Why Nations Fail by Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson review

In Why Nations Fail, the example of a half-American, half-Mexican city clearly illustrates good and bad government, says Tim Hazledine.

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14th July, 2012

Review

Beg, buy or borrow this brilliant book. But don’t, whatever you do, steal it. Stealing – theft, extortion, corruption, larceny (petty and grand) – is at the root of just about every economic evil, past, present and future. That’s the central thesis of Turkish-born superstar Massachusetts Institute of Technology economist Daron Acemoglu and eminent Harvard professor of government James Robinson in Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity and Poverty, a fascinating account of nations’ economic failure and success over the past two or so millennia. These guys are not ...

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