| Title | : | The Poverty of Nations: A Sustainable Solution |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 143353911X |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781433539114 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 400 |
| Publication | : | First published January 1, 2013 |
The Poverty of Nations: A Sustainable Solution Reviews
-
The dullest book I've ever had the misfortune to listen to....but I learnt something.
Firstly, a plea, for your own benefit. Don't buy, read or listen to this book unless you are interested in economics. Don't listen to this book just because it's a free download from Christian Audio. com. Don't force yourself to finish this book when you get to the stage that you are wandering round in the street trying to convince random strangers to develop more goods and services for the free market.
This is an economics textbook written in the style of several lectures, some of which are over an hour long. They've chosen a boring narrator for the audio version as well which makes it worse. The authors have tried to build a Biblical case for capitalism being the only sustainable solution to poverty. They probably repeat the fact that, in their opinion, the only way for a nation to pull itself out of poverty is by developing more goods and services, about a thousand times.
There were interesting sections of the book, particularly the chapter on the damage that foreign aid can do to an economy. Everything that was said in this section rang true, although I've only ever really considered it in the context of short term missions and giving to beggars in the street. The useful points that were made; people don't value things they haven't worked for, much of the free money ends up propping up corrupt govts and doesn't reach the needy people (the figures are staggering and will stop you ever giving to govt based charities again), it creates dependency and stops the people themselves doing work that they could do. There is a solid Biblical case for these observations-if a man doesn't work, he shouldn't eat etc. The author's also exclude one to one help and church based help from their research. They are dealing specifically with nationwide economics.
This leads to another problem: who is this book addressed to? It appears to be aimed at national leaders. It seems a bit naïve to think that foreign governments of poor nations are going to be reading this book or taking advice from it.
It also seems strange, from a Christian point of view, to be attempting to remedy the economic situation in the first place. The Bible makes it clear that there will always be poor and rich and that as individuals we should attempt to help those within our sphere with the things God has blessed us with, but our primary goal should be living for eternity; sharing the Gospel with rich and poor alike, not trying to solve the world's problems. This life is short and then we will spend eternity somewhere, surely that should be our focus?
I made it through about two thirds of this before I realised I wasn't listening to the audio anymore and it had just become a monotonous drone in the background.
My rating is because there is a lot of interesting information in this book that may contribute to the wider discussion about how to help the poor. However, I don't recommend reading it through. Instead, use it to dip into for research. -
I chose to read this book from expecting to disagree with it. I was fairly sure that I would find myself uncomfortable with some of the conclusions of the authors but because I value listening to voices other than my own or those in my camp I resolved to challenge myself with what appeared to be some thoughtful arguments on Christianity and the value of Free Market Capitalism.
How wrong can one man be? I downloaded this book months back and despite being an avid reader I plodded through this book a few pages at a time finding any reason to read anything else but this. If I had not agreed to write this review in exchange for getting a free copy of this book I am confident I would have recycled this book months ago. Honestly I have plenty of stuff on my book shelves I don’t agree with but which pushes my thinking, challenges my assumptions and helps me organise and develop my own thinking better. But this is poorly written, filled with mad tilts at straw men and stingy representations of opposing arguments. It almost reads like a propaganda document for the free market system rather than a well thought out and reasoned piece of writing by two well respected professors in their fields.
I grew up in and completed ¾ of my schooling under the apartheid schooling system. As a result I am well versed in this kind of one sided, parochial presentation of the virtues of a particular system, whilst never allowing the recipients to examine the full range of data for themselves. If you read this book with no prior thought to economics or economic systems (and I am no economist) you can only conclude that anyone who does not support the free market/ capitalistic system is a complete idiot. There is little generosity to the opinions of others; lampooning and presenting the worst or weakest side of opposing systems are common in this book. There is no concern to honestly examine the strengths of for instance democratic socialism or the very obvious weaknesses in the free market system that a growing number of reputable voices are raising. At times it felt like the book was caught in the Cold War or the Middle Ages, arguing against Soviet style communism or feudalism. Which are useful as examples but are hardly the economic questions that the majority of the books audience are wrestling with. Furthermore the almost canonisation of the Industrial Revolution and the economic growth of the Far East without so much as a footnote to the hugely destructive social issues and dehumanisation arising from the triumph of greater economic growth left me cold.
Four final thoughts before this descends into the level of a rant…too late you say?
1. The book’s claim to be a Christian book is only borne up at times by an horrific use of out of context verses. A blatant desire to conflate the free market system with biblical economics is deeply disturbing. Even if you do not think the free market/capitalist system does not go against the Bible it is still a rather large leap of justificational logic to imply that it is a biblical system. The “economic system” we see in the Bible is far more nuanced than any one system, and if anything has a preferential option for the poor and the marginalized rather than the increased creation of wealth for the already wealthy.
2. On that point just recently, I heard Professor Piet Naude from the University of Stellenbosch Business School suggest that we have to examine the assumption that “all the boats in the harbour” rise with the creation of wealth. The free market he said has been excellent at creating wealth but very weak in distributing it. This is not an usual insight but a widely acknowledged, contemporary challenge to the free market system. Yet Grudem and Asmus all but ignore it and write instead as if the free market is the saviour of the poor. History simply does not bear that up, even in the United States. I cannot believe the authors are unaware of this. Is their commitment to free market capitalism so deeply entrenched that they are able to simply waive this away as a petty criticism not worth engaging in?
3. The pro-American bias of this book is hugely off-putting. God Bless America we have the worlds best economic system if only the poor Africans would listen to us. They might not have said this, but I heard it loud and clear. If I was reading a hard copy of the book rather than my kindle I would have been sorely curious to have tested the aerodynamics of this patriotic drivel at times.
4. No matter what the merits and advantages of a free market system are, and I am convinced there are many, this book sadly merely demonstrates for me the problem of allowing privileged westerners with unchallenging assumptions to write books. I have greatly benefited from many of Crossways resources but this is not one. It is poorly argued, parochial and almost without merit. The few thought-provoking moments that I did encounter in the book were so overpowered by the negatives that at 400 pages it just was not worth it.
I gave it one star simply because there was no category for “makes excellent recycling.” -
This book is definitely worth reading, but also worth questioning. Until I read it, I didn't realize exactly how much the book has to say in favor of restrained government and the economic freedom of individuals, but… we are also very vulnerable to hearing what we want from Scripture and using a book like this to reinforce our assumptions.
Just as God says that a blessed people operate each under his own vine, He also blesses Egypt with a strong central government He specifically designs and that He sets up Joseph to administer. Cyrus and Nebuchadnezzar show every sign of having humbled themselves before Christ's glory, and neither one of them manifest that by a desire to weaken a strong central government. Cyrus even uses the fact that that strong central government operates according to his whims in order to bless God's people and get the Temple built.
I would suggest reading the book. It is, in fact, free to download from Christianaudio.com for a few more days, but I would suggest being extremely careful about clouding or crowding the Gospel with tax rates or equating the Word of God with the Bill of Rights as equally inerrant. If you have liberal inclinations and consider yourself a Christian, I would read it and be humbled. If you have conservative inclinations, I would pair up with a liberal friend likely to challenge the things you read. -
Ok these are mainly notes for myself as I listened to the audiobook, and it wont make sense to pretty much anyone else:
His commandments are not burdensome”(1 John 5) “For the law of God is perfect, reviving my soul” (Psalm 19). Basically, the author describes Gods law and how that is displayed in politics, and then he shows how that leads to prosperity (Joshua 1:8). God’s law is good! Yetttt, political prosperity is a secondary issue and God’s good law cannot save— the author touched on this and how the authority of Scripture is above the affirming statistics!! What a win. Also read this on my way to stay with Christian missionaries who strongly held these views and live in a way to promote the free market and raise their kids to love work.
Thankful for a God that made work, and made work good, and even though sin entered the world, allows us to enjoy work and the thorns and blesses us through our labors. This book gives an examination of what national poverty is, what the Bible says about it, and what our role is as believers.
Economic systems that cannot bring poverty to prosperity:
- hunting & gathering approach: produces little economic growth, increased infertility due to extreme labor, increased famine & diseases, decreased innovation
- Subsistence farming: maintains poverty, back breaking work, dependent on self and no time left for innovation and future and trading. Chronic warfare from theft and murder. Short life spans as well. Survival not thriving.
- Slavery: Imago Dei, New Testament encourages freedom for slaves. The economic benefits of slavery are only to those that are not slaves. The evils of slavery must be rejected for the believer.
- Tribal ownership: perpetual poverty. When no one owns it, the property is left unkept Ab and unimproved. Against Scripture. Everyones responsibility becomes no ones responsibility.
- Futilism
- Mercantilism: production not consumption was goal, conflicting interests with taxes, actual needs, military, and production.
- Socialism: ☹️ there has been no success story under communism, but many people killed under their rulers, lets end socialism.
Biblical approach
- Each owns his own property and works hard.
- Voluntary cooperation of the individual.
- Free market: Gods providential reign over a fallen world. God allows us to choose to labor and gives us the fruit of it.
- Rule of the Law: we need protections against crime so free market works.
- Mixed economy objection response:
We see the Europeans as ideal with people working few hours, longer holidays, and enjoying retirement. Yet they are a heathen people, while once the senders of missionaries. They are in debt and are awaiting economic failure. They cannot afford what they once could. Europe is dependent on Germanys banking, yet Germany cannot continue to support Europe.
Not a *single* person knows how to make a pencil. Takes many skills and people to make a pencil from the wood, lead, production, eraser, etc.
I think im left wondering how to be a good believer in a really corrupt government specifically in contexts of church planting in communist countries. Im also left thinking about giftings and how a free market is a great place for pioneer personalities to thrive as entrepreneurs and others to thrive in the administration, support, etc. Maybe the fear of someone else being the successful innovator causes insecurity and desire for all else to be equal? -
I’m not an economist. I’ve read precious few books on economic and political systems. But I try to listen in on the major conversations of the day, and a debate over the proper shape and role of the free market is definitely one of them. It’s hard to imagine a time when it won’t be. So I’m not a complete neophyte when it comes to the major topic of Wayne Grudem and Barry Asmus’ The Poverty of Nations.
But in this review it will be difficult to stick with what I (am supposed to) know, theology, because this book doesn’t contain much. That’s not necessarily a problem; I expect books on some topics—say, the history of vinyl—to be fairly thin when it comes to the use of the Bible. This book actually does use the Bible a great deal, but this brings me to one of two criticisms:
1. Grudem and Asmus’ use of the Bible is of the prooftexting variety; the Bible is used to buttress points I hear other conservative economists make. Biblical theology doesn’t seem to set the tone of the whole work.
This, again, is not necessarily a big problem (remember Vinyl: A History?). And Grudem and Asmus’ prooftexting is actually quite good, I’d say. Some biblical corpora, like Proverbs, lend themselves readily to the good kind of prooftexting—and on precisely this topic of money.
2. But I couldn’t shake the feeling that Grudem and Asmus wax too rhapsodic* about the virtue—a word they use often—of a free market economy which Scripture doesn’t clearly demand. And they don't give sufficient weight to the culture-shaping power of consumerism. John Frame talks about that level of perception where you just feel something is wrong, but you haven’t put your finger on it—until, perhaps, you read a book review. I’d like to find that review. This isn’t it. I just don’t like to hear such strong resonances between a biblical book and godless conservative radio talk show hosts.** Both are too doctrinaire for me, a fundamentalist of all people.
That’s because I find both going beyond the reach of special revelation. The godless conservative radio talk show hosts do so more obviously; their arrogant, fault-finding, name-calling spirit is itself a sign that their positions ought to be viewed with some suspicion. But Grudem and Asmus go beyond the Bible, too (though without the nasty spirit). They speak with a great deal of confidence about what nations ought to do, but that confidence is not clearly sourced in Scripture.
I’m afraid that puts me in the awkward spot of believing that, overall, their advice is good but that their tone ought to be moderated and their Bible ought to be more integrated. I do believe that if poor nations followed the program in this book, those nations would see positive results. And I certainly can’t offer a better program. And the truths of general revelation—what policies actually work in this world—definitely ought to have their say. But let’s be open about it when we go beyond the warrant of Scripture and let our experience talk. Let’s call the free market system what it is: prudence, and not what it isn’t: a divine mandate. When God had a chance to set up the details of an economy, He didn't demonstrably set it up along the lines recommended in Grudem and Asmus' book. I'm not a theonomist, but I think this point ought to give modern American conservative Christians political pause.
REDEMPTION
I’d like to come through now, however, with what I consider to be a major redeeming point, an effective argument against at least some of my criticisms: the book is not about individuals so much as nations. On the level of individual actions to help the poor, they recommend a book I have found helpful, Corbett and Fikkert’s When Helping Hurts—and then they never (as I recall) talk about that kind of help for the poor again. But their book isn’t about helping the poor on an individual level, but on a corporate one.
Their book is aimed at leaders of nations now struggling in never-ending poverty. And, judging from their own comments on the matter, it does seem that they’re making a unique contribution here. Namely, they are enumerating the socio-cultural factors that are to blame for poor nations’ continued poverty. Corruption and bribery obviously belong on that list. But so does a failure to establish clear property rights, for example. I believe they’re right to conclude that God endorses property rights by (rock-solid) implication in the sixth commandment, “Thou shalt not steal.” And I really learned something when they pointed out that, without clear property rights, people have no collateral against which to borrow capital and begin businesses. They also have to keep capital tied-up unnecessarily in saving for any disputes that might occur over who owns what. And if they have no capital, they’re likely to lose their property in a dispute.
They also made the point that without the rule of law, massive disincentives are created for anyone to bother to do well in business—and therefore create jobs for other people. If you do really well making widgets, the local magistrate is likely to slap massive regulatory fines on you in order to benefit his nephew, who also makes widgets. Nations who don’t have or enforce good laws inject so much uncertainty into the market that it’s hardly worth trying to get ahead.
The authors repeat one thing over and over again: the way to wealth for poor nations is through an increase in GDP. They must focus on producing "goods and services of value." This line probably appears 100 times in the text, and it has a way of sticking. It sounds right to this non-specialist. Massive aid doesn’t really help; it gets lost in bureaucratic pockets. But if people will start businesses that raise capital and allow for the hiring of local workers, the country can start to rise.
There was much insight here, and I found myself imagining leaders of poor nations actually getting hold of this book and using it to lead changes in their nations. It’s possible. Grudem and Asmus do mention the role of individual Christian salvation, but it bears very little weight in the book. They seem to think that a nation can achieve massive cultural transformation by the proper arrangement of incentives and disincentives. Maybe, maybe.
LESSONS FOR ME
I learned a great deal from the book. For example, I’ve always wondered why exactly food and other consumer goods shortages happen in socialistic economies. It’s because of the information transmission role that the free market plays. There is so much information flying around naturally through the free market system that the socialist has to somehow master and guess at, and can never do so. For example, the super market manager who buys too many pencils and can’t get rid of them all in time for the fiscal year to end or whatever and therefore chooses next time not to buy so many and lowers the price of the ones that he bought, influencing the prices around him. No central planning committee can possibly know, let alone track, all that location-specific information. That was especially the case before the existence of computers. How could they possibly know what prices people are willing to pay for given goods all over their nation? The socialist system, I would guess, would work on protecting the prices of the things produced by the people with the loudest and most powerful voices, reducing incentives for other people to produce other goods and causing shortages of what people truly want.
Also, this book helped me understand how it is that poor countries can have comparative advantages even in a world market in which the big countries would seem to have all the advantages stacked up neatly on their sides already. Those poor countries can still specialize in something. They gave the illustration of a doctor who could make $100/hr. doctoring all day but who winds up having to spend four hours a day typing. He can type at 120 words per minute, it just so happens, and the secretary he’s looking at hiring can only type at 60 words per minute. He’s got an advantage over her in this: it’s going to take her eight hours a day to do all the typing she needs to do. But if he pays her $15 an hour—$5/hr. more than she made in retail sales—he therefore increases his daily personal GDP by $400 minus what he’s paying this secretary, $120, for a total increase of $280. Not only is he paying someone else a salary, but he is upping his own overall profit and his service to the community. Likewise, rich nations should stick to doctoring and poor nations can make $5 an hour more, as it were, switching from retail sales to typing—there is something they can do. Who knows what advantages they might develop as time passes.
I listened to an audio version provided by Christian Audio. Obviously, I didn't have to say anything fawning. The audio quality was quite good, and the reader's tone fit that of the book quite well.
*They are so rhapsodic that they call socialism “immoral,” not just bad policy. I’m not necessarily opposed to that. Historically speaking it seems to be demonstrable, but they fail to note what I consider to be a pretty important point when you’re writing a book this long about economics: why would socialism be attractive to anyone? When someone can’t think of anything nice to say about an opposing viewpoint, even though a lot of
smart
people hold that viewpoint, they’re being too doctrinaire and/or rhapsodic.
**One other resonance I heard (and to be clear, Asmus and Grudem do not have the nasty spirit of many talk-show hosts): the authors list some of the reasons that the United States has been able to maintain itself as a representative democracy for so long, and one they mention is the right to bear arms. They interpret this as a limit on government power because people are able to fight back against the government—in principle, at least, because the government is not able to confiscate all the firearms in the country. I really do wonder if this is feasible any longer. I wonder if it ever was; I just don’t know. But now it’s really hard to imagine any militia forming that could outgun the U.S. military. No militia is likely to have fighter jets. It’s not just guns that a modern army needs. This is a minor point, but I felt it was an example of how the rhetoric of the Tea Party may be driving some of the positions in the book. For a little more on this, see
my review of Republocrat. -
A compelling argument for the Free Market System. Grudem discusses how government, religion, ethics, and more affect a nation's prosperity. Prosperity is not the most important thing but it is important. This would be a good read for my students in Economics.
2020 - A book of my choice -
Uma introdução razoável ao tema, mas com algumas conclusões duvidosas, por vezes.
-
I got this audiobook because Wayne Grudem's name was on it. No other reason. If it were a print book, I might not have stuck with it, but since audiobooks allow me to multi-task, I tend to be more flexible in my choices. This book had a lot of good information, and the comments on “fair trade” goods and subsistence farming were thought-provoking. It gave the reasons that cultural and spiritual values MATTER, even in an apparently secular realm such as economics. The authors' stated purpose was to reach the leaders of poor nations and to try to make a difference on a national level. That's a noble goal, but are the leaders of poor nations really reading this book? I'm skeptical about that, and in the end the whole thing comes off as rather more utopian than realistic. So, the bottom line for me is that it told me a lot that I didn't know about how worldview affects economy, but I would be surprised if it achieves its stated goal.
-
The basic information here really isn't bad, even though I didn't find anything that was "new". But unfortunately I felt like the earlier part, trying to build a biblical case for capitalism, just fell flat. It felt like picking and choosing verses rather than trying to build a biblical system: which makes sense because aside from some basic principles, I don't think the Bible really supports a particular system, being more concerned with how we conduct ourselves under any system.
One critique was that the chapter on GDP seemed very simplistic, implying that increasing GDP increased a nation's wealth. Which is strongly correlated but not necessarily the cause.
Overall, just not very outstanding, and part of that could have been the tone of the reader for the audiobook. -
Its a long book, but the content quite general. Some has a biblical verses, but many arguments here not supported. This book main purpose maybe for the leaders of nations, but in some parts for the individual. The main message here that its alright to pursue wealth, but don't go astray for Mamon.
-
Lots to think about in this one. I agree with most of the arguments presented. A lot of ground is covered - from economics to politcal systems to cultural values.
-
The Poverty of Nations enters a crowded field addressing alleviating poverty in poor countries (the title references The Wealth and Poverty of Nations by David Landes as much as The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith) with a unique twist: it addresses economic development with a firm foundation in both sound neoclassical economics and biblical scripture. We get a whole lot of verse of scripture to go with frequent reference to Landes, De Soto, and Ferguson. The economic stance isn’t revolutionary, if admirable for its commitment to sound economics. What sets the book apart is the theological rooting and its embrace of the importance of culture.
The Poverty of Nations looks at economic systems (chapters 3-6), government laws and policies (7-8), and national cultural values and beliefs (9). They define the most important factors for economic growth as: “the rule of law, private ownership of property, specialization and free trade, economic freedom, and the incentives necessary to create wealth and the hope of reward.” They define the elements of the free market as: “(1) decentralized decision making . . . , (2) specialization and trade, (3) the signaling system of the market, (4) prices as the language of the signaling system, . . . (5) profits and losses . . . (6) competition and voluntary cooperation,” plus “the risk-taking of the entrepreneurs who drive innovation.” They also describe the foundations for a free market system as “(1) private ownership of property with easy legal documentation of ownership, (2) the rule of law, (3) a stable currency, and (4) low taxes.” Recommended safeguards against corruption are: the rule of law, a fair court system, an absence of bribery, limited power of government, and separation of government powers. The government must protect people from: crime, violation of contracts, violation of patents and copyrights, foreign invasion, useless wars of conquest or revenge, and destruction of the environment. On an institutional basis, government should promote: education, marriage and family, and the church. Government must also protect freedom in general.
The authors’ backgrounds gives them a better appreciation of the nature of poverty than the average well-heeled dilettante. They recognize that poverty isn’t about just the deprivation of wants and needs. It’s about “shame, inferiority, powerlessness, humiliation, fear, hopelessness, depression, social isolation, and voicelessness.” More concerned with helping than guilt, they’re willing to admit some colonial powers proved better for the colonies than others. “This criterion would have the Spanish and Portuguese bad, the Dutch and French less bad, and the British least bad.”
This doesn’t mean that Grudem and Asmus are promoting selfishness. “Short-sighted selfishness, in fact, makes it impossible for a business to flourish. In order to develop a successful business, individuals must forgo present spending on themselves by saving, by exercising self-control, and by investing wisely. If there is no saving and no capital formation, the business does not grow.” “We do not pretend that free markets eliminate human selfishness. But a free-market system can channel selfishness into work and investment activities that actually bring good to other people.” “Lying destroys trade. The overwhelming levels of corruption seen in non-free-market economies throughout the world compare unfavorably with the greater honesty of free-market, private-property economies where repeated exchanges take place.” Grudem and Asmus see “proper self-interest [a]s the basis for the Golden Rule.” “[S]elf-interest and greed are not the same thing. Self-interest is unavoidable. Self-interest might even lead someone to give generously to the needs of others because giving carries its own rewards—Jesus said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive’ (Acts 20:35). Greed, on the other hand, is excessive self-interest.”
They are aware of rent-seeking. “When government hands out favors, more effort is expended on redistributing wealth than on producing.”
Nor should you think that Grudem and Asmus endorse the noxious health-and-wealth gospel. “[O]nly in a decentralized, pluralistic, private-property order can the inalienable rights of everyone be secure. This includes the right to pursue non-material activities.” “Capitalism honors and promotes charity and virtue. True charity cannot be compelled.” Material prosperity still matters though, most of all to the poor.
The Poverty of Nations is aimed at and would be beneficial to a lot of groups, but in particular pastors both because of its biblical grounding and pastors’ unique influence, especially over culture.
Disclosure: I received a complimentary e-copy of The Poverty of Nations via NetGalley. -
Why are some nations so rich, and some so poor? Why do some nations — improvised in natural resources — yet can become so rich, but some blessed abundantly with natural resources and still remain so poor? Or think about it this way, what can nations (even those deprived of natural resources) do if they want to move out of poverty into prosperity?
The answers (un)surprisingly lies mostly within the system in which the country run by, economist Barry Asmus and theologian Wayne Grudem combine in this book to promote and defend their concept of free-market economy as the only solution for any nations to move out of poverty.
So steps can a nation take to move out of poverty? The main thesis of this book is that there is only one way for nations to do that — by producing more goods than they consume. However the book is not just about economics, good governance which this book see as fundamental to good economy are also entailed within this book.
This book is a tour de force of exceptional good writing, even with a minimal understanding of economics none of the concept was too hard to understand. Asmus and Grudem does show their depth of research and thinking through the solutions they propose which aim to help every nations. I cannot recall any other book which is so comprehensive and detailed in it’s depth which aims to explain how nations can start to be prosperous.
One minor areas that I thought might be good to be raised here in this review, although the book claims to be “Christian” with Grudem on board to explain the theological basis for such a system, I found some of the verses to be more of proof-texts in the initial chapters. I felt that the model proposed was more economically driven that theologically driven, though I do not disagree with the theological basis raised within the book. What is more, in the last chapter, I think Grudem has done a superb job of proving, explaining and defending the theological basis of the model especially in the cultural values. The other point is, some of the points can be rather repetitive, especially the point about private property (p. 140-149, 191-192, 325, etc), although they might be sometimes viewed from other perspectives on this issue, it was a bit too repetitive on this one point. These minor points does not in any way makes the book any less helpful and useful for nations though. Although this may be a bit of a long read, this book is easy to follow and comprehend. I highly encourage those who wants to have a good concept on economics or wishes to help their nations be prosperous to read this book, I’m sure you’ll see that these points are valid, practical and feasible.
Rating:4.5/5 -
RATING 4.49 STARS.
I'm a little ashamed to admit that it took far too long for the play on words in the title to dawn on me. (I even majored in economics at one point in my college career and am familiar with the Adam Smith classic.)
That said, this is a book about economics and related policies to apply in impoverished nations in an effort to defeat global poverty. It's high level architecture with a deep dive into the rivets that hold everything together. I know, it sounds boring... but it's not.
It could be the latent nerd in me but this book really reminded me what I liked learning about economic principles as a backbone to society as a whole. It's a common sense playbook for creating a thriving national community that touches on business and moral aspects of daily life and their effect on the bottom line.
But then the book struck me right across the forehead (and this bumped my rating up a full star). Buried in the "Do this and succeed" formula was a plot twist that rivals M Night Shyamalan (whether intentionally or unintentionally). Pulling me out of the context of third world poverty, the following quote drove home an impending warning that I pray we avoid:
"Any economy that seeks to grow from poverty to greater prosperity, will regularly honor the moral values of respect for parents and other authorities, protection of and respect for human life, respect for sexual purity and faithfulness, disapproval of coveting and honoring of the lesser virtues: pride of a job well done, tidiness, courtesy, and punctuality."
Looking around the country, I see a lack of respect for any authority, a devaluing of human life, increasingly loose sexual mores, discontent that traces back to covetousness, and not much courtesy, among other things. Logic dictates that this will result in declining from prosperity to greater poverty as a nation.
That's the other message in these pages. That's one I hope our next administration addresses. -
I wish every millennial Christian would read this book. Many of us don’t realize just how much of the Marxist cultural air we’re breathing, and this book is a needed reprieve. Grudem offers a thorough look at why some nations are poor (from both a biblical and economic perspective) and provides a holistic approach to relieving national poverty that actually works, without resorting to the soul-crushing evils of socialism. Such a good book!
-
There are other reviews out there that lambast this book, feel free to read them at your leisure. I will be short and to the point, this book, in our current world context, is something everyone should read. It is excellent, well reasoned, and on point. Many times our cultural assumptions cause us to disagree with various authors view of the scriptures, but very simply I believe Grudem does an excellent job at connecting the scriptures with open FREE markets systems.
Others have asked why the book didn't answer certain other questions, but the authors state up front what their goal is for the book. If you are looking for other answers than how a free market can bring about a reduction in world poverty, then read a different book. This should be required reading for every 20-something knuckle-head out there (of which I used to be one). -
My generation NEEDS to read this book!! This is the important economic information my liberal public school "left out". I wish many of my peers would take time to read/listen to this mind-changing book!
My mom and my husband have been trying to convince me of these points for years and finally, with the convincing evidence from this book, I am persuaded.
We all want to do good and help those who are poor and suffering but the way we do that has NOT been working. America's prosperity is not evil nor is our wealth the cause of others' poverty. -
Fantastic! I never knew world economics was so riveting.
Re-read. I listened to this on audio and I’m still very much impressed. This book pairs well with Prisoners of Geography, as global geography contributes to economics. -
This book was a lot different than I expected it to be. Although the fate of nations and their well-being is certainly something that frequently comes to mind [1], when one hears the dreaded word sustainability, one does not often think of a generally conservative viewpoint, and that is what one finds with this book. By and large, and one would expect from my own political and religious worldview, I found a lot to appreciate here, both in the author's thoughtful look at the Bible as well as their point of view of matters such as freedom and the importance of property rights and personal morality in setting the ground work for societal growth and development. It did appear to me, though, that the authors harped a bit too much on the matter of repaying debt and failed to examine the aspects of the land Sabbath and jubilee relating to the restoration of land to its original families and the forgiveness of debts. If this book is a good deal better than many volumes one can read whining about the need for rich countries to give more and the illusory efficacy of one world socialism, this book could have stood to be a bit more compassionate towards the debt trap faced by many poor countries and more than a few wealthy countries as well.
This book consists of nine mostly lengthy chapters that total almost 400 pages in length that give a pretty fierce discussion of the qualities that lead to national/societal prosperity. The book begins with a foreword by Rick Warren that states that this book is one that he highly recommends, for what it's worth. The authors begin with a discussion of the goal of an economy, namely to produce more goods and services for the same amount of people, after which they talk about wrong goals, including egalitarian goals, cultivating dependence, and blaming one's poverty on outside factors like imperialism and wealthy nations in the global "North." The third chapter looks at a large amount of failed economic systems including hunting and gathering, subsistence agriculture, slavery, tribal/collective ownership, feudalism, mercantilism, socialism/communism, and the welfare state. The fourth chapter gives the authors' defense of capitalism and the importance of free markets with a sound rule of law that avoids cronyism and corruption. The fifth chapter gives a discussion of the mechanics of the free market system, including specialization and the absence of economic controls, while the sixth chapter looks at the moral advantages of the free market in cultivating virtues and promoting personal freedom, where the authors also work to overcome various objections people have raised about free markets. The seventh chapter looks at the importance of good government in societal well-being, while the eighth chapter examines the essential liberties that are required for economic growth, the sort of freedoms one would not find in an FDR speech, for example. The ninth chapter then looks at the cultural beliefs that encourage economic growth, focusing on issues of attitude and accountability as well as a certain realism in one's self-understanding and approach to the world.
If the majority of books dealing with the poverty of nations can be viewed as tenderhearted, looking with compassion at the downtrodden state of the world, this book by stark contrast is very tough-minded and is the sort of book that one does not read for personal encouragement as much as a challenge for societal improvement. That is not to say that I disagree with this book, only that I think it more like a kick in the pants rather than a gentle hand to help someone rise. This book has some harsh things to say about the policies of many Western nations that are not conducive to wealth and indicate a certain focus on integrity on all levels, whether that means being a productive worker who helps one's company make money or whether that means resisting bribes and helping to root out corruption in a society wherever it can be found. It is likely that few societies are really interested in rooting out their own internal malaise that would help them rise, or to deal with the cultural norms that work against the protection of personal property in the face of collectivist traditions and identities that punish success, especially as so much corruption seems endemic in many parts of the world, where elites prosper even as their societies languish in misery and persistent failure. This book is more a warning than it is a gentle book of encouragement, but those who can find encouragement here would do well to read it.
[1] See, for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2017...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2017...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2016...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2016...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2016...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2016...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2013... -
As an enthusiast in economics and someone with a background in theology, this was definitely a delightful experience. Asmus (economist) and Grudem (theologian) did a terrific job writing this book. Their main idea was to create an economic recipe to transform the economic outlook of a nation as a whole. That is to say, to provide readers with all the necessary elements that have to exist so that a nation can transition from poverty to prosperity.
In such endeavor, they interact with a plethora of academic literature and varying computing economic systems, while championing a Free Market approach. While many people have believed that the Free Market has failed in developing countries, reality is that in order for the Free Market to work, other cultural, societally and political realities need to be in place as well. For instance, as Asmus and Grudem point out, no Free Market can be really 'free' or even exist when there is widespread corruption or lax law enforcement. No Free Market can either properly work where there is no significant freedom to create and grow businesses. In many developing countries, for instance, opening up a business can be an odyssey, due to excessively unnecessary governmental red tape, lack of documentation to assess potential businessmen's assets, etc.
Ironically enough, countries that are often associated with socialistic economic models (e.g., Denmark) are no socialist at all, given they constantly rank very high in the Index of Economic Freedom. For instance, as of 2020, Denmark ranks #8 in the world, and according to Danish Prime Minister, Lars Løkke Rasmussen: "I know that some people in the US associate the Nordic model with some sort of socialism. Therefore I would like to make one thing clear. Denmark is far from a socialist planned economy. Denmark is a market economy."
In any case, the book was fascinating. If you care about poverty in the world, this is definitely worth a try. -
Prima boek om even vluchtig door te lezen. Voordeel van dit boek is dat de lezer er aan herinnerd wordt dat ook in de Bijbel (vooral OT) heel wat aandacht aan een rechtvaardige en gebalanseerde economie besteed wordt. Naar mijn mening komt de Bijbelse balans niet zo goed terug in dit boek dat toch vooral voorstander is van het Amerikaanse kapitalistische model. Afhankelijk van je eigen ideeën ten aanzien van hoe een moderne economie er uit moet zien zul je je in mindere of meerdere mate herkennen in dit boek. De schrijvers zijn voorstander van een overheid die zich zoveel mogelijk afzijdig houdt en alleen uiterste randvoorwaarden voor (gelijke kansen op) deelname aan een vrije markt economie schept. Verwacht overigens geen diepgaande (Bijbelse) onderbouwing van de standpunten van beide auteurs, 'The poverty of nations' leest meer als een manifest. De auteurs geven in de aanhalingen van andere auteurs wel voldoende uitgangspunten om je verder te verdiepen in de materie. De bibliografie is duidelijk en uitgebreid.
Opvallende uitspraak: de auteurs gaan ervan uit dat geen enkele grondstof op aarde opraakt of op kan raken. Dit schuurt bij mij persoonlijk toch wel een beetje. Ik vind onbeperkte consumptie van fosiele brandstoffen onverantwoord. De auteurs laten de oplossing voor schaarser wordende grondstoffen aan de vrije markt: schaarste betekent hogere prijs, hogere prijs betekent meer incentive om alternatieven te ontwikkelen. Verder is er weinig aandacht voor verlies aan biodiversiteit in ontwikkelende landen, behalve in de vorm van het vermarkten van biodiversiteit: zodat indien gewenst aan biodiversiteit een prijskaartje gehangen kan worden.
Ik heb het audioboek geluisterd. Dat kon bij dit boek prima, omdat het weinig diepgaand is. En mis je een voor een goede economie onmisbare factor, dan zijn er nog steeds meer dan 70 over. De auteurs beschrijven in totaal 78 cruciale factoren voor een goede economie. -
Wayne Grudem and Barry Asmus, The Poverty of Nations: A Sustainable Solution (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2013).
Paperback /
Kindle
The Poverty of Nations is an ambitious book. The goal of authors Wayne Grudem (a theologian) and Barry Asmus (an economist) is to provide “a sustainable solution to poverty in the poor nations of the world, a solution based on both economic history and the teachings of the Bible.” Toward that it end, their book focuses on what nations should do if they want to move from poverty to prosperity.
What does it mean for a nation to move from poverty to prosperity? According to Grudem and Asmus, it means that “a nation continually produces more goods and services per person per year.” A nation that does this will see rising income per capita as well as a growing gross domestic product.
Throughout history, nations have adopted various economic systems to attain this goal. In modern times, the three most common systems have been capitalism, socialism, and the welfare state. Grudem and Asmus contend that the best economic systemic for producing more goods and services per person per year is capitalism, or in their preferred term, “the free market,” which rests on a four-cornered foundation of private property, the rule of law, a stable currency, and relatively low tax rates.
How does the free market work? Grudem and Asmus outline six factors: “(1) decentralized decision making (‘no one’ decides), (2) specialization and trade, (3) the signaling system of the market, (4) prices as the language of the signaling system, (5) profits and losses as the green lights and red lights of the system… [and] (6) competition and voluntary cooperation.”
The free market system does not work without the crucial contributions of politics and culture, however. It requires an effective, but limited government—one that protects citizens against force and fraud; promotes education, stable family structures, and freedom broadly construed; and finally protects against bureaucratic corruption by enforcing the rule of law.
Additionally, the free market system requires that citizens embody certain values, beliefs, and practices—in Tocqueville’s famous phrase, “habits of the heart.” A nation does not just consist of economic and political systems, in other words. It consist of persons who act and interact according to a certain kind of cultural norms. If those persons do not value material wealth or manual labor or keeping promises, for example, and if those values become so widespread that they harden into a national culture, the free market system simply will not work in that nation.
Having summarized the argument of The Poverty of Nations, let me offer several comments on its argument.
First, on the whole, I agree with Grudem and Asmus’s assessment. Nations that have risen from poverty to prosperity have adopted some version of the free market system. This means that socialism is not a viable economic—or political—system if a nation wants to become prosperous. On the other hand, a free market system can accommodate welfare-state functions to some degree. So, while socialism and the free market are antithetical, the welfare state exists in a much more complicated relationship to a market economy than the authors let on.
Second, the authors have done an excellent job of explaining how markets work and why the free market system requires a certain kind of politics and culture. They also ably distinguish and defend the free market system from its simulacra—what William J. Baumol, Robert E. Litan, and William J. Schramm call “bad capitalism,” that is, “crony capitalism” and “oligarchic capitalism.” When people critique the free market system, they often point to nations whose political economies actually are better characterized using one of those terms.
Third, I appreciate the authors’ use of the phrase “consistent with” when talking about the relationship between the political-economic-cultural requirements of the free market system and the teachings of the Bible. It would be anachronistic to say that the Bible teaches the free market system (or socialism, for that matter). A Christian simply cannot derive a complete economic system from the Bible. However, biblical principles can guide how a Christian evaluates a given economic system. Grudem and Asmus note repeatedly that this or that aspect of capitalism is “consistent with” biblical teaching, without falling into the error of saying that the Bible requires capitalism. This is an important hermeneutical point.
Fourth, the authors note at the beginning and end of the book that material prosperity is secondary to spiritual wellbeing: “a person’s relationship to God is far more important than material prosperity, and…the pursuit of material wealth can, in fact, very easily take first place in one’s life rather than a relationship with God.” Amen to that!
Finally, no book—not even one approaching 400 pages in length as this one does—can explore every avenue of inquiry about a topic. Some critical readers will want to press the authors more on the issues of inequality and environmentalism, which often come up in critiques of the free market system. I personally would like to have seen a discussion of what Robert M. Nisbet called “the cultural contradictions of capitalism.”
Regardless, The Poverty of Nations is a real achievement, which I highly encourage those Christians who would help the poor to read. We should be generous to the poor as individuals and as churches, but we should also realize a long-term solution to national poverty requires solutions at a more systemic level. Wayne Grudem and Barry Asmus have made a persuasive case for the free market as that necessary system.
P.S. If you found my review helpful,
please vote “Yes” on my Amazon.com review page. -
This book is full of clear sight. Written at the level of nations (rather than individuals in poverty), it provides fully-reasoned paths of destruction and progress. It focuses on 78 steps upon which a nation can focus if it is to rise from poverty into prosperity. It all centres on the productive creation of goods and services.
What has amazed me in this book is just how "within reach" the solutions are. These are not some insurmountable evils that shouldn't even be considered; they are things which leaders in government, business, religion and education can actually work at.
It's written by one economist and one theologian, and is full of references and studies which back up their arguments. As I listen to the audiobook, I am just impressed by the picture of a nation that successfully gets out of poverty. The global economic picture starts to look quite heavenly even. So many false solutions are called out, and so many problematic approaches and unhelpful worldviews are condemned in reasonable and confident terms.
This comprehensive book will serve as a handbook for those leaders who want to get it right, and will serve as evidence against those who keep their people in poverty.
Contents (pulled from the following two sources:
http://www.waynegrudem.com/wp-content... and
http://www.waynegrudem.com/wp-content...)
The authors look at 6 factors regarding the nation's economic system, 17 factors regarding the nation's government, 21 factors regarding the nation's freedoms, and 35 factors regarding the nation's values. The earlier chapters set out the goals, the wrong goals, economic systems and isms which didn't work, and then the rest of the book details the ideal system and the factors listed above. -
I can't say I didn't know what I would find in this book after reading its description.
But I insisted in reading it for two reasons: 1) the candidate I supported in 2018's Brazilian Presidential Election (João Amoedo) recommended this book in an interview; 2) I am fond of free-market, liberal ideas and minimal government intervention.
But I am definitely not a conservative person and I quit believing in supernatural and religion stuff (not to say BS!) for quite some years now as I have had the opportunity to progressively gather more knowledge about science, evolution, psychology, history, politics, manipulation of masses, etc.
The book has some very good content in regards to the economic, political, laws, governmental views of economic liberalism (based on Mises and Austrian economics) that could really help poor nations to improve their people's situation. For this to happen, intelligent and well-intentioned people/politicians must be taken to power in all political spheres and the majority of the population needs to go through a great cultural/moral improvement. Very complicated things, unfortunately.
But for God's sake (pun intended), it was sooo painful to have been taken through numerous bible verses trying to justify the authors views, some of them totally old fashioned and "last-millenium"-like. At least one third of the book was wasted with this type of fiction-based justification/bullshit: Adam and Eve, bla, bla, bla... Oh, give me a break! -
This book was excellent. I have a far greater understanding of economics and from a Biblical perspective too. Many will see this book as a conservative view of economics, but as the book expounds often, the data doesn't show that programs like communism or socialism work. They in fact create mediocre or minimum standard populations. They disincentivize productivity or pursuit of achievement because there is no reward at the end. A free market on the other hand allows creativity and rewards hard work. The government need not create the environment, it ought only to protect rights such as property, patents, etc. and guard against criminal activity. I thought the discussion about self interest was very good too. No one seeks to create a product apart from some measure of self interest. It's not wicked to desire to create a product, sell it in the market, and provide for your family. We have to have a little self interest. It's when earning money is never enough or income is gained illegally that is wicked. This book was not overly academic so anyone could read this without having a degree in economics and benefit greatly from it.
-
We stand to benefit from more books which, like this one, tackle complex problems by involving thoughtful theologians and experts in those various other fields. Congratulations to Grudem and Asmus for their efforts to bring thoroughly biblical and reasonable thinking to such a complicated topic.
My primary criticisms are (1) that they adopt a simplistic view of poverty and (2) too easily dismiss materialistic consequences to their proposal, namely raising the GDP of poor nations. Although it necessarily makes a Christian response to the poverty of nations more nuanced—even more complicated—we can't dismiss the fact that poverty is not merely the absence of goods and services. Consequently, the solution to poverty cannot be strategies which measure effectiveness by how much they increase a nation's GDP.
As an outsider to economic theory, I find Grudem and Asmus's arguments to be thoughtful, well researched, and helpfully presented. But I don't believe their case reaches the high mark they set for themselves.
