Hoodwinked
An Economic Hit Man Reveals Why the World Financial Markets Imploded--and What We Need to Do to Remake Them
By: John Perkins
Published: November 2009
Format: Hardcover, 256pp
ISBN-13: 9780307589927
ISBN-10: 0307589927
Publisher: Broadway Books
"The collapse we are suffering today is neither a fluke nor short-termed. It is the result of policies and attitudes that began before I became an EHM nearly four decades ago", writes self confessed economic hit man John Perkins in his insightful and visionary book Hoodwinked: An Economic Hit Man Reveals Why the World Financial Markets Imploded--and What We Need to Do to Remake Them. The author takes the reader inside the global economy, and describes unflinchingly how the tactics he employed as an economic hit man (EHM) were turned from the Third World on to the developed world in general, and the United States in particular. He also shares his important ideas on how to create an economy that works for everyone, and not just the economic, political, and corporate elites.
John Perkins points to unsustainable public and private debt as the root cause of poverty and income disparity in developing countries. He also points out that crushing individual debt loads in the Third World has led to exploitation and even to slavery. At the same time, the same systemic problem of debt is undermining democracy and economic stability in developed countries. The author provides the example, of the imploded economy of Iceland, as a warning to people of the dangers of unregulated capitalism and massive unrepayable debt. In the United States, John Perkins writes that the personal and public levels of debt are unsustainable. He envisions a severe crash of the economy, along with major dislocation of people, as a direct result of the policies promoted over the past decades. He believes that democracy itself will be eroded severely, as the gap between rich and poor widens even more.
John Perkins (photo left) does not call for the abolition of capitalism. He recognizes the power of capitalism to build economies, increase individual freedom, and strengthen democracy. He does believe, however, that capitalism's very adaptability has created a mutant form of capitalism that considers only immediate profits as the goal of corporations. John Perkins discusses how this single minded pursuit of short profitability, at the expense of the long term health of the organization and of the economy as a whole, is self destructive. In place of this unsustainable form of capitalism, based on the work of Milton Friedman, John Perkins suggests a new and richer form of capitalism. The author describes the Triple Bottom Line concept, where along with the financial bottom line, social responsibility and the environment also are crucial to the strength of the business and the economy.
For me, the power of the book is how John Perkins forges the link between the devastated economies of the Third World, with the economic problems facing governments and people in developed countries. The author describes how the same policies that raised debt levels in developing countries, that benefit only a few corporations and local elites, have been applied in First World countries as well. The author understands the political and economic power wielded by modern multinational corporations and by Wall Street. To John Perkins, these companies have loyalty to no country, but only to their financial bottom line. As seen by the near collapse of many of these corporations, and by skyrocketing unemployment and debt levels of every day people, the current model of capitalism has failed. In its place, John Perkins shares his vision of a sustainable, multiple goal capitalism that can work for everyone.
I highly recommend the important and hopeful book Hoodwinked: An Economic Hit Man Reveals Why the World Financial Markets Imploded--and What We Need to Do to Remake Them by John Perkins, to anyone seeking to rebuild the capitalist system and strengthen democracy for the benefit of everyone. The author demonstrates that there is a way out of the current financial crisis through creating a new economy based on good stewardship of the environment and the economy, accepting responsibility as consumers for the choices made, implementing new and workable rules for both business and government, and honoring your own individual passions to build and create great things.
Read the societal transforming book Hoodwinked: An Economic Hit Man Reveals Why the World Financial Markets Imploded--and What We Need to Do to Remake Them by John Perkins, and become part of the solution to the problems facing society. The author describes ways that everyone can cooperate and work together to build a more equitable, democratic and sustainable society.
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