Getting It Right: Markets and Choices in a Free Society

Since 1991, Robert Barro has been a contributor to the "Wall Street Journal" and other popular financial media. "Getting it Right" brings together, updates and expands upon these writings that show Barro's agility in applying economic understanding to a wide array of social issues. Barro, a "conservative who takes no prisoners", and a self described libertarian, believes that most governments have gone much too far in their spending, taxation and regulation. The dominant theme in these wide-ranging essays is the importance of institutions that ensure property rights and free markets. The discussion deals especially with the appropriate range of government: which areas represent useful public policy and which are unnecessary interference. The first section of the book considers these questions in the context of the determinants of long-run economic growth. In addition to basic economics, Barro assesses related political topics, such as the role of public institutions, the optimal size o