Russell Roberts-The Choice-Book Report Essay Example

position to select. Choice also means intense competition, more production; supply position is more than the demand, which obviously means lesser prices.

There is competition both with regard to the quantity and quality amongst the producers. Consumer is the ultimate gainer. Isn’t the consumer the proverbial King? The votaries of free enterprises will be thrilled to observe and be a part of such a system and situation. What a wonderful idea to have a market based solutions for every type of services, like Public Housing, Education, Social Security, Medicare, Transport System etc. But the ground realities are something different. Soon, a choice-saturation point is reached, its seed being choice-confusion. You are confused, when you have too many choices.

Confused decisions are not always good, at times they are worst. You remember the good old days? The number of digests and newspapers was limited. Now what all choices of reading you need to make with hundreds of magazines on each subject, dozens of important newspapers, and 500 odd TV Channels to broadcast? A news item is repeated times without number in a day. And turn your Internet button –you have the same news again! The Choice by Russell Roberts was one among the top 10 books of the year by Business Week. It was also one of the best books of the year by the Financial Times when it was first published.

It is now in the Third Edition. Roberts, in this book, in his inimical style has explained one of the very important concepts of economics—the role of free trade. For Americans, the champions of free trade, this book gives rare insights. The way to create wealth is

by specialization (refers to monopoly as well), says Roberts, and he terms it as “roundabout way to wealth. ” This book can not be put into the novel basket; it has many issues that set you thinking and compel you to find solutions. Or makes you to brood whether the given solutions are right or wrong!

The characters in the novel are dynamic in their own right. The dialogue between the late economist David Ricardo and fictional businessman Ed Johnson are thought-provoking. In this context the Choice becomes autobiographical. You can make out that it is Roberts, the Professor speaking and Johnson represents every student of international trade. Statistics and case studies provided in the novel are pointers as to what happens when trade is free and when it is controlled by the Government, overtly or covertly. Efficiency is the hallmark of free trade according to Roberts.

At times his challenging messages take a philosophical color and they become directly moral, leaving aside the strict economic perspective of profit and loss. The confusion prevails whether capital is important or labor is important. Roberts knows it perfectly well that capital without labor is dead and he leans totally on morality when he says through the voice of David Ricardo, “The real choice is between a dynamic world and a static world---a world of encouraging people to dream and acquire the skills to make those dreams come true and a world of encouraging people to be content with what they have and to dream less.

Persuasiveness and being good in spirit are the two highlighted qualities. Why should you have the choice—was the question initially posed by Marx. Why not—was

the answer of the capitalists. What is the use of wasting resources on multiple productions? Why so many brands of cars, with cut-throat advertisement cost to market them, which ultimately is a charge on the consumer’s pocket? Is it not a foolish idea? Why marketing executives have to work through the state of hypertension always? Why competition among the schools also? What indeed is the purpose of education?

Isn’t it basically the same? To produce good and skilled citizens! As you progress with reading of the book, you come to the conclusion that it is neither a work of fiction nor the literature related to real economic issues. David Ricardo in the novel is a good human being and he therefore, believes that all the players in the field of economics and production, whether it is the working class or the managerial cadre, have got to be good. But, the reality is different. Workers are not treated fairly by many CEOs, in fact they are exploited.

You read the stories of corrupt CEOs quite often in the newspapers and the giant frauds engineered by them. Everybody hopes for a simple, corruption-free world. But the theoretical analysis and practical implementation are poles apart. What is theory after all? Theory is other man’s experience. Dense economic theories by themselves are not going to contribute to economic prosperity of any country. Technological advancement has nullified the effect and punch of many economic theories of the past. The world is moving towards globalization, without any country making special efforts for it.

In the coming days, the protectionists will have a tough time, according to Russell Roberts, and viewed from any angle, he

appears to be right. Even though the book makes a light reading and doesn’t cause undue strain in narrations, he doesn’t miss the real clinchers of the subject of economics. He skillfully mixes macroeconomics and international economic theory, and sets the reader to thinking, to decide the merits and demerits of the free trade. Even if you do not know any economic theory, this book makes an interesting reading for the professional and average businessman. For the policymakers, this book should provide positive vibrations.