Crunch: Why Do I Feel So Squeezed? (And Other Unsolved Economic Mysteries)
Is Social Security really going bust, and what does that mean to me? If I hire an immigrant, am I hurting a native-born worker? Why does the stock market go up when employment declines? Should I give that homeless guy a buck? What's a "living wage"? How much can presidents really affect economic outcomes? What does the Federal Reserve Bank really do? Why do I still feel so squeezed?\ \ If you'd like some straight answers, premier economist Jared Bernstein is here to help. In Crunch he...
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According to author Bernstein, economic experts all too often manipulate and distort the science at the heart of important issues. In "Crunch," he offers entertaining, informative, and direct answers to a set of compelling economic questions posed by ordinary people. Publishers Weekly Starred Review.According to economist and author Bernstein (All Together Now: Common Sense for a Fair Economy), the endless parade of economic legislation and corporate criminality that keep the rich getting richer are all a direct product of economic knowledge being monopolized and manipulated by the rich, keeping the middle and lower classes woefully unprepared to understand, much less stand up to, the economic forces aligned against them. Fortunately, this accessible overview should clear things up for even the most befogged reader. Answering questions from an average American perspective-"the ones in the vise grip of the crunch"-Bernstein explains murky topics like health care reform, minimum wage laws, the Federal Reserve, immigration and budget deficits with a clear, friendly manner that sidesteps any scholarly (and/or sinister) obfuscation. His progressive "we're all in this togther" philosophy, though seemingly familiar, is backed up with enough data and savvy to illuminate what's wrong in the dominant "self-reliance" narrative of American political discourse. This down-to-earth, populist guide to the pressing economic issues of our time is a clarifying, useful and empowering resource.Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Preface ivIntroduction: So What Is Economics, Anyway? 1The Big SqueezeWhy Do I Feel So Squeezed? 6Econ-Noir 12All Is Not As It Appears: Measuring Economic Outcomes 16Whatever Happened to the Cleavers? 20The Health Care Squeeze 25The Medical Industrial Complex 29Health Care Reform 34Poverty Amid Plenty: The Whats 38Poverty Amid Plenty: The Whys 41Brother, Can You Spare a Dime? 44The ABCs of Worker Pay 47What's So Bad About Inequality? 50All Education, All the Time 54Don't Know Much About GDPGross Domestic Product 61Unemployment: Wall Street vs. Main Street 64Underemployment 68Making Better Doughnuts 71Inflation 74What's a Recession? 77Blowing Bubbles 83The Night of the Living Wage (and Other Scary Stories) 87Your Textbook Got It Wrong 91Political Economy 202Social Insecurity 99Economists in Chief 104The Fed 109The Budget Deficit (Part 1) 114The Budget Deficit (Part 2, in Which a Nobelist Agrees with Me 118The Economy and the Military 121Guns or Butter 124A New WPA? 128"Please Remain on the Line" 130The World Ain't Flat As All ThatWhat's Right and Wrong About Globalization? 135Outsourcing 141The Conscience of a Shopper 144World Trade 148Globalization and Greed 151How the Capitalists Killed Capitalism 152Undocumented Workers 154The Not-So-Great Immigration Debate 156What's So Bad About a Labor Shortage? 159The Mighty Dollar 161Can Economists Save the Planet? 164The Reconnection AgendaEasing the Squeeze 169Health Care 173Immigration 178Education 180Globalization 183What's Left? 186Conclusion: The Lesson of the Rink 191Notes 199Acknowledgments 219Index 221About the Author 226
\ Publishers WeeklyStarred Review.\ According to economist and author Bernstein (All Together Now: Common Sense for a Fair Economy), the endless parade of economic legislation and corporate criminality that keep the rich getting richer are all a direct product of economic knowledge being monopolized and manipulated by the rich, keeping the middle and lower classes woefully unprepared to understand, much less stand up to, the economic forces aligned against them. Fortunately, this accessible overview should clear things up for even the most befogged reader. Answering questions from an average American perspective-"the ones in the vise grip of the crunch"-Bernstein explains murky topics like health care reform, minimum wage laws, the Federal Reserve, immigration and budget deficits with a clear, friendly manner that sidesteps any scholarly (and/or sinister) obfuscation. His progressive "we're all in this togther" philosophy, though seemingly familiar, is backed up with enough data and savvy to illuminate what's wrong in the dominant "self-reliance" narrative of American political discourse. This down-to-earth, populist guide to the pressing economic issues of our time is a clarifying, useful and empowering resource.\ Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.\ \ \ \ \ \ Library JournalEconomist Bernstein (All Together Now: Common Sense for a Fair Economy) has done the American electorate an enormous service by writing this witty and perceptive primer on economics-and just in time for the presidential election. He covers virtually all aspects of economic activity and candidly notes and responds to the basic concerns of ordinary Americans. Espousing his concept of "progressive economics," Bernstein largely succeeds in cutting through the fog of typical economic mumbo jumbo with refreshingly straight talk, making indicators like "gross domestic product" (GDP) easy to understand. Wondering if those tax cuts for the rich really are necessary? Bernstein convincingly argues they're not. Is the country in a recession? He shares some invaluable insight showing that, if we aren't already in a recession, we might soon be facing one. Unfortunately, his discussion predates the economic stimulus package recently passed by Congress. The bottom line for Bernstein is that economics should provide solutions, not create problems, for consumers. To that end, his book is a clarion call to remind us that the political slogan "It's the economy, stupid!" is just as timely as ever. Highly recommended for all business/economics collections.\ —Richard Drezen\ \ \
