The recent economic crisis was a dramatic
reminder that capitalism can both produce and destroy.
It's a system that by its very nature encourages
predators and creators, locusts and bees. But, as Geoff
Mulgan argues in this compelling, imaginative, and
important book, the economic crisis also presents a
historic opportunity to choose a radically different
future for capitalism, one that maximizes its creative
power and minimizes its destructive force. In an
engaging and wide-ranging argument, Mulgan digs into the
history of capitalism across the world to show its
animating ideas, its utopias and dystopias, as well as
its contradictions and possibilities. Drawing on a
subtle framework for understanding systemic change, he
shows how new political settlements reshaped capitalism
in the past and are likely to do so in the future. By
reconnecting value to real-life ideas of growth, he
argues, efficiency and entrepreneurship can be harnessed
to promote better lives and relationships rather than
just a growth in the quantity of material consumption.
Healthcare, education, and green industries are already
becoming dominant sectors in the wealthier economies,
and the fields of social innovation, enterprise, and
investment are rapidly moving into the mainstream--all
indicators of how capital could be made more of a
servant and less a master. This is a book for anyone
who wonders where capitalism might be heading next--and
who wants to help make sure that its future avoids the
mistakes of the past.
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