Sam Bledsoe’s Reviews > Capital in the Twenty First Century > Status Update
Sam Bledsoe
is 43% done
"The invisible hand does not exist" Strong words from an economist, but to prove his point he shows how productivity of an employee can be measured, and it is an arbitrary figure given that the duties of position can change. On top of that, top earners of companies since the 70's don't use such a standard to determine their pay, but instead just ask themselves what they should be paid. Which leads to high salaries.
— Feb 19, 2017 05:04PM
Like flag
Sam’s Previous Updates
Sam Bledsoe
is 45% done
Shots fired. There's a few hours worth of proof on why GDP includes the private wealth of the citizens, and now he is starting to look at the distribution of capital in income brackets, as well as a discussion that people with the most capital inherited that capital, not earned it through they're above average skills. There's even a comment that capitalism is not a meritocracy like some claim.
— Feb 08, 2017 12:26PM
Sam Bledsoe
is 36% done
"This book is about capital" is what I have to keep telling myself. He'll say something and I'll think "But money isn't what matters, it's health and education and stuff!" But this book is about capital. I am starting to wonder if I can use some of the formulas outlined here in my personal life, though. Oh! Interesting statement: Capital gains in one city usually coincide with capital loss in another.
— Jan 30, 2017 04:52AM
Sam Bledsoe
is 31% done
The big thing this book covered is what capital was in the USA in the 19th century. Land was cheap, so immigrants with little wealth could gain large plots. And slaves counted as capital. Basically got me thinking about "the glory days" of free market capitalism. Now he is talking about how private wealth vs public wealth. Yes, this is like listening to an economics lecture!
— Jan 27, 2017 09:55AM
Sam Bledsoe
is 22% done
Some deeper examples of what capital is and comparisons between capital in 19th and 20th century. There was a period around WW1 where capital disappeared, then it became land for rent and stocks in businesses, as opposed to agriculture land and government bonds. A capitalist country has most of it's GDP made up of private capital, where communist countries tried to make most of it public.
— Jan 25, 2017 09:06AM
Sam Bledsoe
is 17% done
More to say on the idea of inherited wealth vs. no inherited wealth. More and more though, this book is becoming a more in-depth version of "The Great Escape". Both use are similar markers of equality, such as it's not enough to look at average income, we need to look at purchasing power. At the moment, this book stall has global scope, but I still have 83% to go.
— Jan 19, 2017 04:36AM
Sam Bledsoe
is 13% done
Woah, this is an intense read so far. It follows in the spirit of "The Great Escape" in that an economist looks at the question of equality. While Angus Deaton looked at what equality was (Schools, medicine, political involvement) Piketty looks at it in capitalism. Lots about how GDP is calculated. Stuff that is important: Rich countries invest in poor countries, which he shows how it hurts poor countries.
— Jan 17, 2017 06:30AM
