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SPIN-FREE ECONOMICS | 
 enlarge | Author: Nariman Behravesh
Publisher: McGraw-Hill
Category: Book
List Price: $27.95
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Rating:  6 reviews
Sales Rank: 2774
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 1
Pages: 384
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.4
Dimensions (in): 9.1 x 6.3 x 1.4
ISBN: 007154903X
Dewey Decimal Number: 339
EAN: 9780071549035
ASIN: 007154903X
Publication Date: October 21, 2008
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Product Description
With technology and globalization advancing at breakneck speed, the world economy becomes more complex by the day. Activists, politicians, and media enablers�conservative and liberal, left and right, informed and just plain wrong�consistently seize this opportunity to present woefully simplistic explanations. and hype the latest myths regarding issues affecting the economy. Their purpose is not to educate but to advocate and, in many cases involving the media, manufacture outrage to drive ratings higher. So, where can you find the truth about today�s economy and how it affects you? Turn off the TV, put down the magazine, log off the Internet�and read this book. . . Spin-Free Economics places the current economic debates where they belong: in the middle of the road. With no political ax to grind, Nariman Behravesh takes a centrist approach to explain how today�s economic issues affect individuals and businesses. Along the way, he debunks myths regarding the effects of immigration, unemployment, regulation, productivity, education, health care, and other headline issues. Spin-Free Economics answers today�s most pressing questions, including . . - Will more regulation prevent financial crises?.
- Are outsourcing and foreign ownership good or bad for Americans?.
- Should we fear or embrace Asia�s emerging economic powers?.
- Is aid or trade the solution to global poverty?
. . The vast majority of economists, Behravesh points out, are independent analysts who are in agreement on many of today�s issues. Unfortunately, the subject has been taken over by opportunists, whose answers to the questions above invariably fall along partisan lines. Spin-Free Economics is a breath of fresh air for those seeking an alternative to the chatter of ideologues and cynics. Rejecting the manipulative approach of �sound-bite economics,� Nariman Behravesh uses facts and insight tempered by clearheaded reason to present the most accurate assessment of the subject to date. .
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| Customer Reviews: Read 1 more reviews...
 The last Chapter is Worth the Price opf the book! December 22, 2008
Charles W. Clowdis (Eagle's Point,)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
My captioned title of this review says it all: With the confusion coming out of Washington and the idiocy in today's greed-driven markets, the Author presents a refreshing and understandable view of what happened and why! If onlyhe could prevent a repeat!
center-right spin December 4, 2008
Milad Emam (Greenville, SC)
6 out of 9 found this review helpful
I'm disappointed to write a negative review of this book. If the book was advertised differently, I would probably review it very positively actually.
First, let's get something out of the way: I have a very pro-market orientation and am very conservative on most economic issues. And I agreed with 90% of what was presented in this book--a little too moderate, but fairly in line with my worldview. Greg Mankiw and Tyler Cowen have been the book's most enthusiastic reviewers and they are, guess what, fairly conservative economists.
Now if the book was advertised as a center-right manifesto that wouldn't bother me. The arguments here, in the vast majority of cases, should be familiar to anyone whose taken an introductory economics class or two. That being said: the book comprehensively and clearly explains the basic foundations of a Greg Mankiw/Tyler Cowen/center-right Keynesian view of the world.
Unfortunately, the book presents itself as a presentation of the consensus in economics. The first few chapters of the book actually try to demonstrate that the economics profession has a monolithic view of the world which will be presented in the remainder of the book. The remainder of the book seems to completely forget the whole "spin free consensus" aspect of its thesis. The final 200+ pages of the book don't make a single reference to "spin free economics" or tables showing what other economists besides the author actually believe.
The reason the author doesn't give us such tables is probably because the author knows that many economists wouldn't agree him. That being said, the vast majority of economists are more comfortable with market outcomes than the general population. Whereas most people would blame "corporate greed" for high gas prices during a hurricane, economists would point to a supply curve shift. Whereas most people rail against "Benedict Arnold" outsourcing corporations, economists overwhelmingly defend the gains from trade, international and domestic. For these reasons, the vast majority of economists vigorously oppose price/wage controls and protectionism (whether they come in the form of export subsidies, import quotas, farm subsidies, tariffs, "Benedict Arnold" tax penalties, or international labor and environmental standards).
However, despite that free market/anti-price control consensus, economists have a number of differences. For one thing, they greatly disagree over the extent to which taxes on labor and capital distort behavior. This is why there's vigorous debate in the economics community over whether marginal tax rates on capital/labor the wealthy should be increased/reduced. The author presents his argument as if there's an anti-tax consensus (at least for labor and capital taxation). However, that's far from the case.
Moreover, he presents the health care debate as a non-debate. His policy proposals for health savings accounts, Medicare reform, allowing interstate purchases of health insurance, the end of the tax preference for employer based health care are presented as consensus. There's vigorous debate over each of those policy prescriptions (except for maybe the tax deductibility for employer health insurance--even Obama's advisers publicly called for an end to the regressive subsidy; but that didn't stop Obama from shameless attacking McCain as a "tax hiker" on the issue.) Many economists on the left would attack the author's center-right health care proposals on the grounds that adverse selection in private markets would leave a very sick pool that's too expensive to insure. It pains me to say it because I think the author's proposals (for the most part) are the right ones, but there is a debate over his health care panacea rather than a consensus over it.
 Heavily biased and poorely researched December 3, 2008
Gerd A. Brendel (Coastal CA)
1 out of 6 found this review helpful
This book is NOT spin free; it has a quite obvious classic liberal/conservative bias. That would be fine, was it not advertised as "spin-free" and were the author willing to admit that he is not representing a majority of economists on all issues. For instance he argues that taxing consumption is better than income, yet most economists agree that a progressive personal income tax is the best possible system (See Alan S. Blinder & James Baumol's economics textbook).
Furthermore, many of his claims are lightly supported. In one chapter he backs up the grandiose assertion that smaller government is conducive to growth and higher Human Development Index (HDI) scores by showing a casual correlation between lower taxes (as a percentage of GDP), and higher GDP growth, lower unemployment and higher HDI scores. He completely ignores that the social democratic welfare states of Scandinavia have unemployment as low, and growth as high, as the US. It is only the corporatists welfare states of continental Europe (whose welfare states constitute a smaller share of GDP than in the Nordic countries) that have higher unemployment and less growth than we do. The same goes for HDI scores, all Scandinavian countries outrank us; only the corporatist continental European countries do not. Not to mention that he just assumes this correlation to be a causation - something anyone with an interest in a scientific fields knows to be a grave mistake.
Like a pundit, but unlike a scholar, he ignores arguments, or mere pieces of evidence, that contradict his claims. For instance, he claims that publically produced education should be replaced by vouchers, and (intentionally?) neglects to mention the opposing argument, that this experiment was tried and failed. In Texas, Edison education inc. took over public schools, educating the same students the government did before. The company was unable to improve preforamcne and only turned a modest profit after 8 in business, finally going bancrupt. But he doesn't pay attention to these arguments.
There are, of course, things in the book most economists would agree with (e.g. that globalization isn't to blame for stagnant wages), but they're thrown in with claims far to the right of most economists. This book is definitely a center-right economic manifesto.
If you want a balanced, spin-free approach to economics, please go for the more scholarly, but far more objective "Economics of the Welfare State" by Nicholas Barr (Oxford University Press, 2004). Please do not mistake punditry for scholarship - even it comes from a professor.
Not bad but not spin free November 28, 2008
J. Carlson (Boston MA)
8 out of 18 found this review helpful
There are some nice write ups here but this is not spin free. This is mostly free market economics that is fairly blind to most of its shortcomings. If you like free market capitalism then you'll like this book. If you believe in a mixed economy, with some progressive leanings, then you won't.
spin free economics November 23, 2008
SPIN FREE READER
9 out of 62 found this review helpful
SPIN-FREE ECONOMICSTHIS BOOK ONLY SPINS WITH BUSH AND THE NO RULES CAPITALIST'S. IT BLAMES THE CALIFORNIA ELECTRICITY CRISIS ON THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA AND SAYS ENRON HAD VERY LITTLE TO DO WITH IT. IT USES PENNSYLVANIA AS A ELECTRICITY DEREGULATION SUCCESS. I LIVE IN PENNSYLVANIA AND ELECTRICITY DEREGULATION IS A FAILURE. THIS BOOK IS ABOUT PROTECTING THE RICH. IT SAYS TRUST THEM AND NO REGULATION IS NEEDED
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