Reforming Capitalism for the Common GoodBy: Charles Whalen Book Description: This book of selected essays by Charles Whalen—a longtime LERA member and former editor of Perspectives on Work—presents constructive analyses of vital economic problems confronting the United States since the 1970s, giving special attention to challenges facing working families. The analyses, produced over three decades, address the causes and consequences of macroeconomic instability, job offshoring, community economic dislocation, financialization, and income inequality. They also explore the various dimensions of worker insecurity and underscore the dynamics of an ever-changing economy. The result is a compelling case for reforming capitalism by addressing workers’ interests as an integral part of the common good, and for reconstructing economics in the direction of post-Keynesian institutionalism. Whalen’s reformist approach builds not only on the institutional economics of John R. Commons, but also on the post-Keynesianism of Hyman Minsky, who stressed that society should be democratic and humane. To that end, the book gives attention to policy-making processes as well as policy details. |