Why not parliamentarism?

by Tiago Ribeiro dos Santos

A common-sense, theory, and evidence-based defense of parliamentarism. The most successful "-ism" in history has far too few advocates. Tiago Ribeiro dos Santos argues that the best solution for much of what ails societies is a centuries-old system of government. "…excellent, thorough, and highly persuasive…" Arend Lijphart – University of California San Diego – author of Patterns of Government Forms & Performance in Thirty-six Countries"Democracies are not all created equal. Some constitutions perform better than others. In this book, Tiago Ribeiro dos Santos does an excellent job summarizing the existing empirical literature and making a case that parliamentary democracies outperform their competitors. This book is a valuable resource for anyone interested in constitutional design, political theory, or improving the efficacy of government." Jason Brennan – Georgetown University – author of Why Not Capitalism? "All major aspects of the debate about optimal government structure are tackled in this book by Tiago Santos. It has data, theory, literature review and some nice tirades. He convinced me. At a minimum, it will shake your convictions" Carlos Eduardo Gonçalves – Canal Por Quê? – author of Economia na palma da mã Do economês para o português"strongly recommend"Matt Yglesias - Slow Boring - author of One Billion The Case for Thinking Bigger

Genres: Politics, Nonfiction

178 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 1, 2020

Reviews

[Mark Mills · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's some good arguments and interesting data but the writing style is rather random

[Stephen Morrissey · Rating 1 out of 5]

Despite its alluring title, "Why Not Parliamentarism" is a flop as anything remotely engaging. The author writes in a decided academic paper jargon, and devotes almost the whole book to a statistical take on why parliamentary systems are better, rather than, as one example, delving into the history of parliamentary and presidential systems of government. Ignoring history is akin to hiring workers at a company and using national demographic statistics: it might lead to some good hires, but ignores past performance (which is usually the ultimate indicator of success).

A short, un-memorable and un-inspired book all around.

[andré crombie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Notes: I’m strongly in favor of the core argument — that parliaments are the best system of government — but this is less a book and more an academic paper, written in a tone both dry and unpleasant.

It is a good reminder that we direly need the titular question posed in the United States — would love to read a book that tackles this subject through the lens of history and values, in a way that could be translated more easily into advocacy and action.

[Walter Horn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A link to my complete review of this book can be found at luckorcunning.blogspot.com