Economics and the Public Purpose
About this book
Economics and the Public Purpose is a 1973 book by Harvard economist John Kenneth Galbraith. Galbraith advocates a "new socialism" as the solution, nationalising military production & public services such as health care. He also advocates introducing disciplined wage, salary, profit & price controls on the economy to reduce inequality & restrain the power of giant corporations. Socialisation of the "unduly weak industries & unduly strong ones" together with planning for the remainder would allow the public interest to be accorded its rightful preference over private interests. He adds that this can only be achieved when there is a new belief system that rejects the orthodoxy of economics in the past. The new socialism needs to be achieved thru gradual democratic political change.