Jeffrey Sachs Common Wealth

I've completed Jeffrey Sachs's Common Wealth: Economics for a Crowded Planet (2008, 400p). Sachs lays out in great detail the possibilities of a successful program to promote economic growth through out the world, and most importantly, to bring places like sub-Saharan Africa up from dire poverty. Sachs lays all of this arguments with detail and skill. Don't over look his insight based on troubles in Russia after his work there. He seems to have learned and adapted. What more could one ask for? If, like me, you wonder how we can continue to enjoy our standard of living without condemning the less fortunate billions to a live of poverty, this book will give you some hope. Recommended.

A Whole New Mind

I completed A Whole New Mind: Moving from the Information Age to the Conceptual Age by Daniel Pink (238p. 2005). Pink argues that "Abundance, Asia, and Automation" will (and to some extent have) radically changed our economy from the "left-brain" areas that have marked it in the information age to "right-brain" areas today. Tasks that can be performed less expensively will go to Asia or will be automated. Also, persons want meaning and significance in a society marked by abundance. Pink's recommendation: Design, Story, Symphony, Empathy, Play, and Meaning. He provides examples for each area, and he provides useful references. On the whole, I think that he's on to something.