Globalization and Its Discontents

Actually pretty even handed for a book that shows a raging fire on the cover. (Well at least on my edition.) Stiglitz dissects the failures of the IMF (as well as the World Bank and the WTO) during the 90s, with special emphasis on the botching of the post-Soviet transition and the bungling of the East Asia crisis. Stiglitz lays out how those countries which paid attention to the IMF (Thailand, Indonesia, Russia) suffered economic catastrophe while those who ignored its advice and refused its aid (Malaysia, Poland, China) recovered quickly from economic setbacks.

Some might be disappointed in the lack of a smoking gun, as Stiglitz lays out how these failures were due not to some malevolence on the part of the IMF but were the natural show more outcome of its allegiance to pre-Keynesiam models of market infallibility. Though it is even handed and perhaps even a bit dry, Stiglitz does pretty much eviscerate the IMF for the way it does business and the terrible results it achieves. Hopefully, this book (along with the Argentine Crisis) have gone a long way to bury the Washington Consensus.

In an odd coincidence, this book turns out to be eerily prescient of the failures of the Bush administration. (Which had only just begun at the time of publication.) Just like the IMF, the Bush administration allowed itself to be blinded by ideology, oblivious to the facts on the ground, overdependent on non-representative yes men, and relied on secrecy to the detriment of the decision-making process.

Would actually make for an interesting companion to Jared Diamond's Collapse, which also features as one of its central themes how a reliance on ideology can lead to catastrophic results. show less

Stiglitz's books never fail to enlighten and amaze the reader with his engaging, transparent, non-condescending approach and jargon-free style. This book is the 2017 update of the first edition, which was published in 2002 in the aftermath of the financial turmoil of the late 1990s. Obviously this revised edition now is informed by the crisis of 2008-9.

The author, a distinguished Nobel award-winning academic economist who has also served in important and influential positions in the US government as well as the World Bank (though he seems to have outstayed his welcome here), repeatedly points out the flaws in the 'market fundamentalism' of the IMF-World Bank establishments, and the damage that these institutions wreaked upon many show more countries in the developing world, in the transitioning economies of the erstwhile Soviet Bloc (including, and especially, the Russian Federation). He points out that only those few countries that resisted the pressures of the IMF-WB combine to open up their economies completely to (among other impositions) short-term capital flights, were able to avoid serious damage: such as China, India to some extent, Malaysia, Poland. Countries like Thailand, which faithfully obeyed the diktats of the 'Washington Consensus', suffered crippling economic contractions, social unrest, and long-term depression of their growth prospects.

At every turn, the spectre of Donald Trump and his America-centric tariff wars looms in the book's narrative, making it all the more relevant and timely today on the eve of Trump's taking over the American government for the second time at the start of 2025. show less

There's a strange paradox when it comes to the functioning of the international economic institutions born out Bretton Woods. Collective actions paid for by the taxpayers, created to prevent the potential negative effects of an unregulated 'free' market, they became indeed, over the past few decades, powerful organisations to the point of being antidemocratic, and dogmatically motivated by the free market ideology they were supposed to defend us against in the first place! Here's a paradox which, sadly, has had catastrophic consequences upon how globalisation has been working so far, as Joseph Stiglitz demonstrates in here.

Nobel Prize winner for Economics (2001), ex-adviser to Bill Clinton, and ex-vice-president of the World Bank, the show more man has a lot to say, and he surely doesn't shy away from exposing disturbing facts. Highly critical especially of the IMF, here's not one of your usual alter-globalization pamphlet. It is, on the contrary, a fascinating look from within, a series of relevant analyses allowing the reader to rethink capitalism, pondering how to get back to its roots far from the selfish and unbridled greed practiced these days.

The 'Invisible Hand' which was professed by Adam Smith is indeed not some sort of mumbo-jumbo. It's a powerful and relevant mechanism, yet one that can only work under very strict societal conditions (e.g. the availability of infrastructures guaranteeing access to private property...). The problem is that, such necessary conditions have been c0mplety overlooked by the ideologues of 'laisser-faire' capitalism, the so-called 'experts' ruling over the institutions named above, and those critical thinking is about as narrow minded as the Washington Consensus. Joseph Stiglitz shows himself here to be merciless indeed: to impose economics measures upon whole countries without even bothering to take into account the particularisms of such societies in the first place is more than nonsensical and antidemocratic, it can only have terrible consequences.
The multiplying examples he provides (from the ruined education of entire generations in some African countries to the agrarian reforms in South America) are telling enough. They're also dressing a damning picture of the IMF.

The IMF, in fact, didn't only betray the Keynesian ideal it originated from; it completely failed in one of its core mission -reduce poverty. Worse, reading the pages dedicated to Russia (who followed such directives to the letter) as opposed to what happened in Asia (where, on the contrary, political leaders decided to be more critical and distant) is also highly instructive. It shows how the dogmatism of free market ideologues has done nothing but worsen already existing crises.

Here's a enlightening book. Sure, it's a harsh criticism of a whole ideology; but, being put forth by an insider, it's certainly more than welcome, especially considering that the author, also, offers liberal alternatives which remain a glimpse of hope for a different globalisation. Maybe (maybe) we're not all doomed, then? For those interested in world economics, it's a must-read. show less

I have long wanted to understand how the World Bank and the IMF work. This book gives an excellent description from an ex-Chief Economist at the World Bank. Joseph Stiglitz cannot be dismissed as some wild left-wing trouble maker and, although he has been accused of using the book as a settling scores, there is not to be found in the text. The book gives an over-view of the system and is written in a style that is readily comprehensible by someone with little or no understanding of fiscal matters (ME!)

After a potted history of these entities, the book concentrates upon interventions which were made during the period that the author was involved. It clearly shows that the financial assistance given to the smaller countries by the IMF show more came with strings which hampered, rather than assisted their path to Capitalist heaven. Mr Stiglitz still believes in Globalisation and, when the evidence against the banking system becomes incontrovertible, he suggests methods to correct these structures. This, to me, is the weakest part of the book: he seems to believe that, at government level, there is a real desire to bring countries into the bosom of healthy capitalism and he appears unwilling to consider that, whilst throwing crumbs to struggling economies, a pool of desperate labour, willing to work for a pittance, and often in unsafe conditions, is pure gold to today's TNC's, who have government in a strangle hold. show less

Maldita globalização que é resultado de um processo de enxugamento do território e das comunidades, logo do trabalho e das pessoas.

O resultado? um nevoeiro de capital que circula pelo mundo, corroendo valor e saltando para o próximo local, sempre deixando menos do que o que ofereceu.

Em particular, a sustentabilidade nas suas três dimensões, sai afetada e torna mais desigual os processos económico, ambiental e social - criando muitas vezes desiquilíbrios que resultam do enfraquecimento dos Estados.

Um dos primeiros grandes críticos da globalização e da inevitabilidade.
Uma leitura obrigatória para todos os que atacam ou defendem este fenómeno dos nossos dias que arrisca ser o disparo para grande parte das transformações show more que vivemos (digitais ou não) show less

Unlike much of the 'anti-capitalist hysteria' surrounding the issue of globalisation, this book has been written by someone who DOES know what he is talking about and as a result, is not anti-capitalist. Perhaps surprisingly, his economic insight is also matched with an easy to follow and highly readable style.

The author levels much constructive criticism at the IMF and WTO for the way in which they have treated the developing world over the last ten years but never suggests that globalisation per se is a bad idea. What I particularly appreciated was the effort taken by Stiglitz to present clear and reasoned argument to back up his points of view. I would have liked to see a little more detail on the history of the foundation of the show more IMF,WTO and World Bank but this is only a very minor gripe.

When I borrowed this book from my wife, I had expected, largely due to the title and cover art, that it would be just another incoherent and inflammatory bag of anti-everything nonsense. Fortunately, this is not at all the case. Excellent. show less

An independent thinker in global economic policies. Highlights how IMF damages the economies of emerging nations through its nostrums. The latter reflect the stances of US Treasury. It all seems part of program of global control.