The Rise and Fall of an Economic Empire: With Lessons for Aspiring Economies

by C. Read

Overview

We have seen many empires come and go. From the Roman Empire to the British Empire, we are now witnessing the decline of the US as a superpower. How do economic innovations foster global economic dominance, and how does the natural evolution of an economic empire eventually bring about its demise and replacement by other economic superpowers?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781349324170
Publisher:	Palgrave Macmillan UK
Publication date:	01/01/2010
Edition description:	1st ed. 2010
Pages:	294
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.25(h) x (d)

About the Author

COLIN READ is a columnist and the author of a number of books for the academic and popular press on economic issues. He is a Professor of Economics and Finance at the State University of New York, USA. He has worked in Indonesia for the Harvard Institute for International Development, and at the Harvard-MIT Joint Center for Housing Studies. This is his fourth English language book. His previous titles include: Global Financial Meltdown – How We Can Avoid the Next Economic Crisis; The Fear Factor – What Happens When Fear Grips Wall Street and co-edited and co-authored The International Taxation Handbook.

Table of Contents

Introduction PART I: FROM 10,000 B.C. TO 1776 – THE DISCOVERY OF ECONOMIES OF SCALE An Economic Prehistory to Economic Emperors Barter, Economic Emperors, and the Decentralized Marketplace Specialization and Surpluses The First Industrial Revolution Colonialism Puts Sugar in Our Tea PART II: A SECOND INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION A Declaration of Economic Independence An Economic Bill of Rights Dominance Through Economics Private Solutions to Public Problems PART III: THE NEW MERCANTILISTS The Consumer as King A New Colonialism Dependency Economics PART IV: ASPIRING NATIONS Transfer of Technology Economic Imitation is the Sincerest Form of Flattery Heckscher, Ohlin, and Two Billion Hungry and Willing to Work for Change PART V: GROWING PAINS Complex Economic Systems Herding Cats and Chaos Theory Too Big to Fail Private Property Gives Way to the Public Good The Winner's Curse PART VI: A NEW ECONOMIC ORDER The Politics of a Consumption Economy Gradual economic Marginalization A New Economic Order Convergence PART VII: FROM WHERE HAVE WE COME, AND WHERE WILL WE GO? The Dance of Demographics Steady State and Sustainability Economic Darwinism and Dinosaurs Prescriptions for Relevance Conclusions