In this second part of our review of Capital in the 21st Century, we look at Thomas Piketty’s ideas from the point of view of speculation and futurism, and consider some of the criticisms of the book. Last week in Part 1, we covered the book’s basic ideas about how to measure and talk about inequality, so if missed that check it out first. In this follow-up we cover Piketty’s demographic projections and whether they hold up in a world of AGI or emulated brains, as well as whether Baby Boomers will live forever and perpetually own the world. We also cover criticisms such as Larry Summers’s and wonder whether his argument isn’t more Marxist than he indicates.
Relevant Links
- Review the Future podcast episode 027: Review of Thomas Piketty’s CAPITAL IN THE 21ST CENTURY, Part 1: Summary
- Thomas Piketty’s Capital in the 21st Century
- Tyler Cowen’s review at Foreign Affairs
- NYT Upshot article: A New Critique of Piketty Has Its Own Shortcomings
- FT Alphaville article: Piketty and the case for land capital
- The Inequality Puzzle by Lawrence H. Summers