Today's guest is Swedish historian Johan Norberg, author of The Capitalist Manifesto: Why the Global Free Market Will Save the World, which caught the eye of Elon Musk. "This book is an excellent explanation of why capitalism is not just successful, but morally right," Musk tweeted.
Norberg wrote the book to combat a growing belief on the right and the left that libertarian values of individual autonomy, property rights, limited government, and free enterprise are failing to raise living standards and need to be ditched in favor of more centralized power and control over virtually all aspects of our lives. A senior fellow at the CATO Institute, Norberg shows that life is actually getting better for all of us—especially the world's poor—and that economic globalization, political liberalization, and cultural freedom are the main drivers of that improvement.
We talk about how liberals and conservatives get the past wrong, why he's not worried about China's supposedly unstoppable economic growth, and why the cases for free trade, free expression, and more immigration need to be constantly updated and renewed.
Norberg's previous appearances:
Johan Norberg: How Sweden Defied Dire COVID Predictions
America Should be More Like Sweden. But Not for the Reasons You Think
Capitalism and Neoliberalism Have Made the World Better
Johan Norberg: 10 Reasons To Look Forward To the Future
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- The Best of Reason Magazine. Every Tuesday, listen to a curated selection of some of the best writing from Reason, read aloud to you by a robot voice modeled off Editor in Chief Katherine Mangu-Ward.
The post Johan Norberg: Why We Need a <i>Capitalist Manifesto</i> appeared first on Reason.com.
