Review: The Conservative Nanny State

Most books that I really enjoy reading affect me in two ways:

1. Keep me up late night — can’t put ‘em down
2. Fire up a web of ideas that my brain spins off of the main narrative

The Conservative Nanny State: How the Wealthy Use the Government to Stay Rich and Get Richer by Dean Baker fits the “perfect reading bill” nicely with the added bonus that the book is FREE.

Baker’s work, much like Lakoff’s don’t think of an elephant goes to great pains to show how progressives are doomed to lose on the national political scene because they do not take the time to properly frame their arguments. Baker shows time and again how supporters of the “conservative nanny state” use big government to keep money flowing from those with less income to those with greater income.

For those on the conservative side: Yes, Baker has an agenda. Yes, Baker supports ideas that mostly support the ideals of progressives. But yet, Baker uses market-based examples to show how the conservative nanny state creates artificial markets that allow the rich to grow richer. The books greatest success is not just highlighting the many ways in which conservatives rig the game thanks to big governemnt; rather, it is illustrating very clearly how progressives can use markets to increase prosperity for all Americans, not just those already at the top.

I held off reading this book for three months because I was too cheap to print the free download out. Sigh. Three months of waiting on a great book because I didn’t want to spend $3 in printer ink. Much like Common Sense, I hope the rapid distribution of The Conservative Nanny State helps bring about a new discussion on the role of government in our lives.