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Title: For the Common Good : Redirecting the Economy toward Community, the Environment, and a Sustainable Future by Herman E. Daly ISBN: 0807047058 Publisher: Beacon Press Pub. Date: April, 1994 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $20.00

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Average Customer Rating: 3.67

Rating: 4
Summary: Great ideas, will they work?
Comment: The opening criticisms of how economics is taught in today's university structure along with the inappropriate credence given this largely theoretical topic's conclusions are well-presented and well-received. Similarly, the general theme of the recommendations is presented very nicely. Basically, we must focus on more local goods, more self-sufficiency in communities. The authors take the time and care to address such technicalities as what exactly they mean by communities. In general their care is a strength of the book, though perhaps more of the details could have been put in appendices or footnotes rather than disturbing the flow of the text. My main complaint is that no EXAMPLES are given--real-life attempts, either successful or failed, at some of their recommendations. Without examples, all their suggestions seem unsubstantiated. A lengthy but decent read, with a nice underlying philosophy.

Rating: 5
Summary: Humane and incisive
Comment: Because of the large number of issues and sometimes conflicting solutions proposed, this is a difficult book to classify. Key, however, is the authors' profound refusal to subordinate the common good of the community to the god of the free market. This does not mean the elimination of markets where they have proven effective and non-destructive. It does mean keeping their operation within strict limits, so that people can regain a sense of community and a sustainable environment. Much of the book is taken up with showing the limits of market theory and practice, and in that sense should be studied by all with an interest in America's secular religion. Proposed solutions are decidedly non-ideological and largely eclectic. Both the left and the right should find points of agreement. All in all, this is an invaluable guide to many of the planet's most pressing problems and should be required reading for college undergraduates.

Rating: 5
Summary: Thought-Provoking in Every Way
Comment: To dismiss this book as leftist ranting or environmental hysteria is simply wrong -- and I would bet that the reviewers offering these opinions did not read the whole book. This book offers a stunning combination of ecological economics and philospohical critique. It is this dual focus that helps it avoid the dryness of most economics books and the abstractness of most environmental treatises. At bottom, Daly and Cobb are pushing for more human and manageable SCALE: meaningful work in more localized economies. Only by creating these smaller units, where entire processes can be grasped and influenced, can people change the way they think and live. The book crescendos with a discussion of the human prospect itself -- whether or not our species is on an inherently self-destructive trajectory, thanks to our very powers of ingenuity and adaptabilty. This is a book that should produce a profound change in the reader; but only if it is read slowly, carefully, and thoughtfully.

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