{"title":"Independent Studies In Political Economy","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"depression-war-and-cold-war-book-robert-higgs-9781598130294","title":"Depression, War, and Cold War","description":"Offering a powerful interpretation of U.S. political economy from the early-1930s to the end of the Cold War, this resource refutes many popular myths about the Great Depression and New Deal, the World War II economy, and the postwar national-security state that is still so pervasive today. \u003ci\u003eWhat accounts for the extraordinary duration of the Great Depression?\u003c\/i\u003e \u003ci\u003eHow did the war alter relations between government and leaders of big business? What is Congress s role in the military-industrial-congressional complex? \u003c\/i\u003eThis book answers these and other crucial questions by presenting new insights and analyses along with statistical evidence that defies mainstream interpretation of economic history.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":49642383311121,"sku":"GOR004815359","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50579526418705,"sku":"CIN1598130293G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ VERY_GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":51695203385617,"sku":"CIN1598130293VG","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1598130293.jpg?v=1751458923"},{"product_id":"housing-america-book-randall-g-holcombe-9781412810463","title":"Housing America","description":"Housing policy not only aff ects all Americans' quality of life, but has a direct impact on their fi nancial well being. About 70 percent of American households own their own homes, and for most, their homes represent the majority of their net worth. Renters are aff ected by housing policy. Even the small minority of Americans who are homeless are aff ected by housing policies specifi cally targeted to low-income individuals.  The government's increasing involvement in housing markets, fed by popular demand that government \"do something\" to address real problems of mortgage defaults and loans, provides good reason to take a new look at the public sector in housing markets. Crises in prime mortgage lending may lower the cost of housing, but the poor and homeless cannot benefi t because of increases in unemployment. Even the private market is heavily regulated. Government policies dictate whether people can build new housing on their land, what type of housing they can build, the terms allowed in rental contracts, and much more.  This volume considers the eff ects of government housing policies and what can be done to make them work better. It shows that many problems are the result of government rules and regulations. Even in a time of foreclosures, the market can still do a crucial a job of allocating resources, just as it does in other markets. Consequently, the appropriate policy response may well be to signifi cantly reduce, not increase, government presence in housing markets. Housing America is a courageous and comprehensive eff ort to examine housing policies in the United States and to show how such policies aff ect the housing market.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":49732705026321,"sku":"GOR013774806","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":49802989142289,"sku":"CIN1412810469G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1412810469.jpg?v=1750714358"},{"product_id":"lessons-from-the-poor-book-alvaro-vargas-llosa-9781598130201","title":"Lessons from the Poor","description":"An important contribution to the literature of economic development, this book presents case studies of productive entrepreneurship in contemporary Africa and Latin America. It looks at the growth of Kenya's chain stores and one-person kiosks, the rise of barter clubs in Argentina, and Nigeria's clothing-design industry to illustrate economists' insights about entrepreneurship and the role that government regulations often play in impeding economic development.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":49810411061521,"sku":"CIN159813020XG","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/159813020X.jpg?v=1751457459"},{"product_id":"winners-losers-and-microsoft-book-stan-j-liebowitz-9780945999805","title":"Winners, Losers and Microsoft","description":"\u003cb\u003eHave the antitrust actions by the Department of Justice against Microsoft and other firms really intended to protect consumers, or are they politically motivated attempts to help competitors achieve what they could not achieve in the marketplace?\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Can dominant companies in a market, such as Microsoft, \"lock in\" inferior technologies and thereby stifle innovation and would-be competitors?\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Do \"network effects\"--the fact that some products, such as telephones and fax machines, increase in value as more people use them--result in monopolies even if dominant companies do not seek to create monopolies?\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Do the current antitrust laws discourage entrepreneurship and innovation?\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Will the robust high tech competition and tremendous technological advances of recent years continue if government steps up its antitrust actions?\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eWinners, Losers \u0026amp; Microsoft\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e addresses such questions and sheds light on the real workings of the high tech markets. Through extensive research and insightful analysis, Professors Liebowitz and Margolis shatter many long-held beliefs about competition in the high technology industries. Among their surprising findings:\u003cbr\u003e \u003cul trebuchet=\"\" font-optical-sizing:=\"\" font-size-adjust:=\"\" font-kerning:=\"\" font-feature-settings:=\"\" font-variation-settings:=\"\" vertical-align:=\"\" list-style-position:=\"\" list-style-image:=\"\" color:=\"\"\u003e \u003cli\u003eSoftware prices fall dramatically in markets where Microsoft is a major player, but prices show no strong tendency to fall over time if Microsoft is not a factor in a given market.\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003eClaims that dominant but inferior technologies can \"lock out\" better competitive products are not supported by the data. This not only applies to software, but also to other technology markets (i.e. VHS vs. Beta video recorder battles).\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003eSuperior products tend to dominate in high technology, even if inferior products are backed by lots of money. For example, Intuit's Quicken has dominated Microsoft Money for several years despite intensive efforts by Microsoft to promote Money. And AOL has significantly increased its market share in recent years even through Microsoft incorporated software for the Microsoft Network into its Windows operating system.\u003c\/li\u003e \u003c\/ul\u003e \u003cbr\u003e Liebowitz and Margolis demonstrate how a high-tech company can go from a dominant market leader--as Lotus once was in spreadsheets--to an also-ran with astonishing speed. They show that free markets in high technology do a remarkable job of continually delivering better products at lower prices to consumers.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eWinners, Losers \u0026amp; Microsoft\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e makes a compelling case that the real danger to American high technology leadership is a too powerful, too intrusive government which believes it knows consumer preferences and needs better than they do. This book is a cogent, tightly argued rebuttal to frequent calls for greater government intervention in the high technology markets.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50049631781137,"sku":"CIN0945999801G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":50896354410769,"sku":"GOR007072465","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/0945999801.jpg?v=1751012718"},{"product_id":"aquanomics-book-randy-simmons-9781412845786","title":"Aquanomics","description":"Water is becoming increasingly scarce. If recent usage trends continue, shortages are inevitable. Aquanomics discusses some of the instruments and policies that may be implemented to postpone, or even avoid, the onset of \"water crises.\" These policies include establishing secure and transferable private water rights and extending these rights to uses that traditionally have not been allowed, including altering in-stream flows and ecosystem functions. The editors argue that such policies will help maximize water quantity and quality as water becomes scarcer and more valuable. Aquanomics contains many examples of how this is being accomplished, particularly in the formation of water markets and market-like exchanges of water rights.  Many observers see calamity ahead unless water supplies are harnessed and effectively conserved, and unless water quality can be improved. It is also clear that declining water quality is a serious problem in much of the world, as increasing human activities induce high levels of water degradation. Those who voice these concerns, argue the contributors to this volume, fail to consider the forces for improvement inherent in market political-economic systems that can address water issues. The contributors see water quality in economically advanced countries as improving, and they believe this establishes the validity of market-based approaches.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50373610373393,"sku":"CIN1412845785G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/B078Z24TFP.jpg?v=1750714360"},{"product_id":"neither-liberty-nor-safety-book-robert-higgs-9781598130126","title":"Neither Liberty Nor Safety","description":"The history of the United States, from the 19th century to present day, is included in this examination of the very foundations of unwarranted government intrusiveness that illuminates the two essential elements that have led to the expansion of the state s authority the ideology that the government should serve as a savior whenever people face threats to their well-being and the public fear that follows the perception of a large-scale threat to peace or prosperity. When these two factors operate simultaneously, people demand that the government take protective measures on their behalf. Hence, in an outburst of opportunism, the growth of government accelerates during the crisis, at the expense of liberty. Dr. Higgs s conclusion is undeniable: placing confidence in the government to function as savior or problem solver does not lead to the peace, prosperity, and safety that people crave. On the contrary, that misplaced confidence ultimately leads to tyranny and diminished security in Benjamin Franklin s words, Neither liberty nor safety.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"- \/ - \/ -","offer_id":50791154581777,"sku":"","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50791155859729,"sku":"CIN1598130129G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ VERY_GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":51714364440849,"sku":"CIN1598130129VG","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1598130129.jpg?v=1751457392"},{"product_id":"housing-america-book-randall-g-holcombe-9781412810203","title":"Housing America","description":"Housing policy not only aff ects all Americans' quality of life, but has a direct impact on their fi nancial well being. About 70 percent of American households own their own homes, and for most, their homes represent the majority of their net worth. Renters are aff ected by housing policy. Even the small minority of Americans who are homeless are aff ected by housing policies specifi cally targeted to low-income individuals.  The government's increasing involvement in housing markets, fed by popular demand that government \"do something\" to address real problems of mortgage defaults and loans, provides good reason to take a new look at the public sector in housing markets. Crises in prime mortgage lending may lower the cost of housing, but the poor and homeless cannot benefi t because of increases in unemployment. Even the private market is heavily regulated. Government policies dictate whether people can build new housing on their land, what type of housing they can build, the terms allowed in rental contracts, and much more.  This volume considers the eff ects of government housing policies and what can be done to make them work better. It shows that many problems are the result of government rules and regulations. Even in a time of foreclosures, the market can still do a crucial a job of allocating resources, just as it does in other markets. Consequently, the appropriate policy response may well be to signifi cantly reduce, not increase, government presence in housing markets. Housing America is a courageous and comprehensive eff ort to examine housing policies in the United States and to show how such policies aff ect the housing market.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52678018433297,"sku":"NLS9781412810203","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/9781412810203.jpg?v=1762307156"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.worldofbooks.com\/collections\/independent-studies-in-political-economy-book-series.oembed","provider":"World of Books ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}