What form 21st Century Capitalism..??
By Robert L. Heilbroner (W.W. Norton & Co., 1994)
“It is my hope that some grasp of what the twenty-first century holds in store for capitalism may enable us to avoid at least some of the pain we might otherwise have to endure,” writes the eminent economist Robert Heilbroner in this important book on the world’s economic future.
Like some of the other tags on my ‘Bestseller’s List,’ this book goes back to the pre-millennia period. However in the context of the current global economic crisis, Heilbroner proves to be prescient in some of the questions he tackles and the assertions he makes in this book. In addressing these questions, Robert Heilbroner takes us to the liberal foundations of capitalism (e.g., Locke, Adam Smith, Sir Robert Keynes, et al). He views capitalism from a wide perspective as both an economic as well as a political system, showing the integral connection between the two sometimes missed by critics of capitalism. He also addresses the over-arching challenges ahead as we re-think the Global economic architecture, and whether America will lead, lag, or even cooperate.
Communism imploded on itself most notably in the former USSR. But almost everywhere else communism once existed – places as divergent as China and Cuba, among others – have turned, in some form, to a Market-driven economy. In other words: capitalism. Despite the triumph of free-market systems the world over; and even though we like to think our form of capitalism – the Anglo-American, or Laissez Faire, model – as the only model of capitalism and otherwise synonymous with baseball & apple pie. The reality is. . . it isn’t. There are different varieties of capitalism around the world: some work better than others. And this is the central point: how we play with other children in the sandbox matters if we’re going to play in the Global arena, as last week’s London G-20 summit laid bare. That’s why the issue of what form 21st-century capitalism will take is so central to the issue of U.S. foreign policy.
No single form of capitalism has emerged worldwide as the global standard for a free-market economic system. Which of the varieties of capitalism will be sufficiently fair, open (transparent), efficient and resilient enough to drive the Global economy in the 21st century..?? What is the appropriate role and behavior of responsible corporations in the Global community..?? Will the responsible multi or transitional corporations play fairly with labor and capital under global regulatory regimes; or will they seek tax and regulatory arbitrage loopholes – which will almost certainly be the case under the Basel II regulatory scheme – at the expense of human capital..?? What role will the government play, and what protections to its citizens will it guarantee in addressing the failures and inefficiencies of our free-market system..?? One shortcoming about this book, in my opinion, was that it didn’t adequately address — or perhaps just didn’t go far enough to explore the various forms and iterations that 21st century capitalism might take. That is a question, however, already joined.
See NYTs Book Review, Sept 1993
