This book attracted attention on first publication under the title of "Capitalism and the Permissive Society" as a spirited defence of capitalism aimed at radicals who valued personal liberty above conformity and authority. It is, if anything, of even greater relevance today now that the political debate centres more on the uses and abuses of both the market and government inter-vention. In this new edition, the author discusses the latest developments in the world of ideas and events. His verdict on (...) recent experiments such as Reaganism and Thatcherism and liberal attempts to revive socialism will be of great interest. (shrink)

There are many writers and critics who regard what they call ‘individualist-liberalism’ as the root of many of the evils of the modern world; and the emphasis of their attack is on the individualist half of the term. Those who take this line nowadays often call them-selves ‘communitarians’. I would prefer to call them collectivists, as that brings out their dangerous tendency to regard the group as more important than the individuals of whom it is composed. But in what follows (...) I shall concede on labels and most often refer to them as communitarians. (shrink)