Book Review: A Nation of Takers
I have just finished reading 'A Nation of Takers' by Nicholas Eberstadt, a reknowned statistician and demographer, who's work on this short and very concise little treatise is both laudable and indispensable. To put it plainly, I believe that EVERYONE SHOULD READ THIS BOOK. For anyone interested in public policy, politics, or US history, it is a wonderful resource. For any American citizen, it should be mandatory. It's not long, at just over 132 small pages total (the book itself is about 6" x 4"), and it retails for about $7-10 on Amazon. The format is simple, and the writing to-the-point, reading more like a statistics report than a public policy piece. The work is grounded by a plethora of data, pulled from various reputable government agencies and think tanks, and demonstrated in numerous clear and lovely little graphs. The text works as explanation and extrapolation from this data, but the author never ventures too far from the numbers, certainly never without obvious disclaimers. The social and fiscal implications are vast and astonishing, and after the main body of the work, two well-regarded public policy analysts - William Galston, Director of the Institute for Philosophy and Public Policy; and Yuval Levin, a political analyst and fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center - offer their own challenges to these conclusions.
Most importantly, the overall tone of the work is surprisingly politically objective. Not until the very end of the book, the epilogue in fact, could I draw a solid conclusion about the likely political affiliation of the author. Regardless, Eberstadt clearly made an effort to stay as unbiased as possible, and to communicate - first and foremost - the data. In particular, he did an exemplary job at articulating the shortcomings of the data, and providing supplementary analysis and calculations in order to maintain accuracy. For example, when a particular government census gives general data as to GDP per capita, Eberstadt makes sure the numbers are reflective of inflation and population growth, thereby maintaining statistical honesty. All this is not to say, of course, that Eberstadt does not have his own opinions; clearly, he does. I only wish to highlight the fact that the author makes a praiseworthy attempt to be fair - a rarity in today's polarized political climate. Furthermore, the two critics of his conclusions are carefully chosen to represent the best and most well-reasoned versions of opposing fiscal policies. Galston gives a liberal critique; Levin offers a more conservative viewpoint.
The subject matter of the book is the history of entitlement spending in the United States from 1960 to 2010. Generally speaking, it takes into account: Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, SNAP (or food stamps), unemployment benefits, and disability benefits; and it considers how these programs have evolved since the 1960's through various political climates and presidents. Not to give too much away, but federal entitlement spending has increased dramatically since 1960, encompassing more and more of the federal budget. Eberstadt does not look too deeply into the possible social causes for this change in fiscal policy (he leaves that to Galston), but he does consider the implications of such policy. Specifically, he looks at how entitlement spending challenges our view of military spending; how it corresponds to increasing adult male underemployment; and how it burdens future generations. Speaking to these various points, Eberstadt cultivates the general notion of 'dependence,' forwarding the view that increased entitlement spending has made American individuals and families less self-reliant - essentially, breeding a 'Nation of Takers.' Although I'm not sure I fully agree with this conclusion, Eberstadt provides valuable insight.
Overall, this book gave a voice to reasonable fiscal conservatism, and gave a data-based starting point to the fiscal policy argument. It is a must read.
