Review of Hitler’s Economy: Nazi Work Creation Programs, 1933-1936 (Hardcover)

According to conventional wisdom, as a result of military expenditures,Hitler's economy went from 34%unemployment when he entered office in early1933 to virtually full employmenr by 1936. Professor Silvermanargues, asa result of impressive research in Nazi archives, that it was work creationprograms that account for this "miracle" and it was the 4-yearPlan announced in 1936 that represented an emphasis on autarky and arms anda seller's market.It is surprising how conservative Hitler's initial planswere since they relied on the expertise of Hjalmar Schacht, who wasreplaced by Walther Funk after the announcement of the 4-year plan.byGoebbles. The early years represented continuity with the Bruning policy,particularly the Todt plans for motorization and the famous autobahns, oneof the positive legacies of Hitler. Silverman's account of sharp regionaldifferences is also interesting with East Prussia getting back to fullemployment at an early dater and Aachen lagging. It is natural to compareHitler's achievements with FDR's New Deal which initially had to deal withonly 25% unemployment. Generally speaking, Hitler was the more successful,particularly in view of FDR's attempt to balance the budget in 1937 therebyproducing the Roosevelt recession and the rise of unemployment from 14% to19%. While Currie and Eccles managed to achieve the Keynesian euthanasia ofthe rentier in the late thirties, Roosevelt was overall a timid Keynesianuntil Wprld War II and was plagued by double-digit unemployment until1941.FDR devalued the dollar in 1933 by about the same percentage asBritain in 1931 but Hitler and Schachr ruled out currency devaluationbecause of fears that it would be inflationary. Policies under Bruning hadbeen brutally deflationary with workers taking a 10% wage cut, but thr 1923hyperinflation (and Schacht's role in stopping it) was still fresh inpolicy-makers' minds. Workers in voluntary labor camps which absorbedunemployment were paid very low wages and lost their unemploymentcompensation which helped maintain price stability. Strangely Silvermanhardly mention the USSR as a source of ideas in the Hitler years lthoughthe 4-year Planitself was inspiredby the Soviet FYP, the second ofwhich was being completedby the time Goebbels began administering theGerman equivalent. Earlier (February,1935) Soviet-type "workbooks" necessary for employment were introduced. Ther Russian economytoday would seem to have more to learn from the German experience after 7years of Yeltsin's brutally deflationary monetarist policy than from FRD'sfiscalbungling. The non-payment of wage and pension arrears is a historiclow in the application of the neo-classical notion that attrbutesrecessionary unemployment to exhorbitant wages.



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Review of The Conservative Ascendancy: How the GOP Right Made Political History (Hardcover)

Whether you are Liberal or Conservative, Democrat or Republican, if you are a political junkie, you will like Donald T. Critchlow's "The Conservative Ascendancy: How the GOP Right Made Political History."This is a history of political maneuvering of individuals interested in countering Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal and confronting Communism.

Critchlow documents how these ideas drew various interest groups, many of whom were not Republicans, together. It follows the nomination of Barry Goldwater for President of the United States, support of Richard Nixon, the first big Conservative triumph of Ronald Reagan and on to the election of George W. Bush.

This history covers the losses as well as triumphs of American Conservatives. It covers issues that brought them to power, that cost them elections and issues that divided the Republican Party itself. I think that anyone interested in politics will not be able to put this book down.




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Review of City Economics (Hardcover)

This is an interesting book that covers all the main topics of an Urban Economics course.The writing style is unique and really provides a great compliment to more traditional style Urban textbooks.I recommend the book to anyone trying to learn more about this field.



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Review of Reclaiming Public Housing: A Half Century of Struggle in Three Public Neighborhoods (Hardcover)

As an urban planning student (B.A. 2003), who is especially interested in public housing, I have read dozens of books and articles on the subject.

Reclaiming Public Housing is the best I have read yet. The stories of the three redeveloped public housing projects (one was a failure, one a widely-recognized success, and one a mixed-success) are beautifully written - rich with detail and imagery. This book is a far cry from the usual dull statistical tomes that tend to plaque the urban planning/sociology fields. Instead, it represents the perfect balance of statistics and anecdotal evidence, topped off with a wide selection of photos.

Anyone wishing to better understand the past, present, and future of public housing should definitely buy this book.



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Review of A Failure of Capitalism: The Crisis of '08 and the Descent into Depression (Hardcover)

This is the fifth book by Richard Posner (law professor at the University of Chicago and a long-time judge on the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals) that I've read, in addition to many legal opinions.There is no question that he's brilliant and an excellent, clear, and precise writer.There is also no question about his credentials as a libertarian-leaning conservative.

Until now, that is."A Failure of Capitalism" departs consciously from the prevailing libertarian take on the current recession (or, as Judge Posner argues it should be called, "depression").In short, he believes that the depression was not mainly caused by government meddling.Rather, it is a "market failure" -- i.e., a crisis that market forces alone could not have prevented.And, given the size of this market failure, government should instead have used regulations to prevent it.

Before I got the book, I had read some indications that Judge Posner was taking this line.But in the book itself, he is crystal clear about his view that deregulation in the financial industry was a major culprit, and his recognition that he is going against the conventional wisdom of both libertarians and conservatives.

The book is well argued and much more thorough than I can convey here.One of the great things about Judge Posner's style is that he anticipates all of the reader's objections and tries to address them in good faith.Whether you agree or disagree, he is always worth reading.

The book also includes a narrative of how the depression developed, descriptions of the systemic problems in the financial industry that made the depression possible, and recommendations for government action.

Although the material may be a little difficult for those with no knowledge of finance, it has been intentionally written with non-specialists in mind.As always, Judge Posner repays the attentive reader.



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