Bad Samaritans The Myth of Free Trade and the Secret History of Capitalism

by Chang, Ha-Joon

• ISBN13: 9781596915985
• ISBN10: 1596915986
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-12-23
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Press

Summary

"Lucid, deeply informed, and enlivened with striking illustrations, this penetrating study could be entitled 'Economics in the Real World.' Chang reveals the yawning gap between standard doctrines concerning economic development and what really has taken place from the origins of the industrial revolution until today. His incisive analysis shows how, and why, prescriptions based on reigning doctrines have caused severe harm, particularly to the most vulnerable and defenseless, and are likely to continue to do so."Noam ChomskyUsing irreverent wit, an engagingly personal style, and a battery of examples, Chang blasts holes in the "World I s Flat" orthodoxy of T homas Friedman and other liberal economists who argue that only unfettered capitalism and wide-open international trade can lift struggling nations out of poverty. On the contrary, Chang shows, today's economic superpowersfrom the U .S. to Britain to his native Koreaall attained prosperity by shameless protectionism and government intervention in industry. We have conveniently forgotten this fact, telling ourselves a fairy tale about the magic of free trade andvia our proxies such as the World Bank, I nternational Monetary Fund, and World T rade Organizationramming policies that suit ourselves down the throat of the developing world.

Author Biography

Ha-Joon Chang has taught at the Faculty of Economics, University of Cambridge, since 1990. He has consulted for numerous international organizations, including the U nited Nations, the World Bank, and the Asian Development Bank. He has published eleven books, including Kicking Away the Ladder, winner of the 2003 Myrdal Prize. In 2005, Chang was awarded the Leontief Prize for Advancing the Frontiers of Economic Thought.