Product Description

economics, conservative, nanny state, taxes, government, welfare

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #77157 in Books
• Published on: 2006-07-18
• Released on: 2006-07-18
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 113 pages

Customer Reviews

Emperor's New Clothes-Unmasking the Use of
Dean Baker a PhD. Economist and co-director of the Center for Economic Policy and Research (CEPR) provides a brilliant, evidence-based, iconoclastic deconstruction of the myth that liberals like "Big Government" and conservatives favor the "Free Market". He documents the importance of government intervention on behalf of the rich and powerful in most of the important sectors of the economy. Covering such diverse areas as immigration policy, patient (monopoly) law, "Free" trade agreements, bankruptcy law, and Federal Reserve policy, Baker clearly demonstrates how these policies operate in the background (below the radar of public perception) to decidedly advance the class interests of the already powerful.

If you carefully examine his arguments you will be less likely to fall into the trap of believing the only way to advance a progressive agenda is through major government spending (not that he is opposed to this in principle). Several market-based solutions which powerfully elucidate the current bias against working class people are thoughtfully juxtaposed to policies which would be class neutral or enhance the well-being of the more vulnerable segments of society if they were to be implemented.

Finally, Dr. Baker walks the walk and has made his complete book available as a free download which can be found at the following web address: [...]. Given the economical cost of buying the book in paperback, you should strongly consider purchasing on line as it represents a valuable addition to the expanding body of literature to assail the growing economic divide. The practical solutions advanced in this book make it an important read for both activists and scholars willing to take an honest look at current economic policy.

But don't the rich deserve coddling by the government?
It is a myth that the rich, or market conservatives in the author's lexicon, unremittingly favor the operation of free markets with absolutely no government intervention. In fact, quite the opposite is the case. The author examines several key areas that show the lie of the idea that the rich favor free market outcomes.

1. Both the gov and professional organizations limit the numbers of doctors, lawyers, and other professionals including the entry of foreigners. At the same time, rampant and/or illegal immigration floods lower-wage employment markets and some technical jobs. On the one hand, wages are artificially high, but suppressed on the other to the detriment of the greater good.

2. The Federal Reserve uses monetary policy to increase unemployment and thereby lower wages of the lesser skilled, while limiting the inflation detested by bankers.

3. Corporations are entirely government creations, yet conservatives obscure that point which permits unchecked CEO pay. In actuality the government could mandate governance rules that would likely curtail CEO pay excesses.

4. Copyright and patent laws in essence grant monopolies to the detriment of the free flow of goods and services, which can in fact be harmful as in the case of restricting the availability of needed medicines.

5. Conservatives support legislation to restrict the ability of individuals to seek redress in courts for harm under the name of tort reform. In actuality law suits are a market form of regulation in lieu of government intervention. Obviously, protecting the rich trumps market principles.

6. Free market advocates supposedly advocate choice. So why is there such fear on the part of private enterprise of people choosing Social Security and/or signing up with Medicare for both health care and prescription drugs? The fact is that private business is highly inefficient compared to those programs and can't really compete. Therefore they look to government to limit choice.

7. True conservatives have always had low regard for gambling and certainly insist on its being heavily taxed. But when it comes to Wall St speculation, which is what day-trading is all about, they turn a blind eye to taxing and thus limiting the undisputed harmful impact of speculative transactions.

There are a few more examples by the author, none of which can be seriously disputed. The book has the tone that things could be different: just point out the hypocrisy of the rich and reform will follow. Really?

The author can hardly be unaware that we live in a class society in which the major institutions for inculcating the idea that markets are neutral and work for us all, namely educational and media institutions, are basically owned or financed by the rich. A few dissenting, fringe views are permitted here and there, but basically major dissent concerning the justness of our society is dealt with swiftly: removal or exclusion from school or job, or flagrant suppression.

The situation is more than just setting forth the facts before the public. Probably never before in our history has market ideology so permeated our society and given the rich so many effective tools to disseminate information favorable to their class interests. As far as any effective forces opposing this situation, can anyone honestly say that the Democrats at this point are willing or even want to reverse any of what the author points out any more than do the Republicans. The answer is no.

Towards achieving a measure of economic justice
"The Conservative Nanny State" by Dean Baker is a concise, 108-page book that seeks to change the popular debate about economy policy in the U.S. Mr. Baker's principle argument is that conservatives use market rhetoric to conceal the fact that the wealthy frequently depend upon government intervention to help protect and preserve class privilege. The author suggests that liberals should stop trapping themselves in the conservative play book and instead loudly promote alternative policies that use market mechanisms to distribute wealth in a more socially equitable manner. While not wholly convincing on all points, overall the book succeeds in demonstrating that progressives should not be intimidated into accepting conservative heterodoxy when a sane and just socio-economic future for all may be possible.

Mr. Baker makes three major proposals that effectively turns the table on conservative free-market ideologues. The first pertains to eliminating protections that are currently afforded to professionals; he believes that this would drive down medical and legal costs and, by extension, increase the purchasing power of the working class. The second is to democratize the Federal Reserve so that its bias towards creating excess unemployment in order to protect the profits of the banking industry is curbed. The third is to reduce health care costs by opening the industry to government competition, allowing individuals and businesses to purchase coverage through Medicare. In all three cases, the author suggests that free marketeers would have nothing to fear in these proposals if they truly believed their narratives about the supposed superiority of the markets and the private sector to government-run programs.

One only wishes that some of the author's arguments were laid out in greater length. While Mr. Baker occasionally cites the experiences of other nations as points of comparison -- such as when comparing health care costs in the U.S. with other countries -- he does not go into any detail about the trade-offs or unintended consequences that might emerge as a result of pursuing these policies. For example, one might imagine that many of the private insurance companies that currently provide health care coverage could fail if they had to suddenly compete with more efficient, government-managed entities; how might investors and policy holders be protected from harm? In my opinion, the author could have done well to prepare us to anticipate and address at least some of the most obvious objections and counterarguments to his proposals.

Still, Mr. Baker has performed a great service by showing how we might pursue policies that can begin to restore economic justice in the U.S. I recommend this thought-provoking book to everyone.