Review by Abacus -- Restore Trust by Werner NEFF

[Abacus]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Restore Trust" by Werner NEFF.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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Restore Trust by Werner Neff is a rigorous analysis of "current social and political issues in the U.S." and his proposed "economic solutions." Neff predicates that "employment, the budget deficit, and taxes are influential in economic decision making."

Minimum wage earners cannot survive without government programs to supplement their income; showing that America is not the free market it purports to be. Taxpayers must contribute to saving working people from starving, and working people must frequently work more than one job. He postulates it would be better to pay a living wage, allow the consequences of high prices or less profit, and reduce the welfare spending. The buying public would spend the same in aggregate for their goods but in a proper free-market environment. People in minimum wage jobs would maintain the dignity of supporting themselves adequately and not pay penalties for being poor. In the words of AlterNet's Greta Christina: "Being poor is expensive."

His thoughts on poverty suggest that welfare programs have institutionalized poverty and create and sustain it. He states that America is a welfare state and describes in detail the poverty traps that are self-sustaining. Based on Neff's experience in Switzerland: he advocates that full-time and part-time employees pay into a fully funded national and personal pension. Neff initially thought that America was a great democracy but after living here awhile saw that many voters were dissatisfied with their government.

Neff's provides meticulous research, and he offers a multitude of statistics to support his observations. Neff offers excellent insight into political influences over the last century, which affect America today. He suggests that at one time, each of the political parties was made up of conservatives and liberals. This mixture meant they were capable of governing and agreeing on a policy. However, in the present climate, each party is polarized and disparages the other to the detriment of civil government.

Many of Neff's observations are compelling, although I cannot wholly agree with his political outlook. He also discusses a gig economy - like Uber playing broker between consumer and supplier -, healthcare, the budget deficit, and our broken tax code. Neff concludes with a call to action: "The advantages of democracy are not offered freely; citizen action is necessary, such as supporting equal voting rights, becoming active in the political system, and reminding legislators of their campaign promises." His call to action specifies the steps we need to take under the headings of "Strengthen Democracy," "Fight Poverty," and "Reform the Economy."

Restore Trust deserves a 4 out of 4-star rating for its thorough research and comprehensive analysis of America's sociopolitical issues. It does not warrant 3 out of 4 stars because I detected no errors and it seems professionally edited. I recommend it to politicians, the voting public, and students of politics and economics. It could be read by anyone who cares about America’s future and the future of unborn generations. It is a call to action from the heart of an economist.

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Restore Trust
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[Erin Painter Baker]

Nice review. I don't know if I would completely agree with the author's politics either, but it certainly sounds like a book worth reading.

[Juliet+1]

Thanks for a very helpful review. This sounds like exactly my kind of book. I'm fascinated by the many ideas swirling around about how to fix our economy/democracy and make it more fair to all.

[Abacus]

Thanks for a very helpful review. This sounds like exactly my kind of book. I'm fascinated by the many ideas swirling around about how to fix our economy/democracy and make it more fair to all.

Not only our economy, seems like most of Europe needs fixing, and China and India. There are good answers to the world's problems but seemingly not many thinking people like the Founding Fathers who started democracy in America. OnlineBookClub.org has published many such books and they do make good reading.

[Abacus]

Nice review. I don't know if I would completely agree with the author's politics either, but it certainly sounds like a book worth reading.

Thanks. America is at such a crossroads and I commend the authors who think about it all and provide guidelines for society.