There’s more to economics than just simple supply and demand
This article is a book review of the late Mancur Olson’s outstanding work. His book is called, “Power and Prosperity” and it is available from fine book sellers like Amazon.com and other companies. The book is approximately 200 pages long. But I recommend reading the notes as well. Especially focus your eyes when you get to the notes on chapter four.
Power and Prosperity was a re-read for me. I originally read most of the book back when I was at San Francisco State University for an International Political Economy (IPE) class. Although I understood some of the key points for the first few chapters at the time…I didn’t get a chance to really absorb the last 80 pages of the book.
The end of the book discusses why prosperity is more likely to occur in a nation-state that protects individual property rights. It also brings together how there are several factors which can hinder a market economy from becoming a prosperous market economy.
This is not just Adam Smith regurgitation that we’re so used to reading in the economic analysis world. Mancur Olson went beyond thought experiment in his research and systematically breaks down the motivation behind economic systems thoroughly and thoughtfully. It is easy to follow along with his logic and even though there are some charts near the last quarter of the book, they don’t require a statistical mind to understand. You can simply skim the graphs and charts and still have a great experience reading the book.
Anyone who is a history buff of 20th century and wants to learn more about post WWII economics will love this book. It dives head first into the economic motivators for authoritarian corruption and diligence. Also, the way that Mancur Olson pulls apart the temptation on the part of despots to manipulate economies is absolutely entertaining. If you’re playing a simulation game that uses taxes you might learn a thing or two from Olson’s take on nationalization and taxation.
Overall, I definitely enjoyed, “Power and Prosperity” and although reading non-fiction is oftentimes draining for us in an “immediate access” world where we can just search for answers…sometimes taking the long route and enjoying a good book can allow the mind to easily generate conclusions of one’s own!
-Tyler