Milovesme’s Reviews > Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty > Status Update

Different current state among nations could start with small differences in type of institutions they adopted, at one point of time negligible, but critical junctures amplified them. Added with contigent factors, the gap could either become smaller or even bigger relative to other nations. And they could improve or suffer continuously. I guess having a reasonable and respectable leader is one contingent factor. Alas.

The authors claimed that inclusive institutions of economics and politics would lead a nation to prosperity, while extractive ones lead to the opposite. The nations where power is fairly distributed individual's property and freedom to determine their life direction are guaranteed, public facilities are provided, and law is enforced properly are economically strong, regardless location or natural resources owned.

The authors claimed that inclusive institutions of economics and politics would lead a nation to prosperity, while extractive ones lead to the opposite. The nations where power is fairly distributed, individual’s property and freedom to determine their life direction are guaranteed, public facilities are provided, and law is enforced properly are economically strong, regardless location or natural resources owned.

The authors claimed that inclusive institutions of economics and politics would lead a nation to prosperity, while extractive ones lead to the opposite. The nations where power is fairly distributed, individual’s property and freedom to determine their life direction are guaranteed, public facilities are provided, and law is enforced properly are economically strong, regardless location or natural resources owned.

The book's theses : Interaction between political and economic institutions cause either a country's prosperity and poverty. Economic institution is pivotal in determining it, but political institution determines the economic instution in a country (the power parties or individual have, incentives, etc). In most of countries, both have existed since ages ago which shapes their current situations. Phew.

Going down historical lane of European conquests on America, highlighting the contrasts between Spain and England over each's areas conquered. Spanish successfully obtained abundant lands and manipulated the indigenous, while English only attained the area of no meaningful resource and skeptical chief of locals which pushed em from enslaving their kins to creating system that incentivized them to work hard.

I'm reading this again from the preface. It sums up the objective of this book; showing why poor countries are poor and rich ones are rich. Hypothetically, it started from the political transformation which later decided the economic trajectory. This book will elaborate the type that works and doesn't, what makes it work, and other pre-requisites with evidences found in various studies of poor and rich countries.