economy from colonial times to the late 90s. It includes fascinating
insights into the US story. One of my favorites was a lament from
1844:
"The world is going too fast. Railroads and steamers race against
time ... Oh, for the good old days of heavy coaches that speed
at 6 mph".
This is the first recorded use of the phrase "good old days".
The man who said it was born when the world technically,
economically, and socially was very similar to that of his
great, great grandparents. Now it was commonplace to see
the technology of one's youth slowly vanish.
One thing I thought could have been cut was the last part of
the book on the rise of the internet economy. It reads very
outdated even today, and would have benefited from more
historical perspective.
What I would have liked see replace it was a discussion on
the role of chains. This I believe has a much longer history,
and it would have been interesting to read of the establishment
of national businesses, and the response of the locally owned.
IMO, the biggest error of commission in the book was its
insistence that the lack of a central bank led to the many
financial collapses in US history. I believe a more likely
culprit is increasing redistribution of wealth upwards.
It is surely not a coincidence that inequality hit highs
just before the Great Depression, and the crisis of 2008.
The biggest omission was the ugly side of the US economy -
bloody labor wars, unsafe workplaces, and more.
Despite my quibbles, this is a magnificent book. The story
of innovation in the US economy is a big part of US history,
and this book does a magnificent job there. I highly recommend
reading it.
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