Are the Rich Necessary?

Never was so much owed by so few to so many

Hunter Lewis, author of Are the Rich Necessary? talks about how the rich can actually be a benefit to us all

"Excellent . . . Lewis has an ingenious idea . . . that he hopes will elicit agreement from the proponents of the major value perspectives."

"Great reading for anyone interested in quickly expanding their knowledge of today's political–economic issues."

Hunter Lewis…does not get lost in lengthy academic analyses.... His approach to the topics is very direct, the pulp of the debates on all sides of a multifaceted problem is squeezed out, and opposing positions are made to stand on their own against each other.... Lewis is a master at getting the theories naked for the confrontation, without academic embellishments, with their pros and cons, and down to their essential and pragmatic characters.

"Utterly enthralling."

— McClatchy News Service

"A tour de force of economic thinking."

— Arthur Segel (Professor of Management Practice, Harvard Business School)

"Carefully weighing the pros and cons of big-think economic issues . . .Lewis . . . offers some big ideas of his own."

— Justin Ewers (U.S. News & World Report)

"Highly readable . . .[with] punchy . . . argument[s]."

— Harvard Magazine

"Goes back to the basic[s] . . . of economics."

— Daljit Dhalival (ABC News)

"Lewis sees great promise in expanding the nonprofit sector . . . to bring the various economic factions together."

— Lisa Von Ahn (Reuters)

"Radical, thought provoking."

— Lord Rothschild (Jacob)

"Creative."

— Boston Globe

"Pits the likes of Al Sharpton against Milton Friedman. Fair fight."

— Jesse Eisinger (Conde Nast Portfolio)

"Interesting . . . refreshing."

— Thomas Kostigan (Market Watch, Dow Jones)

"Hunter Lewis . . . argues both sides of such questions as 'Are there alternatives to the profit system?' and 'Can government protect us from the excesses of the profit system?' . . . [then] sets forth his own argument on the best way to ease poverty and create economic cooperation, which he says is key to building lasting societal wealth."

— Anne W. Howard (The Chronicle of Philanthropy)

"Provocative."

— Mike Schneider (Bloomberg Television)

"Prompts the reader to question his or her assumptions."

— Kathryn Fuller (Chair of the Board, Ford Foundation)

The 'rich question' is the issue on which economics was founded."

— Mark Thornton (LewRockwell.com)

"I'm intrigued."

— Helen Jonsen (Forbes.com)

"A fantastic book, a must read, five stars out of five."

— Pat Gorman (Colorado Radio)

"[Lewis] . . . break[s] complex subjects down into understandable language."

— David Maurer (Daily Progress, Charlottesville, Virginia)