Power, Inc

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., has higher revenues than the gross domestic product of all but 25 of the world's countries. Exxon has product and marketing offices in more than 80 countries, while Sweden has embassies in only 30. Rothkopf (Superclass: The Global Power Elite and the World They Are Making) uses these examples and others to show the massive influence big business wields in our world and claims that our current economic struggles are not new but, rather, have their roots in history. The rivalry between public and private power has existed for centuries, and, Rothkopf argues, must be managed to achieve a balance that will work for the future. He examines the watershed years of 1288, 1648, 1776, and 1848 to illustrate the common threads of this struggle through history. Whether it is the Treaty of Westphalia, the Industrial Revolution, or the fall of communism, Rothkopf puts an economic spin on historic events and times of change.