The New Financial Order
Risk in the 21st Century
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- $29.99
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- $29.99
Publisher Description
In his best-selling Irrational Exuberance, Robert Shiller cautioned that society's obsession with the stock market was fueling the volatility that has since made a roller coaster of the financial system. Less noted was Shiller's admonition that our infatuation with the stock market distracts us from more durable economic prospects. These lie in the hidden potential of real assets, such as income from our livelihoods and homes. But these ''ordinary riches,'' so fundamental to our well-being, are increasingly exposed to the pervasive risks of a rapidly changing global economy. This compelling and important new book presents a fresh vision for hedging risk and securing our economic future.
Shiller describes six fundamental ideas for using modern information technology and advanced financial theory to temper basic risks that have been ignored by risk management institutions--risks to the value of our jobs and our homes, to the vitality of our communities, and to the very stability of national economies. Informed by a comprehensive risk information database, this new financial order would include global markets for trading risks and exploiting myriad new financial opportunities, from inequality insurance to intergenerational social security. Just as developments in insuring risks to life, health, and catastrophe have given us a quality of life unimaginable a century ago, so Shiller's plan for securing crucial assets promises to substantially enrich our condition.
Once again providing an enormous service, Shiller gives us a powerful means to convert our ordinary riches into a level of economic security, equity, and growth never before seen. And once again, what Robert Shiller says should be read and heeded by anyone with a stake in the economy.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Shiller is best known for arguing, as he did in Irrational Exuberance, that stock market movements do not reflect underlying economic reality and that the volatility of the market makes the financial system unstable. It is therefore a surprise to find him advocating vast expansion of financial derivative markets to reduce the economic risk faced by individuals and countries. According to Shiller, governments should swap 10% or more of their gross domestic product with other countries and administer income swaps among entire generations. Individuals should manage risk by trading in new financial instruments based on the lifetime income of their profession, the value of homes in their area or economic statistics like the unemployment rate or inflation rate. Money, he says, will be replaced by "indexed units of account" tied to things like wage rates and commodity prices. People will carry transponders to report on their every activity, with the results stored in "global risk information databases," containing all personal information, including genetic data but protected against unauthorized access. In this way, the government can eliminate the underground economy and tax evasion and individuals will enjoy more economic security. The author admits people don't think they want this additional security, but he advocates "psychological framing" to change their viewpoint. The book is certain to be controversial. Some will see a visionary, high-tech combination of the best of capitalism and socialism. Others will be reminded of Brave New World and 1984, with privacy, freedom and adventure traded for a totalitarian mediocrity founded on constant monitoring and propaganda.
