369: Jacob Soll | From Ancient Rome To The 21st Century In "Free Market: The History of an Idea"

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Jacob Soll is professor of history and accounting at the University of Southern California. He received a B.A. from the University of Iowa, a D.E.A. from the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales in Paris, France, and a Ph.D. from Magdalene College, Cambridge University. He has been awarded numerous prestigious prizes including two NEH Fellowships, the Jacques Barzun Prize, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and, in 2011, the MacArthur Fellowship.
Soll’s first book, Publishing "The Prince" (2005), examines how Machiavelli's work was popularized and influenced modern political thought. It won the Jacques Barzun Prize from the American Philosophical Society. In his second book, "The Information Master" (2009), Soll investigates how Louis XIV's famous finance minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert fused financial management and library sciences to create one of the first modern information states.
His next book, "The Reckoning: Financial Accountability and the Rise and Fall of Nations" (2014), presents a sweeping history of accounting and politics, drawing on a wealth of examples from over a millennia of human history to reveal how accounting can used to both build kingdoms, empires and entire civilizations, but also to undermine them. It explains the origins of our own financial crisis as deeply rooted in a long disconnect between human beings and their attempts to manage financial numbers. The Reckoning, reviewed in major newspapers and publications around the world, has sold more than 60,000 copies worldwide, and has been translated into five languages.
His new books include "Free Market: The History of a Dream" (Basic Books), an analysis of classical philosophy, natural law, history and contemporary economic culture; a history of libraries and "Enlightenment" (Yale University Press); and the first English edition of Jean-Baptiste Colbert’s economic writings (Anthem).
Soll has been a correspondent for the Boston Globe, and a regular contributor to the New York Times, Politico, the New Republic, PBS, Salon.com and the Chronicle of Higher Education. Soll is currently meeting with political and financial leaders across the globe to promote accounting standards and financial transparency.

[@ashwinrebbapragada7626]

An excellent discussion and analysis on free markets, economics, and the role of government. Governments play a role in free markets. The important thing is governments should work within certain parameters and have some boundaries. In order for economies to be healthy, vibrant, and strong there should be emphasis on education, literacy, research, tolerance, freedom, and creativity. Governments can work with private companies and pave the way for private enterprise. A country with good ethics, a strong financial market, a strong accounting system, and strong educational system will generally produce strong economies. Thank you so much for the insightful commentaries on free market systems, as an economics graduate, I really enjoyed this discussion.

[@TheArmenShow]

Hi Ashwin - thank you on that. I like the listing of items you have included there. Research and creativity are very necessary to put new efforts out in place, and involve risk-taking. Some large-scale items do best with a strong form of leadership that can be brought from a country's central grouping. This is great that it was enjoyed in the economics domain. Always glad for the thoughts.

[@evanmcarthur3067]

WoW underrated
I can’t believe I found this talk with Jacob Soll