The Speculation Economy: How Finance Triumphed over Industry Book

Fascinating story about America's obsession with the stock market

Scholar Lawrence E. Mitchell makes his case about the speculative nature of the American economy in a complex, highly annotated volume. His detailed presentation explores historic, social, academic, legal and regulatory forces that shaped financial capitalism, especially in the late 1800s and the early 1900s. He depicts an American infatuation with speculative stock market investments and describes efforts by the federal government to nurture stock appreciation and provide regulatory protections for the average investor. getAbstract recommends this slice of financial history to readers interested in the early turning points that shaped modern American capitalism.