he covers in fewer than 150 pages is impressive. Of course, that same concision demands the elision of significant detail; all of modern Latin America, for instance, is summed up in just a few pages. The book is unfailingly rigorous, providing hard data to substantiate its chief claims, but the philosophical argument undergirding the entire study—that people of all cultures ultimately desire freedom and generally respond predictably to the same economic policies—requires far more defense than the author gives here. Nonetheless, this is a sober and provocative contribution to the debate regarding the role of governments in regulating economic activity.
A short but thorough primer on modern political economy.Pub Date: March 8, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-4999-0277-8
Page Count: 152
Publisher: FastPencil
Review Posted Online: April 18, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2017
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
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