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The Little Big Number : How GDP Came to Rule the World and What to Do about It
- Author / Creator
- Available as
- Online
- Summary
-
In one lifetime, GDP, or Gross Domestic Product, has ballooned from a narrow economic tool into a global article of faith. It is our universal yardstick of progress. As The Little Big Number demons...
In one lifetime, GDP, or Gross Domestic Product, has ballooned from a narrow economic tool into a global article of faith. It is our universal yardstick of progress. As The Little Big Number demonstrates, this spells trouble. While economies and cultures measure their performance by it, GDP ignores central facts such as quality, costs, or purpose. It only measures output: more cars, more accidents; more lawyers, more trials; more extraction, more pollution-all count as success. Sustainability and quality of life are overlooked. Losses don't count. GDP promotes a form of stupid growth and igno.
Details
- Creator
- Dirk Philipsen
- Format
- Books
- Language
- English
- Publication
-
- Princeton : Princeton University Press, 2017
- Physical Details
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- 1 online resource : 2 halftones. 9 line illustrations 3 tables
- data file
- ISBNs
- 9781400865529, 1400865522, 9780691175935
- OCLC
- on1100697223
- Cover; Title; Copyright; CONTENTS; Acknowledgments; Introduction: We Become What We Measure; Casting a Spell; Exploring a Path; 1. More, Better, Faster: The Beginnings ; Productivity, Growth, and Success; Goals and Measures; Values and Measures; 2. The Origins of Bling: The Spirit of Economic Growth ; The World of Growth: Refining the Measure; Business Accounting Goes National; 3. The Crucible of Crisis: The Great Depression and the Need for Economic Indicators ; 4. Born from Disaster: The Making of a Key Measure ; The Challenge; The Players; The Method; The Findings
- The Big Conundrum: Translating Findings into Action5. Forged in War; 6. Global Domination: The Age of GDP ; For Richer or Poorer; A Stunted Priesthood; Stopgap Consensus; Going Global; New Rules; GDP Junkies; Shackled in Fool's Gold; 7. Today's ABC of GDP ; It's an Emperor, but Does It Have Clothes?; Why It Matters; 8. More Is Not Enough ; The Little Big Number: Our Report Card for Success; Emerging Dissent; 9. "The People of Plenty Are a People of Waste"; Breaking the Spell; 10. From Alchemy to Reason: What If? A Thought Experiment; Mental Cobwebs; One More Time: Simon Kuznets
- Clearing a Path11. Looking Forward; A Daring Vision; A Moment of Possibility; Appendix A. The Measure as Guide; Notes; Bibliography; Index