247: The Conscience of a Liberal by Paul Krugman

The Conscience of a Liberal

There was a time when the United States was an economic powerhouse. There was a time when the middle-class was expanding and families could buy a house, save for college, and have enough money to retire on. Building a strong middle-class didn't happen by accident. Krugman shows how government policies helped shape the economic environment so that the middle-class could flourish. He then shows how those policies were dismantled piece by piece, and argues that they should be reinstated. A clear, well-written, well-argued economic history.

Why this is progressive/liberal: Krugman is one of the most visible liberals in the United States. His credibility received an enormous boost in 2008 when he was awarded the Nobel Prize in economics. However, he's been arguing for economic justice and liberal economic policies in pages of the New York Times for over a decade now. If you ever wanted to understand why a national health care policy is a good idea, read this book.

Buy the Kindle version: The Conscience of a Liberal

283: Socialism: An Economic and Sociological Analysis by Ludwig von Mises

(During the month of September I'm recommending conservative titles with which every well-read progressive should be familiar.)

Socialism: An Economic and Sociological Analysis

Liberals and conservatives often have profoundly different understandings of the same concepts. However, each seems oddly unaware of those differences. If you want to understand why conservatives and liberals are down on socialism, and why they invoke the concept so much, read this book.

Why this is libertarian/conservative: Possibly the most influential economist and thinker for the free-market Libertarians. You can't really understand Libertarian economic arguments without understanding Mises.

Buy the Kindle version: Socialism: An Economic and Sociological Analysis



You can find a free version here.

308: The General Theory of Employment Interest and Money by John Maynard Keynes

The General Theory of Employment Interest and Money by John Maynard Keynes

Wikipedia offers a nice summation of Keynes's General Theory --

"The central argument of The General Theory is that the level of employment is determined, not by the price of labour as in neoclassical economics, but by the spending of money (aggregate demand). He argues that it is wrong to assume that competitive markets will, in the long run, deliver full employment or that full employment is the natural, self-righting, equilibrium state of a monetary economy. On the contrary, under-employment and under-investment are likely to be the natural state unless active measures are taken. One implication of The General Theory is that a lack of competition is not the fundamental problem and measures to reduce unemployment by cutting wages or benefits are not only hard-hearted but ultimately futile."

Check out this introduction by Paul Krugman.

Why this is liberal/progressive: Regular readers of this blog may have noticed that I'm a big proponent of reading the original. Regardless of how difficult the reading may seem it's better to read Marx than to read about Marx, better to read Keynes than to read about Keynes, and better to read the works of your ideological opponents than to read about those works. Even if you don't understand everything about a work (and there's lots I don't understand about Keynes magnum opus) you still come out with a better understanding of what all the fuss is about. Don't be afraid to read challenging works. It's more rewarding than you might think.

332: Capital by Karl Marx

Capital: Volume 1: A Critique of Political Econom, Vol. 1
Capital : A Critique of Political Economy, Vol. 2
Capital: A Critique of Political Economy, Vol. 3

They're going to call you a communist so you might as well know what they're accusing you of. This is a classic economic text and should be read by anybody with an interest in politics or economics. You might want to read your Adam Smith and David Ricardo before you start reading Karl Marx, but it's not an absolute necessity.

Don't be put off by the size of this work. Yes, it's huge, but you'll be surprised how much you can get out of even a casual reading.

Why this is progressive/liberal: Almost everything you know about Marx is wrong. Once you understand Marx's critique of the commodification of life you may find yourself more sympathetic to his arguments. Even if you ultimately don't agree with Marx, and decide life is better as an unrepentant capitalist, you should at least know the argument.

Buy the Kindle version: Capital: A Critique of Political Economy: 1
Capital: 2
Capital: 3

336: Winner-Take-All Politics by Jacob S. Hacker & Paul Pierson

Winner-Take-All Politics: How Washington Made the Rich Richer--and Turned Its Back on the Middle Class by Jacob S. Hacker & Paul Pierson

Maintaining a strong middle-class is an important part of the progressive philosophy. Reading this book will help explain why government regulations and keeping corporations restrained by government are essential to keeping a strong middle-class.

From the publisher's description:

We all know that the very rich have gotten a lot richer these past few decades while most Americans haven't. In fact, the exorbitantly paid have continued to thrive during the current economic crisis, even as the rest of Americans have continued to fall behind. Why do the "haveit- alls" have so much more? And how have they managed to restructure the economy to reap the lion's share of the gains and shift the costs of their new economic playground downward, tearing new holes in the safety net and saddling all of us with increased debt and risk? Lots of so-called experts claim to have solved this great mystery, but no one has really gotten to the bottom of it—until now.

Why this is progressive/liberal: Hacker and Pierson clearly lay out why the problems facing progressives can't be solved simply by choosing one party over another. Legislation is increasingly rigged to favor the ultra-rich and the corporations that help them increase their wealth. Over the last 30 years deregulation hasn't helped create a level playing field, instead it's given the advantage to corporations and the super-wealthy.

Buy the Kindle version of this book: Winner-Take-All Politics

BUY THIS BOOK