Book Review: Permanent Distortion: How the Financial Markets Abandoned the Real Economy Forever, by Nomi Prins From the documented accounts in this book, Nomi Prins demonstrates that the stock market has little relation to, and even less impact on, the real economy where most people live. Although left brain bean counters will be right at …
Category Archives: Reviews
Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents
Book Review: Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents, by Isabel Wilkerson This is the clearest explanation I have seen anywhere of why racial animosity persists in the US and elsewhere. Through objective scholarship and observations, Isabel Wilkerson decodes (what should be) the obvious: Race is only a pointer to caste—the irrational visceral need to assert …
The World After Capital
Book Review: The World After Capital, by Albert Wenger In this book Albert Wenger colors outside of the lines with convincing arguments and research. The author portrays the practical possibility of a near ideal world with compelling empirical evidence from today’s state of technology. Imagine an environment in which everyone is able to pursue their …
Elite Capture: How the Powerful Took Over Identity Politics
Book Review: Elite Capture: How the Powerful Took Over Identity Politics (And Everything Else), by Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò This book is rich espresso, well worthwhile in keeping up with its rapid pace of concentrated thought. Táíwò takes the reader through the unintentional mistakes of well meaning (white) people who (understandably) feel that deference is the …
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The Man Who Broke Capitalism
Book Review: The Man Who Broke Capitalism: How Jack Welch Gutted the Heartland and Crushed the Soul of Corporate America—and How to Undo His Legacy, by David Gelles If this book doesn’t boil your blood you’re part of the problem. In this account of the late GE CEO Jack Welch, David Gelles illuminates the essence …
The WEIRDest People in the World
Book Review: The WEIRDest People in the World: How the West Became Psychologically Peculiar and Particularly Prosperous, by: Joseph Henrich If you’ve ever wondered how Western culture, language, and technology came to have the prominent role it has worldwide, the answer may be literally WEIRD from a reading of Joseph Henrich’s book. WEIRD in this case …
After the Apocalypse: America’s Role in a World Transformed
Book Review: After the Apocalypse: America’s Role in a World Transformed by Andrew J. Bacevich The Apocalypse this book refers to is the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, which upended several previously sacrosanct presuppositions about economics, society, and diplomacy. Andrew Bacevich addresses the history and condition of the United States and the role the US is …
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Unthinkable: Trauma, Truth, and the Trials of American Democracy
Book Review: Unthinkable: Trauma, Truth, and the Trials of American Democracy by Jamie Raskin This book is an inside look at combating the dangerous scheming of those who would rather have a United States that is autocratic and oligarchic. The author, Jamie Raskin, a member of the US House of Representatives from a DC suburb …
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Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race
Book Review: Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge You’ve likely heard some version of the old saying: If one person calls you a horse’s ass, just ignore them; if several people call you a horse’s ass, get a saddle. Eddo-Lodge artfully speaks for the millions of people of …
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Waking Up White: And Finding Myself in the Story of Race
Book Review: Waking Up White: And Finding Myself in the Story of Race by Debby Irving From a white person to other white people, Irving presents a superb description of how the deeply embedded racism in our culture creates a formidable headwind for all who are not “white.” Until exposed to the objective historical facts …
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