Book Review: Inside Money: Brown Brothers Harriman and the American Way of Power by Zachary Karabell
This book is well worth the read (by people of all economic perspectives)—it belies its title by providing (instead of investment advice as a casual observer might erroneously infer from a title such as Inside Money) valuable historical insights into the forces that shaped the United States and the world throughout the life of the US. Zachary Karabell covers not only businesses and banks, but also political and societal figures. These forces continue to be significant in our own time as they are fully at work in most everything that affects us today. Readers looking for thorough research and ample context will not be disappointed.
The author has been criticised for not being hard enough on Brown Brothers and other companies in the industrial North for their historical complicity in the use of enslaved persons for the production of cotton and other products involved in their businesses. However, it seems to me that Karabell has properly excoriated these companies for this complicity effectively and often throughout the book, and established a clear link between their wealth and slavery. I have yet to hear a convincing argument countering the observation that without historical slavery, capitalism as we know it today would not and could not exist—no need to bother with right wing nonsense about socialism.
Karabell displays great empathy with the moneyed class, mentioning Keynes only twice and merely tangentially. This provides a probably unintended explanation of why very wealthy persons apply their billions to support public officials who protect extreme libertarian policies—their amoral influence of public opinion toward politicians promoting oppressive, unbalanced, and otherwise destructive behaviors notwithstanding. The obscene and dangerous wealth inequality this creates is the natural result.
The author alludes to late capitalism, and credits Brown Brothers for their avoidance of the casino style practices that produced financial meltdowns. It’s clear that the current system is not working for everyone, and the luck of even prudent companies such as Brown Brothers may be running out. For everyone’s sake, let’s do all we can to spread the tent to cover everyone—the alternative is we’re all left in the rain, including Brown Brothers.
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