'The Roaring Nineties' by Joseph Stiglitz

'The Roaring Nineties' by Joseph Stiglitz is a scathing commentary on the economic and financial developments in the the U.S during the 90's. It provides a stimulating analysis of the successes and failures of the policies followed by the Clinton Government as well as the Fed during the period 1992-2000 and beyond. He brings an insiders perspective to the whole thing , since he was the Chairman of the Committee for Economic Policies during the regime of President Clinton. He therefore had a vantage point of view as regards major policy initiatives of the nineties.

His work indiscriminately criticizes the Fed for feeding on the frenzy of the markets in the Boom period during the late nineties, for which he specifically blames the Fed Chairman Mr. Alan Greenspan. According to him the market crash of 2000 could have easily been avoided had sensible ideas prevailed. He also comes down heavily on the skewed policies of institutions like IMF and the World Bank, which he says follow a an agenda set down by the Developed nations of the west,and which lets down the developing and the Least developed nations. Thus he puts all blame of the Mexican crises as well as the Asian crises at the doors of the IMF. According to him measures which suited the Western Developed nations were implemented in these crises ridden nations in the aftermath of the crises, which led to even more problems for these economies.

Though he seems to have a soft corner for President Clinton and has frequently cited his intentions as been noble, however he does not stray from taking him to task for not standing by his idealogies when it mattered the most. Thus Clinton comes under attack for allowing extensive deregulation , especially in sectors like Telecommunications , which ultimately added to the investment frenzy of the times and proved costly for the investors as well as the economy. In the end he has provided certain guidelines for future course of action,which seems more relevant today given the kind of financial mess the U.S is into on account of the Twin Deficits.

The book provides excellent insight into the way economic policy is made , and on the factors which govern the economic prowess as well as well being of a nation. It demolishes the myth of Free Trade been a boon for everyone and gives a counterpoint to those favour a no holds barred globalization. All in all the book is an excellent study into the various subunits of an economy and provides good insights for someone interested in Economics as well as Globalization. A must read for those who want to understand the drawbacks and loopholes of the present Global Economic System.