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Finalmente in italiano questa rassegna analitica dei sistemi economici alternativi al capitalismo avanzato, quanto mai attuale e urgente di fronte alle crisi finanziarie, alla crescente disoccupazione e all'inesorabile allargarsi delle diseguaglianze. Dialogando con la figlia indignata di fronte alle ingiustizie socio-economiche, l'autore la conduce in un tour delle possibili alternative al capitalismo, dalla Repubblica platonica al comunismo anarchico, dal socialismo azionario alla pianificazione di stampo sovietico, affrontando temi quali proprietà privata, mercato, cooperazione, welfare state, reddito universale

The transition from an oil-based to a knowledge-based economy requires that the Saudi population dramatically increases its level of human capital. This paper argues that noncognitive skills may be a bottleneck in the formation of human capital and proposes a policy to indirectly strengthen those skills. The core of the proposal is a government-financed gift to each Saudi citizen reaching adult age, the SSGY. -- Saudi Arabia ; Stakeholder Society ; Value Systems ; Economic Development

We develop an economic theory of tolerance where lifestyles and traits are invested with symbolic value by people. Value systems are endogenous and taught by parents to their children. In conjunction with actual behavior, value systems determine the esteem enjoyed by individuals. Intolerant individuals attach all symbolic value to a small number of attributes and are irrespectful of people with different ones. Tolerant people have diversified values and respect social alterity. We study the formation of values attached to both endogenous and exogenous attributes, and identify circumstances under which tolerance spontaneously arises. Policy may affect the evolution of tolerance in distinctive ways, and there may be efficiency as well as equity reasons to promote tolerance.

Since objective news coverage is vital to democracy, captured media can seriously distort collective decisions. The current paper develops a voting model where citizens are uncertain about the welfare eÞects induced by alternative policy options and derive information about those eÞects from the mass media. The media might however secretly collude with interest groups in order to in.uence the public opinion. In the case of voting over the level of a productivity-enhancing public bad, it is shown that an increase in the concentration of firm ownership makes the occurrence of media bias more likely. Although media bias is not always welfare worsening, conditions for it to raise welfare are restrictive. -- Mass Media ; Public Bads ; Voting ; Wealth Inequality