A Discussion of Bourgeois Equality Chapter 10, “Divergence not Imperialism” Welcome to chapter 10 of McCloskey’s book, Bourgeoise Equality, as we continue the chapter by chapter walk through. Today’s chapter is beginning Part 2 in her book, examining the question, why are the rich countries rich today? McCloskey is going…
Bourgeois Equality
Is What You “Know” About Growth Wrong?
A Discussion of Bourgeois Equality Chapter 9, “The Great International Divergence Can Be Overcome” McCloskey wraps up part 1 with this chapter asking a great question that has surely popped in your head if you’ve been reading these chapter reviews. But what about the poor right now in the rest…
Bourgeois Equality
Note to the Right: You Need More Faith in Economic Growth
A Discussion of Chapter 8 “Or From the Right and Middle” While last chapter, McCloskey argued against the anti-growth beliefs of the Left, now she says the Right suffers from a lack of faith in the Great Enrichment continuing in the future. I have to admit having read these two…
Bourgeois Equality
Note to the Left: You are Wrong about Economic Growth
A Discussion of Chapter 7 “Despite Doubts from the Left” Economic growth is the result of the Bourgeois Deal that allowed us to escape subsistence living, and yet the Left eyes growth with suspicion, concerns, criticism, and policies that would slow or stop it. In this chapter, McCloskey turns her…
Bourgeois Equality
Could It Be Income Inequality Is Not a Problem?
A Discussion of Chapter 6 “Inequality is Not the Problem” Last chapter, McCloskey argued the Great Enrichment has helped people across the income spectrum making the poor today in a developed country far better off than any time before. But that does not mean it is great being at the…
Bourgeois Equality
When Would You Rather be Poor?
A Discussion of Chapter 5 “The Poor Were Made Much Better Off” If you had to agree to be in the bottom 20% of income, would you rather do it now or in 1800? And would you rather be in France with a GDP per capita of $44,000 or N. Korea at $649…
Bourgeois Equality
Things are Looking Really Good. No, really!
A discussion of chapter 4 “As Your Own Life Shows” In the previous chapters, McCloskey has shown that before the Great Enrichment began over 200 years ago, all of mankind everywhere lived a subsistence lifestyle. It was only after industrialization that technology grew at a sustained rate faster than the population,…
Bourgeois Equality
Capitalism and the Hockey Stick
A Discussion of Bourgeois Equality Chapter 3 “Then Many of Us Shot Up the Blade of a Hockey Stick” After establishing the last chapter that industrialization led to technological change growing output faster than population for the first time in human history, we return to the idea of the Great…
Bourgeois Equality
Are You a Malthusian?
A Discussion of Bourgeois Equality Chapter 2 “For Malthusian and Other Reasons, Very Poor” We established in the previous chapter that historically, people lived on a subsistence level averaging $3 a day for most of human history. Now McCloskey wants to explore why and is starting with an argument that is…
Bourgeois Equality
Historically, Poor was Normal
A Discussion of Bourgeois Equality Chapter 1 “The World is Pretty Rich, But Once was Poor” In my teaching and research, I keep coming back to the question of why an economy grows, with the hope of that knowledge helping those that don’t. Dr. Deirdre McCloskey wrote a trilogy of books…