''Economics Does Not Lie: A Defense of the Free Market in a Time of Crisis'' (; published in French in 2008) is a non-fiction book by

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

classical liberal Classical liberalism is a political tradition and a branch of liberalism that advocates free market and laissez-faire economics and civil liberties under the rule of law, with special emphasis on individual autonomy, limited government, eco ...

economist An economist is a professional and practitioner in the social sciences, social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy. Within this ...

and

philosopher Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

Guy Sorman Guy Sorman (born March 10, 1944, Nérac) is a French-American professor, columnist, author, and public intellectual in economics and philosophy. Biography Guy Sorman has written twenty books that promote the ideals of creativity and modern ca ...

. Sorman argues that while the recent world economic recession involved serious problems, it would be a grievous mistake to use the crisis as justification to abandon

free market In economics, a free market is an economic market (economics), system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of ...

democratic

capitalism Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their use for the purpose of obtaining profit. This socioeconomic system has developed historically through several stages and is defined by ...

. Sorman writes that the current system has resulted in huge benefits with about a billion people worldwide lifted out of

poverty Poverty is a state or condition in which an individual lacks the financial resources and essentials for a basic standard of living. Poverty can have diverse Biophysical environmen ...

Encounter Books Encounter Books is a book publisher in the United States known for publishing conservative authors. It was named for '' Encounter'', the now defunct literary magazine founded by Irving Kristol and Stephen Spender. Based in New York City since 20 ...

published the English-language version of the book on July 20, 2009. Sorman had previously authored over twenty other books on international social-economic issues such as ''The New Wealth of Nations'' (1987), ''The Genius of India'' (2000), and ''The Empire of Lies'' (2008) as well as written for ''

City Journal ''City Journal'' is a public policy magazine and website, published by the conservative think tank Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, that covers a range of topics on urban affairs, such as policing, education, housing, and other issues. ...

'', ''

Le Figaro () is a French daily morning newspaper founded in 1826. It was named after Figaro, a character in several plays by polymath Pierre Beaumarchais, Beaumarchais (1732–1799): ''Le Barbier de Séville'', ''The Guilty Mother, La Mère coupable'', ...

'', and ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...

''. He also taught economics at the Paris Institute of Political Sciences from 1970 to 2000. He based this book on a

French language French ( or ) is a Romance languages, Romance language of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European family. Like all other Romance languages, it descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire. French evolved from Northern Old Gallo-R ...

article that ''

'' published (translated into English by Ralph C. Hancock) in its Summer 2008 issue.

Sorman provides an overview of economics as a

social science Social science (often rendered in the plural as the social sciences) is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among members within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the ...

based on empirical hypothesis-testing and factual observations. He details research such as work by

Edward Prescott Edward Christian Prescott (December 26, 1940 – November 6, 2022) was an American economist. He received the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics in 2004, sharing the award with Finn E. Kydland, "for their contributions to dynamic macroeconomics: ...

of taxation on

economic growth In economics, economic growth is an increase in the quantity and quality of the economic goods and Service (economics), services that a society Production (economics), produces. It can be measured as the increase in the inflation-adjusted Outp ...

, by

Jagdish Bhagwati Jagdish Natwarlal Bhagwati (born July 26, 1934) is an Indian-born naturalization, naturalized American economist and one of the most influential trade theorists of his generation. He is a University Professor (Columbia), University Professor of ec ...

on the benefits of

international trade International trade is the exchange of capital, goods, and services across international borders or territories because there is a need or want of goods or services. (See: World economy.) In most countries, such trade represents a significan ...

, by

Milton Friedman Milton Friedman (; July 31, 1912 – November 16, 2006) was an American economist and statistician who received the 1976 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for his research on consumption analysis, monetary history and theory and ...

and

Robert Lucas The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' () "fame, glory, honour, praise, reno ...

on the effects of

inflation In economics, inflation is an increase in the average price of goods and services in terms of money. This increase is measured using a price index, typically a consumer price index (CPI). When the general price level rises, each unit of curre ...

, and by

Avner Greif Avner Greif (; born 1955) is an economics professor at Stanford University, Stanford, California. He holds a chaired professorship as Bowman Family Professor in the Humanities and Sciences. Greif received his PhD in economics at Northwestern Un ...

on the value of strong social institutions. He writes about economic progress in the

developing world A developing country is a sovereign state with a less-developed industrial base and a lower Human Development Index (HDI) relative to developed countries. However, this definition is not universally agreed upon. There is also no clear agreeme ...

, particularly the nations of India, China, and Brazil, which he credits to reforms such as opening borders to allow greater

foreign direct investment A foreign direct investment (FDI) is an ownership stake in a company, made by a foreign investor, company, or government from another country. More specifically, it describes a controlling ownership an asset in one country by an entity based i ...

. Sorman refers back to the

2008 financial crisis The 2008 financial crisis, also known as the global financial crisis (GFC), was a major worldwide financial crisis centered in the United States. The causes of the 2008 crisis included excessive speculation on housing values by both homeowners ...

and the

Great Recession The Great Recession was a period of market decline in economies around the world that occurred from late 2007 to mid-2009.

, and he argues: He writes that the response of U.S. and European governments to the

, by saving some banks and not others, created an aura of regulatory uncertainty that made things worse. He describes a potential free market solution of simply shuffling severely affected banks through organized

bankruptcies Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the deb ...

to write off toxic debts. Although praising U.S. and European efforts to avoid

protectionism Protectionism, sometimes referred to as trade protectionism, is the economic policy of restricting imports from other countries through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, import quotas, and a variety of other government regulations ...

post-crisis, he asserts that his recommended approach "could have brought a more severe recession, but a shorter one, followed by a quicker rebound."

Reviews

Journalist Stephen Spruiell wrote a positive review for the

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

news and opinion website ''

National Review Online ''National Review'' is an American conservative editorial magazine, focusing on news and commentary pieces on political, social, and cultural affairs. The magazine was founded by William F. Buckley Jr. in 1955. Its editor-in-chief is Rich Lo ...

''. Spruiell stated that Sorman made a compelling case in favor of free markets, and Spruiell stated that "the only flaw" was that Sorman seemed to overestimate "at times the degree to which economists have reached a consensus." Spruiell remarked in his review, "Economics does not lie; on this point, Sorman is correct. But we must contend with the fact that economists sometimes do."

References

External links

The Embassy of France and Full Circle celebrate the release of Guy Sorman's ''Economics Does Not Lie'', Thursday 1 July, 2010.
*{{cite web, title=Book Discussion on ''Economics Does Not Lie'', url=http://www.c-span.org/video/?287699-1/book-discussion-economics-lie, publisher=

C-SPAN Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network (C-SPAN ) is an American Cable television in the United States, cable and Satellite television in the United States, satellite television network, created in 1979 by the cable television industry as a Non ...

, accessdate=26 April 2015, date=9 July 2009 2008 non-fiction books Non-fiction books about the Great Recession Books about capitalism Libertarian books Classical liberalism Encounter Books books

Contents

Reviews

See also

References

External links