The Case Against the Global Economy, and for a Turn Toward the Local

by Jerry Mander (Editor), Edward Goldsmith (Editor)

Public discussions of NAFTA and GATT have failed to adequately describe the profound changes in the world economy that are being formulated or to critically examine the theories behind them. This book gathers more than 40 economic, agricultural, and environmental experts to convey a complete picture of how globalization will affect our lives.

Genres: Economics, Politics, Nonfiction

550 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1996

Reviews

[Reading · Rating 5 out of 5]

The neo Luddites were right.

This book masterfully brings together a who's who of mid 90's thinkers and activists who dedicated their lives to studying the history of and current trends related to globalization and the marketplace. The book is broken into logical sections and within each there are accessible essays (of just the right length) which provide the reader with a comprehensive understanding of what effectively works out to a master class on globalization and what is meant by the phrase 'race to the bottom'.

Unfortunately this book came out 30 years ago and it gives me NO satisfaction to write this review in 2026 and say that the contributors were all correct when they predicted where we would end up if we continued down the path we were on at the time.

That said, this book is still incredibly relevant today and the last section about solutions still offers prescient ideas and action items that can make a difference.

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I was fortunate to have attended and worked the launch party weekend in San Francisco in 1996 during which there were panels and workshops by many of the writers. In some cases I made connections with a few of the authors that lasted for decades! I'm a very fortunate guy. This book and the contributors changed my life or perhaps I should say clarified and focused me onto the path I took to get here.

[Jeff · Rating 2 out of 5]

Widescale replacing of the dollar with a barter economy...

Great.

I'll stick with Ayn Rand.

[Charlie Eggert · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this book. Published the year I graduated high school looking back from 25 years in the future. It is interesting to see the ways in which its predictions have been fulfilled or proven false. Definitely worth the effort

[Holden · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[Andy · Rating 3 out of 5]

It would have been better to read this book a dozen or more years ago. A lot of what the various authors wrote about, while interesting and important at the time, is not as relevant now in the age of terror lists, an increasingly accepted police state in the US, and the rule of the 1%. There are some bright spots out there but Clinton moved the Democratic Party to be Republican-light and things have been going downhill since then for the left. But that's just the US, right. Hardly. The almighty dollar and the WTO ensures what's good for business is what happens and terror watch means major protests are not always welcome. We had the Occupy movement which was strong for a while but, as with most movements not backed by billions of Koch brothers money, ultimately fizzled. There was some hope but hope can only sustain for so long. Anyway, I like a lot of the authors but the stories are a bit dated. They could be updated, unfortunately, very easily and expanded upon, though.

[TC · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written in '94 I believe, does feel a bit dated, but still entirely relevant.
The really exciting part was the last section of four, which deals with actual initiatives one can take on the local level, rather than the same old bad-old-Bretton-Woods-institutions lecture, which the book has quite the redundantly excessive share of. Would even go almost as far as to suggest ripping that last section out and tossing the rest (into the compost pile, of course).

[Joshua Frank · Rating 5 out of 5]

A prescient read. From the environment to labor, this is a must for anyone who wants to understand the dark follies of the global market. Hard to believe Sierra Club books published this one, given their close affair with Mr. Neoliberal himself, Bill Clinton.

[Lilac · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book lives in my bathroom too. I've had it for years but it's too much for me to just read through, I do find it really useful and informative (and depressing) though...

[Tina · Rating 4 out of 5]

makes you think...i took an ethics class that taught a certain teaching and the exact same concept was taught in the opposite way for my international business class...go figure

[Grant]

It's time to refocus on the local economy, while stringently protecting the human rights of those abroad.

[Jennifer Hughes · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating book that I didn't have time to finish (from the library). Definitely worth reading more on this topic.