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Summary: The Real Advantage of Capitalism and Democracy
Review: Why are all the rich countries in the world capitalist democracies? Isn't a dictator the best way to turn around a country in economic trouble? Why did Germany and Japan grow so fast after the end of World War II? Why have Russia and the Warsaw Pact countries done so poorly after the end of the Cold War? And what should the rich, successful, First-World countries do to enjoy continuing prosperity?Olson's only book written for the general public, "Power and Prosperity" addresses all these questions and more, in well-written prose, fairly free of economic jargon, and filled with easy-to-follow examples. Not too long, at less than 200 pages excluding the notes, any educated layman should have no trouble getting through the whole thing. The book primarily focuses on how governments use and abuse power and the impact that has on economics. In particular, Olson hypothesizes a "second invisible hand" as a partner to Adam Smith's famous invisible hand of the marketplace. Olson's invisible hand represents the unintentional good that even the most selfish regimes accidentally do for the public in the process of maximizing the good of the rulers. (E.g. the King fights bandits because they reduce the take from his taxes, but he only does this up to his own point of diminishing returns.) Apparently original with Olson, this idea earned him a prominent place in academia, and it's impressive to see how far he can take it. So if you have any interest in politics and economics, by all means read this book. Even if you don't agree with it all, the ideas in it are priceless. Skip Charles Cadwell's foreword though; it's dry and dull and doesn't add much to the book.
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