Leigh Phillips is a science writer whose work has appeared in Nature, Science, the New Scientist and the Guardian, amongst other publications. Michal Rozworski is a union researcher and writer based in Vancouver, Canada. He holds graduate degrees in economics and philosophy and publishes frequently on political economy.
A tour de force through the history of economic planning, from the dark heart of capitalism to the self-management of workers, from the earliest agricultural civilizations to the cybersocialists of the twentieth century. Far from markets being the ahistorical basis of society, it is conscious human planning that has repeatedly been at the center of economic life. In the midst of new technologies, imminent climate change havoc, and economic stagnation, this book makes the passionate and persuasive case that democratic socialist planning is more necessary and more possible than ever before. -Nick Srnicek, Inventing the Future and Platform Capitalism An impressive accomplishment ... the voice and writing style are wonderfully accessible without pandering. Here countless socialist arguments are presented clearly and powerfully, and I trust that it will give many others the confidence to speak as socialists. - Sam Gindin, coauthor of The Making of Global Capitalism Provocative and lively book. - Morning Star Philips and Rozworski's book is a timely exhortation to rethink the wisdom that markets always do it better. - Hettie O'Brien, New Statesman