Synopses & Reviews
In this incisive and controversial exposé of the hidden effects of today's free-market capitalism, Edward Luttwak describes in powerful detail how it vastly differs from the controlled capitalism that flourished from 1945 to the 1980s. Turbo-capitalism is private enterprise liberated from government regulation, unchecked by effective trade unions, unfettered by concerns for employees or communities, and unhindered by taxation or investment restrictions. The winners in this free-for-all are getting much richer, while the losers are becoming poorer and are forced by downsizing to take the traditional jobs of the underclass. Led by the United States, closely followed by Britain, turbo-capitalism is spreading fast throughout Europe, Asia, and the rest of the world without the two great forces that check its enormous power in the United States: a powerful Legal system and the stringent rules of American calvinism. Luttwak exposes the major societal upheavals and inequities turbo-capitalism causes and the broad dissatisfaction and anxiety that may result.
Synopsis
-Turbo Capitalism' is Luttwak's name for private enterprise gone amok. In contrast to the -Controlled Capitalism' of the Cold War era, turbo capitalism is unregulated by governments, unchecked by effective trade unions, unfettered by concerns for employees or communities, unrestrained by customs barriers or investment restrictions, and unhindered by taxation. The winners in this free-for-all (i.e., the architects of techno-organizational change) are getting richer, much richer, while the losers (i.e., everyone else) are becoming poorer and are forced by down-sizing to take the traditional jobs of the underclass-more and more of whom are ending up in prison. A powerful indictment of the excesses of the -free' market, turbo capitalism is a must read for anyone concerned with the inequities that are endangering the stability and welfare of our soceity.
Description
Includes bibliographical references and index.
About the Author
Edward Luttwak is a strategist, consultant, and writer. He is the author of ten books, including Coup d'État, The Grand Strategy of the Roman Empire, The Pentagon and the Art of War, Strategy: The Logic of War and Peace, and The Endangered American Dream. He is Senior Fellow at the Center for Strategic and international Studies in Washington, D.C