The fall of the USSR was a big win for capitalism over socialism. However, it turns out that capitalism is not a homogenous economic system. Any claim that capitalism is monolithic "reflects something of the mentality common during the cold war when the two superpowers ... were struggling for the hearts and minds of peoples of the world" (p. vii). In this book Bill Baumol, Robert Litan, and Carl Schramm identify at least four capitalisms: entrepreneurial capitalism, state-guided capitalism, oligarchic capitalism, and big-firm capitalism. Broadly characterized, capitalism can be good or bad. And for now it would seem that a good capitalism is a mix of entrepreneurial capitalism and big-firm capitalism. This emphasis is waxy, though, to the extent it implies that good capitalism is "my capitalism."



I like the book for practical and intellectual reasons. Practically it declares capitalist victory over socialism without suggesting that capitalism's victory means the end of human struggles. Intellectually, it made me aware of the fact that although Karl Marx's literal vision of the world fell apart, his point that human (social) development evolves in stages, and that capitalism cannot be the last stage in that evolution, these things continue to inform research. An excellent book for all serious readers!



Amavilah, Author

Modeling Determinants of Income in Embedded Economies

ISBN: 1600210465



ISBN: 1600210465

Quotable Arthur Schopenhauer

ISBN: 9781430324959

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