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With the liberal political agenda in disarray at the national level,
it's past time for progressive activists to start thinking big and
long-term and connecting our work to a shared vision for a democratic
political-economic system. America Beyond Capitalism will ignite that
creative imagination For those whose life involves a continuous dialogue between insights
from their religious tradition and the seemingly intractable problems of
the political-social-economic world, and who seek to connect a vision of
a just society with practical action, Gar Alperovitz's America Beyond
Capitalism will be a real treat. [B]e prepared for a mind-opening
experience.
Gar Alperovitz, a noted historian of public policy, here turns his attention to analyzing the forces that have transformed the social and economic landscape over the last generation and to elaborating the new policies that offer a truly progressive solution to fiscal crisis, galloping inequality, and anger at the Washington elite. As the Bush administration girds itself for an assault on social security and progressive taxation, this is a very timely and important book. Alperovitz is not afraid to present a bold and uncompromising vision.
This closely argued treatise... claims we
are in the midst of another deep economic, social and political
crisis... The book's strength lies in its integration of diverse
populist issues into a coherent agenda rooted in deep American
values from the Declaration of Independence.
Political economist Gar Alperovitz, in his America Beyond Capitalism:
Reclaiming Our Wealth, Our Liberty, and Our Democracy, challenges
us to keep our sights on the highest virtues, while truly re-evaluating
whether our current means will get to the hoped-for end. Raising
questions for both redistributive-oriented liberals and market-reliant
conservatives, Alperovitz encourages us to experiment with new
policy options that will more deeply embody the values of equality,
liberty, and democracy.
Alperovitz's is an exciting vision. It presents a reasonably
plausible notion of what socialism might look like in the 21st century,
if we take the term to mean collective control of wealth and resources,
rather than state control of the economy. Furthermore, Alperovitz
mobilizes data to show that many aspects of his program have been
embraced as practical policy solutions by actors on the right as
well as the left.
Get
Ready! This is a BIG book. Not in the sense that it is long or hard
to read. It is a BIG book because it tackles BIG problems and proposes
BIG ideas. Alperovitz believes that "serious ideas count." This book
delivers on those. -- Social Enterprise Reporter Alperovitz, an academic and political economist, calls on Democrats
to "change the system," believing many Americans are searching
for new policies as we face large deficits, unemployment, terrorism,
and loss of belief in equality, liberty, and democracy. In his
view, our unresponsive government, growing inequality, corruption,
sprawl, and rising personal debt are reflections of a creative
free market system that is no longer completely free or totally
creative. Examining the extraordinary income and wealth controlled
by elites and major corporations, he suggests that the future
requires the development of a more community-centered democratic
market system. The author offers four fundamental suggestions
to address current problems, including developing new institutions
that hold wealth on behalf of small and large public groups (community
centered enterprises and worker-owned firms), and a regional rather
than continental political system to appropriately represent a
rapidly growing American population. His well-framed insight will
appeal to a more liberal segment of library patrons during this
presidential election year.
In America Beyond Capitalism, Alperovitz reviews just
how concentrated property ownership in America has become. He proposes,
in response, a new “Pluralist Commonwealth” based on “the principle
that ownership of the nation's wealth must ultmately be shifted, institutionally,
to benefit the vast majority.” If you hunger for new thinking, in
other words, bring your appetite to "America Beyond Capitalism". .
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