Annals of an Abiding Liberal

by John Kenneth Galbraith, Andrea D. Williams (Editor)

The noted economist discusses some of the intrinsic problems of corporate power, questions of individual freedom and collective responsibility, the proper role of multinational corporations, and other topics of concern to both the marketplace and the academe

Genres: Nonfiction, Politics

384 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1979

About the author

John Kenneth Galbraith was a Canadian-American economist. He was a Keynesian and an institutionalist, a leading proponent of 20th-century American liberalism and democratic socialism. His books on economic topics were bestsellers in the 1950s and 1960s. A prolific author, he produced four dozen books & over a 1000 articles on many subjects. Among his most famous works was his economics trilogy: American Capitalism (1952), The Affluent Society (1958) & The New Industrial State (1967). He taught at Harvard University for many years. He was active in politics, serving in the administrations of Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman, John Kennedy, and Lyndon Johnson. He served as US Ambassador to India under John F. Kennedy.

He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom twice: one in 1946 from President Truman, and another in 2000 from President Clinton. He was also awarded the Order of Canada in 1997, and in 2001, the Padma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian award, for strengthening ties between India and the USA.

Reviews

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume by John Kenneth Galbraith (1908-2006) is well worth reading. 'Annals of an Abiding Liberal' (1979) covers a wide spectrum of topics ranging from economics, as a matter of course, to travel, and politics. Each of these topics serves as a platform from which JKG expounds his liberal views. And this he does not without humour. The manner in which he treats his personal file the FBI accumulated over the years regarding JKG's stance on socialism makes for hilarious reading. Writing in the late seventies, Watergate provides JKG with a strong launching pad for bringing his liberal views to the forefront.

To say that JKG's writing can be characterised as sharp and witty would clearly be an understatement. He handles his subject matter in a rigorous way and leaves no doubt as to what his personal position is on the point at hand. This underlines in indubitable fashion that his self-declared status as an abiding liberal is very aptly chosen.