ABOUT THIS BOOK

Economics is too important to be left to the economists, argues Jim Stanford, and this concise and readable book provides nonspecialists with all the information they need to understand how capitalism works (and how it doesn’t).
Now in its second edition, Economics for Everyone is an antidote to the abstract and ideological way that economics is normally taught and reported. Key concepts such as finance, competition, and wages are explored, and their importance to everyday life is revealed. Stanford answers such questions as “Do workers need capitalists,” “Why does capitalism harm the environment,” and “What really happens on the stock market.”
Illustrated with humorous and educational cartoons by Tony Biddle, and supported with a comprehensive set of web-based course materials for popular economics courses, this book will appeal to students of social sciences who need to engage with economics as well as anyone seeking to better understand today’s economy.

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY

Peter Fleming is Professor of Business and Society at Cass Business School, City University London. He researches the changing politics of capitalist employment relations, and has written numerous books and journal articles on this topic. He is the author of Dead Man Working (Zero, 2012) and Contesting the Corporation (Cambridge, 2010)._x000B_

REVIEWS

“Stanford is that rare breed: the teacher who changed your life. He has written a book—both pragmatic and idealistic—with the power to change the world.”

— Naomi Klein, author of This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate and No Logo.

"Is economics the 'dismal science'? Not in Jim Stanford's capable hands. If we are to have better economic policies in the future, 'everyone' needs a guide, and this one is short but sweet."

— Lars Osberg, Dalhousie University

"Jim Stanford has provided a highly readable yet rigorous guide to the economics of capitalism. It is to be commended for its comprehensive yet critical coverage--from work to globalization, from the environment to high finance."

— Malcolm Sawyer, University of Leeds

"Jim Stanford has written a wonderfully accessible and useful book for union activists or anyone else who wants to learn about how the economy works in order to change it."

— Thea Lee, deputy chief of staff, AFL-CIO

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acknowledgements
Introduction: Why Study Economics?
Part One: Preliminaries
1 The Economy and Economics
2 Capitalism
3 Economic History
4 The Politics of Economics
Part Two: The Basics of Capitalism: Work, Tools, and Profit
5 Work, Production, and Value
6 Working with Tools
7 Companies, Owners, and Profit
8 Working for a Living
9 Reproduction (for Economists!)
10 Closing the Little Circle
Part Three: Capitalism as a System
11 Competition
12 Business Investment
13 Employment and Unemployment
14 Inequality and its Consequences
15 Divide and Conquer
16 Capitalism and the Environment
Part Four: The Complexity of Capitalism
17 Money and Banking
18 Inflation, Central Banks, and Monetary Policy
19 Paper Chase: Stock Markets, Financialization,
and Pensions
20 The Conflicting Personalities of Government
21 Spending and Taxing
22 Globalization
23 Development (and Otherwise)
24 Closing the Big Circle
25 The Ups and Downs of Capitalism
26 Meltdown and Aftermath
Part Five: Challenging Capitalism
27 Evaluating Capitalism
28 Improving Capitalism
29 Replacing Capitalism?
Conclusion: A Dozen Big Things to Remember
Index