The Zero-Sum Society

Fülszöveg

The Zero-Sum Society is a brilliant and lucid analysis of the economic and political woes facing the United States in the 1980s. Lester C. Thurow, Professor of Economics and Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, demonstrates that American society resembles a zero-sum game—a game in which losses equal winnings. (Poker is a zero-sum game, as are most forms of organized sport.) Thurow argues that in our political system every economic decision produces losers as well as winners, but the rules are changing as economically oppressed groups—women and minorities—demand political and economic equality. It might be a disturbing thesis to some that the only solution to economic stagnation is the redistribution of income, but Thurow provides solid documentation for his views that the pursuit of equality demands a fundamental restructuring of the economy. The solutions to the serious problems of energy shortage, environmental pollution, lagging production, rampant... Tovább

Fülszöveg

The Zero-Sum Society is a brilliant and lucid analysis of the economic and political woes facing the United States in the 1980s. Lester C. Thurow, Professor of Economics and Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, demonstrates that American society resembles a zero-sum game—a game in which losses equal winnings. (Poker is a zero-sum game, as are most forms of organized sport.) Thurow argues that in our political system every economic decision produces losers as well as winners, but the rules are changing as economically oppressed groups—women and minorities—demand political and economic equality. It might be a disturbing thesis to some that the only solution to economic stagnation is the redistribution of income, but Thurow provides solid documentation for his views that the pursuit of equality demands a fundamental restructuring of the economy. The solutions to the serious problems of energy shortage, environmental pollution, lagging production, rampant inflation, growing unemployment, and government regulation lie in instituting radical changes such as the creation of federally funded work programs, a revamping of the tax structure, and the repeal of antitrust laws. John Kenneth Galbraith, America's dean of economists, has described The Zero-Sum Society as must reading, and it is essential reading for anyone interested in or perplexed by the current state of the American economy.
"One of the most provocative economic books of the year"
—Time
"An elegantly reasoned interpretation of America's economic troubles a first-rate job"
—Robert Lekachman, Washington Post Book World
"Tells what the politicians will omit (and what Congress, in
legislating, often tries to deny)____With more courage than most
politicians, Mr. Thurow comes up with specific answers, in this timely, insightful discussion of our economic malaise."
—Edward Cowan, The New York Times
Cover design by Neil Stuart Vissza