The Cash Nexus: Money and Power in the Modern World, 1700-2000 [Anglais] [Broché]

The idea that money makes the world go round has become so ingrained in popular consciousness that it has almost acquired the status of eternal truth. Which is possibly by why it has escaped close examination. Until now. And as Niall Ferguson's The Cash Nexus makes clear it is one that doesn't stand up to close scrutiny. That there is a link between money and politics is unarguable. In the early 1700s, when governments discovered the black art of servicing debt through bond issues and a central bank, they unlocked the doors to warfare and empire building on a grand scale, and the ability to raise money has remained integral to domestic and international politics ever since. The question that Ferguson asks is whether the link always holds good and that, as both Marxist and right-wing historians continue to maintain, all political life is driven by economic forces. Indeed, so entrenched is the belief that governments themselves believe it. Bill Clinton's electioneering slogan, "It's the economy, stupid" has become such a given that the Labour government appear to be using it as the basis for their new campaign. And yet, as Ferguson points out, if you look at the results of recent elections, you see that the axiom carries little weight. If it had, John Major would have been re-elected in 1997 and Al Gore would have swept home in 2000. Similarly, if poor economic performance was a guarantee of electoral disaster, Margaret Thatcher would have been voted out of office in 1983. So politics--or the pursuit of power--do exist as a separate entity. Partly this may be because most people are catastrophically hopeless at assessing their economic self-interest, and partly because people are motivated by forces over and beyond money. Whatever the reason, the consequences for the way we view the world are immense, and as in The Pity of War, where Ferguson challenged some of the conventional wisdoms of the First World War, he takes a provocative pen to many of the accepted norms of the 21st century. Class war is replaced by age war, with the teens losing out; the Americans have been too timid rather than too aggressive in their global policing; and petrol tax revolts are a political inevitability. The Cash Nexus is ambitious, entertaining and thought-provoking. What it isn't is a populist history-lite easy read. Some of the ideas are just too complex to be broadbrushed; but don't give up. --John Crace --Ce texte fait référence à une édition épuisée ou non disponible de ce titre.

In a work that neatly marries the subjects of his previous books, Ferguson, who made his name with controversial popular histories of World War I (Pity of War, 1999) and the Rothschild banking empire (House of Rothschild, 1998), continues to challenge conventional wisdom. Here, he argues that the enormous expense of war, which forces governments into fiscal innovation, is the primary agent of financial change and its political repercussions, which sometimes include starting new wars. In Ferguson's view, political crises defined broadly to include those spurred by religion, law and culture cause both wars and financial disasters; the ensuing political outcomes determine the long-term economic fallout. Economic events, on the other hand, affect politics in indirect and unpredictable ways. Emphasizing the nuances and exceptions to his argument, he marshals economic statistics to support it, though he does not discuss alternative explanations for financial change. Despite frequent, jarring digressions into the minutiae of 1980s British politics and in praise of Thatcherism, the book is lucidly argued. But for a history that focuses so much on war, it includes little discussion of the military. Most controversially, Ferguson challenges the orthodox assumption that the world is headed toward a peaceful, prosperous and democratic global future. Economic success does not always lead to stability, he argues, and economic freedom is neither necessary for economic growth nor sufficient for political freedom. Nor, he warns, will economic globalization necessarily lead to greater economic or political cooperation. (Mar.) Forecast: This book will be more talked about than read, though it will attract serious readers. Like Ferguson's The Pity of War, its merits should outlive the controversy over its predictions.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --Ce texte fait référence à une édition épuisée ou non disponible de ce titre.

In this scholarly tome, Ferguson (history, Jesus Coll., Oxford; The Pity of War) presents a heavily noted, high-level economic analysis of the impact of economic trends on political change. As he thoroughly analyzes the nexus between economics and politics, he delves deep into the complex relationship among economic principles and international war, political changes in major countries, social liberalization, and national demographics. He challenges the prevailing principles of well-known author Paul Kennedy (The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers), specifically that economic change is the prime mover of political change, contending rather that the conflicting impulses of sex, violence, and power are together more powerful than money. In the book's many dense chapters, Ferguson argues that political institutions have often dominated economic development, and he deftly integrates historical trends and eras, multiple economic principles and theory, as well as modern economic growth and development. This very complex economic analysis will well serve larger university libraries supporting higher-level study in economics, especially international economic theory. Dale Farris, Groves, TX
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --Ce texte fait référence à une édition épuisée ou non disponible de ce titre.

Ferguson is a history fellow at Oxford's Jesus College and author of The House of Rothschild (1998-99), an exhaustively detailed, well-crafted chronicle of the banking dynasty. Today it is an oft-repeated notion that global corporations have supplanted national governments in setting policy and wielding influence. But Ferguson contends that throughout the last 300 years, economics has not been the primary driving force behind political and social change. He suggests that sex, violence, and power have been significant factors in shaping world events. He pulls together a boggling array of data and historical references to reach provocative conclusions, some of which seem to be contradicted by current events. For example, he predicts that individual national currencies will proliferate--even as more countries announce that they are switching from their own system to either the dollar or the euro. Time will tell! David Rouse
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --Ce texte fait référence à une édition épuisée ou non disponible de ce titre.

"A sweeping survey of the financial affairs of nations states."

"Original, creative...deeply researched."

Ferguson is "a phenomenon in the making."

"[Ferguson] pulls together a boggling array of data and historical references to reach provocative conclusions..."

Acclaimed historian Niall Ferguson offers a radical new history of the links between politics and economics, drawing unsettling conclusions about the future of capitalism and democracy.

Conventional wisdom has long claimed that economic change is the prime mover of political change, whether in the age of industry or Internet. But is it? Ferguson thinks it is high time we re-examined the link--the nexus, in Thomas Carlyle's phrase--between economics and politics. His central argument is that the conflicting impulses of sex, violence, and power are together more powerful than money.

Among Ferguson's startling claims are:

· Nothing has done more to transform the world economy than war, yet wars themselves do not have primarily economic causes.

· The present age of economic globalization is coinciding--paradoxically--with political and military fragmentation.

· Financial crises are frequently caused by unforeseen political events rather than economic fluctuations.

· The relationship between prosperity and government popularity is largely illusory.

· Since political and economic liberalization are not self-perpetuating, the so-called triumph of democracy worldwide may be short-lived.

· A bold synthesis of political history and modern economic theory, The Cash Nexus will transform the landscape of modern history and draw challenging conclusions about the prospects of both capitalism and democracy.

A text examining the history of money and power in the modern world, from the last three hundred years. Challenges previously held assumptions about the nature and dynamics of money and power, coming up with some provocative conclusions about domestic political power and finance and the relationship between debt and power. --Ce texte fait référence à une édition épuisée ou non disponible de ce titre.

Niall Ferguson is Fellow and Tutor in Modern History at Jesus College, Oxford. He is the author of The Pity of War and Virtual History.