Ravi Batra
Encyclopedia
Raveendra Nath "Ravi" Batra (born June 27, 1943) is an Indian-American
economist
, author, and professor at Southern Methodist University
. Batra is the author of six international bestsellers, two of which appeared on The New York Times Best Seller list. His books center around the main thesis that financial capitalism
breeds excessive inequality and political corruption which inevitably succumbs to financial crisis and economic depression.
In his works, Batra proposes an equitable distribution system known as PROUT
( PROgressive Utilization Theory) as a means to not only ensure material welfare but also to secure the ability of all to develop a full personality. In his most recent work, The New Golden Age: The Coming Revolution against Political Corruption and Economic Chaos, he analyzes the present day economic downturn and the forces behind it and predicts a "swift and stunning" revival of American ideals based on true democratic principles that will quickly spread around the world.
Ravi Batra has appeared on CBS
, NBC
, CNN
, ABC
, and CNBC
and has been profiled in The New York Times
,
Time
,
and Newsweek
.
Since the financial crisis, Batra has been a frequent guest on radio shows
and featured in numerous publications.
in the British Raj
(present day Pakistan
) on 27 June 1943. The family moved to Sonipat
near Delhi
in India
shortly after the partition
, where his father became a Professor of Sanskrit
.
in 1963 and M.A. degree from Delhi School of Economics
in 1965. In 1969 he received his Ph.D. in Economics from Southern Illinois University
. He became Assistant Professor of Economics
at the University of Western Ontario
in 1969. He moved to Southern Methodist University
in Dallas, Texas
in 1970 to become Assistant Professor of Economics. In 1972, he became Associate Professor and in 1973 he was appointed full Professor
of Economics and Head of Department at the age of 30. Prior to 1978 he published advanced theoretical articles and two books, primarily in the field of trade theory.
, who has had a profound influence on him. The ideas of Sarkar are in the tradition of Hindu idealism
—a cosmology stating that the universe, both inanimate and animate matter, is permeated with a singular consciousness, a living God
. The basic premise is that the souls of all life forms have a singular embedded motive over the evolutionary eons, going from birth to death to birth again, to develop their consciousness. Once they reach the level of human reflective consciousness it is their duty to seek to ultimately unite it with the God consciousness. Part and parcel of this view is that humans should regularly practice yogic meditation—ideate on God—and follow an ethical and vegetarian life style. But Sarkar goes further than anyone else in declaring that God realization is easier with full participation in social service. According to this philosophy, Batra rejects the basic foundations of materialist economics, including the need to consume and acquire without limit, as well as the premise that the saving of capitalists promotes the greater good through investment, itself the penultimate justification for allowing inequality to exist. Instead, Batra promotes raising the incomes of people with the sole purpose to increase their consumption, but in a balanced and sustainable way—in harmony with nature, each other and other life forms. An equitable distribution is not seen as a means to only ensure material welfare but also to secure the ability of all to develop a full personality. This is an integral part of Sarkar's practical theory of PROUT
—PROgressive Utilization Theory.
(Path of Bliss). After establishing himself in his chosen field, he decided to branch out by contributing to his mentor's work. In 1978, he published a novel book The Downfall of Capitalism and Communism: A New Study of History
, where he turned his gaze from theoretical economics to history. In the book Batra promoted the Social cycle theory of his spiritual mentor, Sarkar, based on an analysis of four distinct classes
with different psychological preferences or endowments. At the same time, Batra has theorised that economic inequality
affects economic performance and social change. He popularised the concept of the "share of wealth held by richest 1%", as an indicator of inequality and an important determinant of depressions.
, better known as capitalism
, was soon to come to an end in the West. This dramatic change was to be followed by the downfall of the age of commander
s in the Soviet Union
, more commonly known as communism
. While his predictions for capitalism to collapse within a few decades due to rampant inequality and speculation have not come true, his prediction for the collapse of communism, due to inner stasis and oppression, arrived in 1990, sooner than expected. The key reason that capitalism, as a self-perpetuating social formation, was seen to be on an unsustainable path, was the relentless drive of acquisitors to acquire ever more capital. Over time, this activity was seen to gain momentum and result in financial booms
and busts
. A depression
would then follow and as it came on top of extreme inequality it would quickly bring social chaos and revolt. As anarchy was not a normal state of affairs, the class of military leaders would step in the breech and reestablish order
and thereby usher in a new age of "commanders". In this context, Batra reviews a prior such social change, which occurred two millennia ago, when the Roman Republic
was transformed into the Roman Empire
. At that time slave uprisings were common but were violently suppressed. This period became known as the Servile Wars. At the same time, the military was in ascendancy as the Roman Army
continued to expand the empire. The pivotal figure in the development was the military leader, Julius Caesar
, who wrested control from the Senate by diluting its membership, but was in turn murdered by the disgruntled Senators
. The military class, led by his adopted son Octavian
, cemented the new social order. Batra thinks such a scenario in the future will refocus the social motivity, away from acquisition of money to a mastery of technology and physical bravery including the conquest of space
, heralding a new age of commanders in the West
. These ideas contrast starkly with those of thinkers like Francis Fukuyama
who argues in The End of History and the Last Man
that capitalism, as it is based on democracy
and freedom
, represents the pinnacle of human social development. For Fukuyama, the collapse of Soviet Communism could have been inevitable, but not that of Capitalism.
In 1980 he published Muslim Civilization and the Crisis in Iran where he predicted the fall of the Shah and the rise of a class of intellectuals, or Mullahs, followed by a drawn out war with Iraq. In 1984, he penned what was to become his first bestseller, first under the title Regular Cycles of Money, Inflation, Regulation and Depressions. A central theme of this book was that the mal-distribution of wealth, which Batra found to be the cause of past episodes of financial speculative manias that were followed by a crash and depression. Lester Thurow
was so impressed that he wrote a preface stating the ideas were "novel and brilliant". Renamed as The Great Depression of 1990, this book rose to first place on The New York Times Best Seller list for Non-Fiction in the Autumn months of 1987, just as the Dow Jones share price index was about to suffer its biggest daily drop in almost sixty years. In 1988, he followed his success with another book on how to survive the predicted calamity. The book also made it on the bestseller list. However, due to his unorthodox and controversial views, his perceived political incorrectness, honesty, and forthrightness, Batra fell out of favor with the mainstream academic community.
that year. Batra continued to publish bestselling works in Japan with economic malaise lasting until the early 2000s. In the USA, however, his sales began to drop and his booming side-line career as a media commentator on matters economic and financial began to sour. In 1993, Batra received the Ig Nobel Prize
in economics.
has enabled the rich to become richer but most people became poorer. Batra predicted that NAFTA would create unemployment in Mexico and lower wages in America. He urged the breakup of large firms, a raise in tariffs, and a drastic cut in defense spending to turn the country around. In his view, domestic monopolies generate inequality and poverty and global trade damages the industrial base and the global environment.
In 1998, he published Stock Market Crashes of 1998 and 1999: The Asian Crisis and Your Future. The book was revisiting the premise of his earlier bestselling work, arguing nothing had changed, only the palliative cures of economic policy had become more effective at suppressing the symptoms of financial capitalism, but not cure its underlying illness. He therefore predicted increasing stock market volatility. Again in 1999, he published a book The Crash of the Millennium: Surviving the Coming Inflationary Depression, which suggested a plunge in stocks. The drop in high-tech stocks in the Spring of 2000 sent a shiver through the global market place. However, his critics claimed that since the capitalist system remained relatively intact, that he was proven wrong. In 2004, he wrote a new book Greenspan's Fraud: How Two Decades of His Policies Have Undermined the Global Economy where he critically evaluates the policy prescriptions of Former Federal Reserve Chief Alan Greenspan.
In 2008 he published his most recent book, The New Golden Age: The Coming Revolution against Political Corruption and Economic Chaos, where he analyzes the present day economic downturn and the forces behind it. After some significant struggle, Batra predicts a "swift and stunning" revival of American ideals based on true democratic principles that will quickly spread around the world:
In October 2011, Batra wrote an article in Truthout in support of the OWS movement
, which is seen to be protesting the influence of wealthy financiers in government policy. Batra argues that legislative changes since the Reagan Presidency, with regard e.g. to taxes, benefits, mergers & acquisitions, have contributed greatly to increase the inequalities and economic problems in the U.S. He suggests the OWS movement push for their repeal.
Indian American
Indian Americans are Americans whose ancestral roots lie in India. The U.S. Census Bureau popularized the term Asian Indian to avoid confusion with Indigenous peoples of the Americas who are commonly referred to as American Indians.-The term: Indian:...
economist
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
, author, and professor at Southern Methodist University
Southern Methodist University
Southern Methodist University is a private university in Dallas, Texas, United States. Founded in 1911 by the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, SMU operates campuses in Dallas, Plano, and Taos, New Mexico. SMU is owned by the South Central Jurisdiction of the United Methodist Church...
. Batra is the author of six international bestsellers, two of which appeared on The New York Times Best Seller list. His books center around the main thesis that financial capitalism
Financial capitalism
Financial capitalism is a form of capitalism where the intermediation of savings to investment becomes a dominant function in the economy, with implications for the political process and social evolution...
breeds excessive inequality and political corruption which inevitably succumbs to financial crisis and economic depression.
In his works, Batra proposes an equitable distribution system known as PROUT
PROUT
Progressive Utilization Theory or PROUT is a socio-economic theory first mentioned in 1959 and fully outlined in 1962 by Indian philosopher and spiritual leader Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar . PROUT is a social system that claims to overcome the limitations of both capitalism and communism...
( PROgressive Utilization Theory) as a means to not only ensure material welfare but also to secure the ability of all to develop a full personality. In his most recent work, The New Golden Age: The Coming Revolution against Political Corruption and Economic Chaos, he analyzes the present day economic downturn and the forces behind it and predicts a "swift and stunning" revival of American ideals based on true democratic principles that will quickly spread around the world.
Ravi Batra has appeared on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
, NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
, CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
, ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
, and CNBC
CNBC
CNBC is a satellite and cable television business news channel in the U.S., owned and operated by NBCUniversal. The network and its international spinoffs cover business headlines and provide live coverage of financial markets. The combined reach of CNBC and its siblings is 390 million viewers...
and has been profiled in The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
,
Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
,
and Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
.
Since the financial crisis, Batra has been a frequent guest on radio shows
and featured in numerous publications.
Biography
Raveendra N. Batra was born near the city of MultanMultan
Multan , is a city in the Punjab Province of Pakistan and capital of Multan District. It is located in the southern part of the province on the east bank of the Chenab River, more or less in the geographic centre of the country and about from Islamabad, from Lahore and from Karachi...
in the British Raj
British Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...
(present day Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
) on 27 June 1943. The family moved to Sonipat
Sonipat
Sonipat , also spelled as Sonepat, is an ancient town and a municipal council in Sonipat district in the state of Haryana, India. It comes under National Capital Region and is 45 km north of Delhi. The Yamuna River runs along the eastern boundary of the district...
near Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
shortly after the partition
Partition of India
The Partition of India was the partition of British India on the basis of religious demographics that led to the creation of the sovereign states of the Dominion of Pakistan and the Union of India on 14 and 15...
, where his father became a Professor of Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
.
Academic career
Batra obtained his B.A. degree from Punjab UniversityPanjab University, Chandigarh
Panjab University is one of the oldest universities in India. The university campus is residential, spread over an area of in sectors 14 and 25 of the city of Chandigarh...
in 1963 and M.A. degree from Delhi School of Economics
Delhi School of Economics
Delhi School of Economics , commonly referred to as DSE or D School, is a centre of post graduate learning of the University of Delhi. The centre is situated in the university's North Campus in Maurice Nagar, and is surrounded by a host of other prestigious academic institutions of the country...
in 1965. In 1969 he received his Ph.D. in Economics from Southern Illinois University
Southern Illinois University
Southern Illinois University is a state university system based in Carbondale, Illinois, in the Southern Illinois region of the state, with multiple campuses...
. He became Assistant Professor of Economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
at the University of Western Ontario
University of Western Ontario
The University of Western Ontario is a public research university located in London, Ontario, Canada. The university's main campus covers of land, with the Thames River cutting through the eastern portion of the main campus. Western administers its programs through 12 different faculties and...
in 1969. He moved to Southern Methodist University
Southern Methodist University
Southern Methodist University is a private university in Dallas, Texas, United States. Founded in 1911 by the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, SMU operates campuses in Dallas, Plano, and Taos, New Mexico. SMU is owned by the South Central Jurisdiction of the United Methodist Church...
in Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
in 1970 to become Assistant Professor of Economics. In 1972, he became Associate Professor and in 1973 he was appointed full Professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
of Economics and Head of Department at the age of 30. Prior to 1978 he published advanced theoretical articles and two books, primarily in the field of trade theory.
Spiritual heritage
Batra's writings should be considered in terms of the philosophy of his mentor, Prabhat Ranjan SarkarPrabhat Ranjan Sarkar
Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar , also known by his spiritual name, Shrii Shrii Anandamurti , was an Indian philosopher, author, social revolutionary, poet, composer and linguist...
, who has had a profound influence on him. The ideas of Sarkar are in the tradition of Hindu idealism
Hindu idealism
There are currents of idealism in classical Hindu philosophy.Idealism and materialism are the principal monist ontologies.A related branch is the Buddhist concept of consciousness-only.Idealist notions have been supported by the Vedanta and Yoga schools...
—a cosmology stating that the universe, both inanimate and animate matter, is permeated with a singular consciousness, a living God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
. The basic premise is that the souls of all life forms have a singular embedded motive over the evolutionary eons, going from birth to death to birth again, to develop their consciousness. Once they reach the level of human reflective consciousness it is their duty to seek to ultimately unite it with the God consciousness. Part and parcel of this view is that humans should regularly practice yogic meditation—ideate on God—and follow an ethical and vegetarian life style. But Sarkar goes further than anyone else in declaring that God realization is easier with full participation in social service. According to this philosophy, Batra rejects the basic foundations of materialist economics, including the need to consume and acquire without limit, as well as the premise that the saving of capitalists promotes the greater good through investment, itself the penultimate justification for allowing inequality to exist. Instead, Batra promotes raising the incomes of people with the sole purpose to increase their consumption, but in a balanced and sustainable way—in harmony with nature, each other and other life forms. An equitable distribution is not seen as a means to only ensure material welfare but also to secure the ability of all to develop a full personality. This is an integral part of Sarkar's practical theory of PROUT
PROUT
Progressive Utilization Theory or PROUT is a socio-economic theory first mentioned in 1959 and fully outlined in 1962 by Indian philosopher and spiritual leader Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar . PROUT is a social system that claims to overcome the limitations of both capitalism and communism...
—PROgressive Utilization Theory.
Novel ideas
In 1963, Batra met his revered teacher, P.R. Sarkar (1921–1990), also known as Shrii Shrii Anandamurti to disciples of the socio-spiritual movement Ananda MargaAnanda Marga
Ananda Marga, organizationally known as Ananda Marga Pracaraka Samgha , meaning the samgha for the propagation of the marga of ananda , is a social and spiritual movement founded in Jamalpur, Bihar, India in 1955 by Shrii Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar .Ánanda Márga followers describe Ánanda Márga as a...
(Path of Bliss). After establishing himself in his chosen field, he decided to branch out by contributing to his mentor's work. In 1978, he published a novel book The Downfall of Capitalism and Communism: A New Study of History
The Downfall of Capitalism and Communism
The Downfall of Capitalism and Communism is a major work by Ravi Batra in the field of historical evolution, published in 1978. The book's full title is The Downfall of Capitalism and Communism: A New Study of History...
, where he turned his gaze from theoretical economics to history. In the book Batra promoted the Social cycle theory of his spiritual mentor, Sarkar, based on an analysis of four distinct classes
Social class
Social classes are economic or cultural arrangements of groups in society. Class is an essential object of analysis for sociologists, political scientists, economists, anthropologists and social historians. In the social sciences, social class is often discussed in terms of 'social stratification'...
with different psychological preferences or endowments. At the same time, Batra has theorised that economic inequality
Economic inequality
Economic inequality comprises all disparities in the distribution of economic assets and income. The term typically refers to inequality among individuals and groups within a society, but can also refer to inequality among countries. The issue of economic inequality is related to the ideas of...
affects economic performance and social change. He popularised the concept of the "share of wealth held by richest 1%", as an indicator of inequality and an important determinant of depressions.
Social evolution
The main thesis of the book was that the age of acquisitorsLaw of Social Cycle
Law of Social Cycle, also known as the Social Cycle Theory, is a theory of human historical motivity based on "the ancient spiritual ideas of the Vedas"...
, better known as capitalism
Capitalism
Capitalism is an economic system that became dominant in the Western world following the demise of feudalism. There is no consensus on the precise definition nor on how the term should be used as a historical category...
, was soon to come to an end in the West. This dramatic change was to be followed by the downfall of the age of commander
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
s in the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, more commonly known as communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
. While his predictions for capitalism to collapse within a few decades due to rampant inequality and speculation have not come true, his prediction for the collapse of communism, due to inner stasis and oppression, arrived in 1990, sooner than expected. The key reason that capitalism, as a self-perpetuating social formation, was seen to be on an unsustainable path, was the relentless drive of acquisitors to acquire ever more capital. Over time, this activity was seen to gain momentum and result in financial booms
Stock market bubble
A stock market bubble is a type of economic bubble taking place in stock markets when market participants drive stock prices above their value in relation to some system of stock valuation....
and busts
Stock market crash
A stock market crash is a sudden dramatic decline of stock prices across a significant cross-section of a stock market, resulting in a significant loss of paper wealth. Crashes are driven by panic as much as by underlying economic factors...
. A depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
would then follow and as it came on top of extreme inequality it would quickly bring social chaos and revolt. As anarchy was not a normal state of affairs, the class of military leaders would step in the breech and reestablish order
Social order
Social order is a concept used in sociology, history and other social sciences. It refers to a set of linked social structures, social institutions and social practices which conserve, maintain and enforce "normal" ways of relating and behaving....
and thereby usher in a new age of "commanders". In this context, Batra reviews a prior such social change, which occurred two millennia ago, when the Roman Republic
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic was the period of the ancient Roman civilization where the government operated as a republic. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, traditionally dated around 508 BC, and its replacement by a government headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and...
was transformed into the Roman Empire
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
. At that time slave uprisings were common but were violently suppressed. This period became known as the Servile Wars. At the same time, the military was in ascendancy as the Roman Army
Roman army
The Roman army is the generic term for the terrestrial armed forces deployed by the kingdom of Rome , the Roman Republic , the Roman Empire and its successor, the Byzantine empire...
continued to expand the empire. The pivotal figure in the development was the military leader, Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar was a Roman general and statesman and a distinguished writer of Latin prose. He played a critical role in the gradual transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
, who wrested control from the Senate by diluting its membership, but was in turn murdered by the disgruntled Senators
Roman Senate
The Senate of the Roman Republic was a political institution in the ancient Roman Republic, however, it was not an elected body, but one whose members were appointed by the consuls, and later by the censors. After a magistrate served his term in office, it usually was followed with automatic...
. The military class, led by his adopted son Octavian
Augustus
Augustus ;23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14) is considered the first emperor of the Roman Empire, which he ruled alone from 27 BC until his death in 14 AD.The dates of his rule are contemporary dates; Augustus lived under two calendars, the Roman Republican until 45 BC, and the Julian...
, cemented the new social order. Batra thinks such a scenario in the future will refocus the social motivity, away from acquisition of money to a mastery of technology and physical bravery including the conquest of space
Outer space
Outer space is the void that exists between celestial bodies, including the Earth. It is not completely empty, but consists of a hard vacuum containing a low density of particles: predominantly a plasma of hydrogen and helium, as well as electromagnetic radiation, magnetic fields, and neutrinos....
, heralding a new age of commanders in the West
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
. These ideas contrast starkly with those of thinkers like Francis Fukuyama
Francis Fukuyama
Yoshihiro Francis Fukuyama is an American political scientist, political economist, and author. He is a Senior Fellow at the Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law at Stanford. Before that he served as a professor and director of the International Development program at the School of...
who argues in The End of History and the Last Man
The End of History and the Last Man
The End of History and the Last Man is a 1992 book by Francis Fukuyama, expanding on his 1989 essay "The End of History?", published in the international affairs journal The National Interest...
that capitalism, as it is based on democracy
Democracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
and freedom
Freedom (political)
Political freedom is a central philosophy in Western history and political thought, and one of the most important features of democratic societies...
, represents the pinnacle of human social development. For Fukuyama, the collapse of Soviet Communism could have been inevitable, but not that of Capitalism.
Bestsellers
Ravi Batra is the author of six international bestsellers, two of which appeared on The New York Times list.In 1980 he published Muslim Civilization and the Crisis in Iran where he predicted the fall of the Shah and the rise of a class of intellectuals, or Mullahs, followed by a drawn out war with Iraq. In 1984, he penned what was to become his first bestseller, first under the title Regular Cycles of Money, Inflation, Regulation and Depressions. A central theme of this book was that the mal-distribution of wealth, which Batra found to be the cause of past episodes of financial speculative manias that were followed by a crash and depression. Lester Thurow
Lester Thurow
Lester Carl Thurow is a former dean of the MIT Sloan School of Management and author of books on economic topics. Thurow was born in Livingston, Montana.-Education:...
was so impressed that he wrote a preface stating the ideas were "novel and brilliant". Renamed as The Great Depression of 1990, this book rose to first place on The New York Times Best Seller list for Non-Fiction in the Autumn months of 1987, just as the Dow Jones share price index was about to suffer its biggest daily drop in almost sixty years. In 1988, he followed his success with another book on how to survive the predicted calamity. The book also made it on the bestseller list. However, due to his unorthodox and controversial views, his perceived political incorrectness, honesty, and forthrightness, Batra fell out of favor with the mainstream academic community.
Outcomes of predictions
When 1990 arrived, there were concerns about the stability of US banking system but no financial crisis erupted. In Japan, however, a financial and economic crisis gripped the country at the beginning of the year. Batra's reputation rose in Europe on account of his correct prediction for the downfall of communism when he was awarded the Medal of the Italian SenateItalian Senate
The Senate of the Republic is the upper house of the Italian Parliament. It was established in its current form on 8 May 1948, but previously existed during the Kingdom of Italy as Senato del Regno , itself a continuation of the Senato Subalpino of Sardinia-Piedmont established on 8 May 1848...
that year. Batra continued to publish bestselling works in Japan with economic malaise lasting until the early 2000s. In the USA, however, his sales began to drop and his booming side-line career as a media commentator on matters economic and financial began to sour. In 1993, Batra received the Ig Nobel Prize
Ig Nobel Prize
The Ig Nobel Prizes are an American parody of the Nobel Prizes and are given each year in early October for ten unusual or trivial achievements in scientific research. The stated aim of the prizes is to "first make people laugh, and then make them think"...
in economics.
Recent works
In 1993, Batra published The Myth of Free Trade: The Pooring of America in which he argued that free tradeFree trade
Under a free trade policy, prices emerge from supply and demand, and are the sole determinant of resource allocation. 'Free' trade differs from other forms of trade policy where the allocation of goods and services among trading countries are determined by price strategies that may differ from...
has enabled the rich to become richer but most people became poorer. Batra predicted that NAFTA would create unemployment in Mexico and lower wages in America. He urged the breakup of large firms, a raise in tariffs, and a drastic cut in defense spending to turn the country around. In his view, domestic monopolies generate inequality and poverty and global trade damages the industrial base and the global environment.
In 1998, he published Stock Market Crashes of 1998 and 1999: The Asian Crisis and Your Future. The book was revisiting the premise of his earlier bestselling work, arguing nothing had changed, only the palliative cures of economic policy had become more effective at suppressing the symptoms of financial capitalism, but not cure its underlying illness. He therefore predicted increasing stock market volatility. Again in 1999, he published a book The Crash of the Millennium: Surviving the Coming Inflationary Depression, which suggested a plunge in stocks. The drop in high-tech stocks in the Spring of 2000 sent a shiver through the global market place. However, his critics claimed that since the capitalist system remained relatively intact, that he was proven wrong. In 2004, he wrote a new book Greenspan's Fraud: How Two Decades of His Policies Have Undermined the Global Economy where he critically evaluates the policy prescriptions of Former Federal Reserve Chief Alan Greenspan.
In 2008 he published his most recent book, The New Golden Age: The Coming Revolution against Political Corruption and Economic Chaos, where he analyzes the present day economic downturn and the forces behind it. After some significant struggle, Batra predicts a "swift and stunning" revival of American ideals based on true democratic principles that will quickly spread around the world:
The United States does not export much, but it does export ideas, which today mainly emit hedonism and materialism. A new standard exalting martial qualities and magnanimity will soon replace the currently dominant American ethos. It will also sound the death knell for tricklism which is creating poverty around the world. America's revolutionary ideas will quickly captivate the globe; they will spread like wildfire and eradicate poverty within a generation. The internet will make sure that the renaissance spreads its fragrance all over the planet. Verily, for the first time in history, there will be a Golden Age.
Occupy Wall Street movement
On September 9, 2007, Batra predicted“A political revolution will take place in the United States by the end of this decade...by around 2010. And the revolution could go on for four or five years before it is complete. So, from 2010 to 2016 we could see major changes in US economy and society. It will be a peaceful revolution and it will bring an end to the rule of money in society.“
In October 2011, Batra wrote an article in Truthout in support of the OWS movement
Occupy Wall Street
Occupy Wall Street is an ongoing series of demonstrations initiated by the Canadian activist group Adbusters which began September 17, 2011 in Zuccotti Park, located in New York City's Wall Street financial district...
, which is seen to be protesting the influence of wealthy financiers in government policy. Batra argues that legislative changes since the Reagan Presidency, with regard e.g. to taxes, benefits, mergers & acquisitions, have contributed greatly to increase the inequalities and economic problems in the U.S. He suggests the OWS movement push for their repeal.