Carla Winterbottom sends this book recommendation…
The End of Economic Growth, by Charles Siegel
Many people have become disillusioned with economic growth during the last few decades, not only because growth causes environmental problems but also because the rising standard of living brings diminishing satisfaction.
Using historical and international comparisons, this book shows that the United States reached a point where needs were satisfied several decades ago, when average income was only about half of what it is now. Since then, economic growth has not improved our well-being.
If we try to grow indefinitely, then global warming, rising resource prices, and other ecological problems will stall growth before most of the world emerges from poverty. There will be pockets of shaky affluence in the United States, Europe, and parts of Asia. And there will be a long series of crash programs to deal with ecological degradation and to get the world economy back on track.
But if economic growth ends when needs are satisfied, the world could become affluent during the twenty-first century, as the United States and Europe did during the twentieth century. By the end of the twenty-frist century, most people in the world could have a comfortable middle-class standard of living, as most Americans did in the mid-twentieth century, and could also have abundant free time.
Charles Siegel has managed to make this book both readable and pro-active. His assessment of the counterproductivity of our economy and consumer society is persuasive, lucid, fact-filled, and especially timely in an era when we must decide how much is enough for ourselves – and for a sustainable planet. – Jane Holtz Kay, author Asphalt Nation
