We are a nation born from the belief that people should be free. However, since the mid of the last century, this idea has been distorted. Forces from the political Right justify exploitation by cloaking it in the rhetoric of freedom, leading to pharmaceutical companies overcharging for drugs, unchecked big tech corporations, and politicians free to incite revolution. How did we get here? What freedom are we thinking of—and should be thinking of? In the book "The Road to Freedom," Nobel laureate Joseph E. Stiglitz analyzes America's current economic system and the political ideology that created it, revealing their intertwined failure. The “free” and unregulated markets have only led to a series of crises: the financial crisis, the opioid crisis, and the inequality crisis. While a small percentage of the population has amassed significant wealth, wages for most people have remained stagnant. Free markets have exploited consumers, workers, and the environment. Such failures have fueled popular movements that believe freedom means abandoning any obligations we have to one another. As these movements gain strength, they now pose a real threat to true economic and political freedom. As an economic advisor to presidential candidates and as chief economist of the World Bank, Stiglitz has witnessed these deep changes firsthand. He argues that the failures stem from the unwavering commitment of elites to the "neoliberal experiment." Taking on giants like Friedrich Hayek and Milton Friedman head-on, Stiglitz reveals the accepted ideas about our political and economic life for what they are: distorted visions tearing at the social fabric while enriching a few. "The Road to Freedom" breaks new ground, showing how economics—including recent advances in which Stiglitz has played a critical role—is reshaping the way we think about freedom and the role of the state in a 21st-century society. Drawing on the work of contemporary philosophers, Stiglitz explains a deeper and more humane way to evaluate freedoms—one that carefully considers what to do when one person's freedom clashes with another's. We must reimagine our existing economic and legal systems and embrace forms of collective action, including regulation and investment if we are to create an innovative society in which everyone can thrive. The mission could not be more urgent, and Stiglitz's latest book is essential reading for those committed to the American idea of an economic and political system that delivers prosperity, opportunity, and real freedoms for all.
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