Readings on capitalism

Rather than select a particular book for March, JUST Books is reading various books and watching films on the subject of capitalism and economics. Some of the suggested titles are:

A. Videos

1. The Bonfire Of The Vanities, with Tom Hanks, Bruce Willis and Melanie Griffith. The movie is a dramatization of a book written by Tom Wolfe about a young, hugely successful bond trader on Wall Street who firmly believes that the laws, ethics and morality required of the common person do not apply to him. Set in New York City, the film shows with great humor how the character played by Tom Hanks has his life turned upside down.

2. Wall Street, with Michael Douglas, Charlie Sheen and Daryl Hannah. The movie which is directed by Oliver Stone, shows through the character, Gordon Gekko, played by M. Douglas how the mighty barons of Wall Street are obsessed with power and greed. Bud fox, played by Charlie Sheen is moderately successful as a trader but desperately wants to get to the top and embarks on a strategy of forming a relationship with Gekko. As the movie unfolds Bud Fox must choose between family and fortune.

This picture has become a cult classic for the financial community.

3. Enron: The Smartest Guys in The Room, a docudrama telling the story of the financial collapse of Enron and the consequences for investors and employees.

B. Books

The Conscience of a Liberal, written by Paul Krugman. This is a serious, but easy reading exposition outlining the causes of the decline of middle class prosperity in the United States since the mid 1970's. Professor Krugman asserts that if income due to productivity increases had been shared with the middle class since the mid '70's in the same way that they had been in the prior three decades, middle class income would be increased by 35%. The author does a methodical job of analyzing the causes of middle class decline, and recommending economic and political action to correct the decline.

Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism, by Naomi Klein. Members who have read this book say they don't see any reason to read anything else! Available only in hardcover until fall.

"The Shock Doctrine aims its 10-foot-long middle finger at the Bush administration and the generations of neocons who've chosen profits over people in war and disaster; the effect is to provide intellectual armor for the now-mainstream anticorporatist crowd." - Lenora Todaro, Village Voice

Battle for the Soul of Capitalism, by John C. Bogle. How the financial system undermined social ideals, damaged trust in the markets, robbed investors of trillions, and what to do about it.

Consumed: How Markets Corrupt Children, Infantilize Adults, and Swallow Citizens Whole, by Benjamin Barber. Barber proves his theory that the market imperative has conditioned us to lap up the easy offerings and reject hard, complicated works. This lifelong study of the effects of capitalism and privatization reveals a pervasiveness of branding and homogenization from which there is seemingly no turning back. With the call to arms of grassroots resistance, he does offer a glimmer of hope.

The Divine Right of Capitalism, by Marjorie Kelly. Kelly argues on behalf of a particular version of economic democracy; what might be called a new “stakeholder” politics of the corporation and of society. She draws on the philosophical tradition represented by Jefferson, Paine, Lincoln, and even Adam Smith to make her case. Kelly proposes “Six Principles of Economic Democracy” to combat a polar set of principles of aristocratic power:

1. Enlightenment: Because all persons are created equal, the economic rights of employees and the community are equal to those of capital owners.

2. Equality: Under market principles, wealth does not legitimately belong only to stockholders. Corporate wealth belongs to those who create it, and community wealth belongs to all.

3. Public Good: As semipublic governments, public corporations are more than pieces of property or private contracts. They have a responsibility to the public good.

4. Democracy: The corporation is a human community, and like the larger community of which it is a part, it is best governed democratically.

5. Justice: In keeping with equal treatment of persons before the law, the wealthy may not claim greater rights than others, and corporations may not claim the rights of persons.

6. (r)Evolution: As it is the right of the people to alter or abolish government, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish the corporations that now govern the world.

Natural Capitalism: Creating the Next Industrial Revolution, by Paul Hawken, Amory and L. Hunter Lovins. See an interview with Hunter Lovins at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzNTRwxlRKg

Our next meeting is scheduled for April 17, when we will discuss these or any other books people have read on this topic. For more information, contact justbooksbemidji@gmail.com.