Currently Reading: Why Nations Fail (Chapters 5-7)

The hypothesis in Why Nations Fail is that the prosperity of nations is directly linked to politics and economics. In places that are inclusive with politics and economics, regular citizens have a say in how things are run, as well as access to capital and opportunities that provide them with motivation to work hard and innovate because they can make their own lives better (economic incentives). The farther societies drift from this ideal, the more they become rooted in "extractive" or exploitative systems where political elites (who have power) and economic elites (who are rich) work to pass laws to benefit themselves without regard to the general populace. It's this centralization of power that's the problem and leads to the demise of nations and empires. What's interesting is that these prosperous, powerful societies (inclusive nations) can only be destroyed from within. It is the internal conflicts, based in the struggle between the ruling class and the regular citizens, that can destroy a nation with infighting.

When external enemies fought the empires in the past when they were inclusive, they were defeated by the unity of the nation, even though they were more coordinated and unified than the groups within the nation's inner struggles that end up being their ultimate demise. They cited examples from Venice and ancient Rome, pointing out how when the exploitative practices started to lead to a decline in prosperity, the ruling class sought to mollify the general populace with free food and free entertainment to keep them distracted.

My opinion is that it's interesting to consider America in this light. Is the current unrest that we're seeing rooted in something like this? Have we long since drifted away from the inclusive nature of the society that was created following the Revolutionary War? If nations fail because the systems and laws have been twisted to largely benefit certain portions of society without regard to others, who is responsible, and what can be done? If America is failing as a nation, according to this book,  there's a simple solution: Return the power to the people. How can return the power to the people? We do this by decentralizing the power that's concentrated in the hands of the economic elite and the corrupt politicians who want to keep the status quo because they are the ones benefiting most from the system as it is to the detriment to everyone else.

If this hypothesis is true, there are two steps to saving the America:

1. Regulate Lobbying and Special Interest Groups 

2. Term Limits for all Political Positions

 

If we implemented these two steps, the current consolidation of power into the hands of the few would be disbursed among the citizens again, which according to this book is what leads to prosperity, innovation, and success in a nation.