TY - BOOK AU - Krugman,Paul R. TI - The great unraveling: losing our way in the new century SN - 0393326055 (pbk) AV - HC 106.83 K94g 2004 U1 - 330.973 PY - 2004/// CY - New York PB - W.W. Norton KW - Economic forecasting KW - United States KW - Monetary policy KW - Stocks KW - Prices KW - Finance KW - Politica monetaria KW - Estados Unidos KW - Pronóstico de la economía KW - Pronósticos económicos KW - Finanzas KW - Economic policy KW - 2001-2009 KW - Economic conditions KW - Foreign economic relations KW - Condiciones económicas KW - 2001 KW - Política económica KW - Relaciones económicas exteriores N1 - Includes index; pt. 1. Bubble trouble -- Irrational exuberance -- Portents abroad -- Greenspanomics -- Crony capitalism, U.S.A. -- pt. 2. Fuzzy math -- The bait -- And the switch -- 2-1=4 -- pt. 3. Victors and spoils -- Things pull apart -- The private interest -- Exploiting September 11 -- A vast conspiracy? -- pt. 4. When markets go bad -- California screaming -- Smog and mirrors -- Foreign disasters -- pt. 5. The wider view -- Global schmobal -- Economics and economists -- pt. 5. War and terror -- Dollars and cents -- Abuses of power N2 - The Great Unraveling is a chronicle of how "the heady optimism of the late 1990s gave way to renewed gloom as a result of "incredibly bad leadership, in the private sector and in the corridors of power." Offering his own take on the trickle-down theory, economist and columnist Paul Krugman lays much of the blame for a slew of problems on the Bush administration, which he views as a "revolutionary power...a movement whose leaders do not accept the legitimacy of our current political system." Declaring them radicals masquerading as moderates, he questions their motives on a range of issues, particularly their tax and Social Security plans, which he argues are "obviously, blatantly based on bogus arithmetic." Though a fine writer, Krugman relies more heavily on numbers than words to examine the current rash of corporate malfeasance, the rise and fall of the stock market bubble, the federal budget and the future of Social Security, and how a huge surplus quickly became a record deficit. He also rails against the news media for displaying a disturbing lack of skepticism and for failing to do even the most basic homework when reporting on business and economic issues. The book is mainly a collection of op-ed pieces Krugman wrote for The New York Times between 2000 and 2003. Overall, this format works well. Krugman writes clearly about complicated issues and offers plenty of evidence and hard facts to support his theories regarding the intersection of business, economics, and politics, making this a detailed, informative, and thought-provoking book. --Shawn Carkonen UR - http://www.loc.gov/catdir/toc/ecip044/2003012060.html ER -