Ben Waber reviewed Hijacked by Elizabeth Anderson
A Great History of Economic Philosophy with Uneven History and Economics
4 stars
This is an extremely thought-provoking examination of the historical arc of economic thought in the Western world, with uneven and citation free economic history as a distraction from that main pillar. Anderson shows the evolution of the "work ethic" concept in the West, demonstrating the complexity and inconsistency of the most prominent thinkers in this space and how these writings were cherry picked and warped by political actors in recent centuries to justify their wealth and power. Some of the history here is inaccurate, however (e.g. stakeholder capitalism appeared after shareholder capitalism), and nearly all of the economic analysis is unsourced vibes. Still, the philosophical analysis and history is worth the price of admission. Highly recommend
This is an extremely thought-provoking examination of the historical arc of economic thought in the Western world, with uneven and citation free economic history as a distraction from that main pillar. Anderson shows the evolution of the "work ethic" concept in the West, demonstrating the complexity and inconsistency of the most prominent thinkers in this space and how these writings were cherry picked and warped by political actors in recent centuries to justify their wealth and power. Some of the history here is inaccurate, however (e.g. stakeholder capitalism appeared after shareholder capitalism), and nearly all of the economic analysis is unsourced vibes. Still, the philosophical analysis and history is worth the price of admission. Highly recommend