Imagining a Radically New Economic Model.

• Date: 01 October 2022
• Author: Gunn, Erik
• Published date: 01 October 2022
• Author: Gunn, Erik

There's an old joke that uses various concepts to illustrate "oxymoron." "Military intelligence" is probably the cheapest laugh; "small crowd," "jumbo shrimp," and "dull roar" are the most hackneyed. It's not the intention, but Robin Hahnel adds to the list with something fresh: libertarian socialism.

That's the label for the economic system Hahnel outlines in A Participatory Economy. Hahnel is a radical economist who has devoted his career to thinking about alternatives to capitalism that bring democracy to the systems in which we make our livelihood.

A Participatory Economy is a blueprint for such an alternative--not only to capitalism, but also to state-centered socialism. It's a response to the challenge the author issues in the opening pages: "Twenty-first-century socialists owe concrete answers to those who ask what we would replace capitalism with."

In place of the "comprehensive...