Cheaponomics

The real cost of low prices is alarmingly high. In this compelling book, Michael Carolan shows that costs and risks are socialised: we all pay for cheapness, but not at the point of purchase. Drawing on a wide range of examples and issues, it is convincingly shown that cheapness can no longer be seen as such a bargain. Instead we need to refocus for a better sense of well-being, social justice and a balanced approach to prosperity.

Michael Carolan is Professor and Chair of Sociology at Colorado State University, USA. He is the author of several books, including "The Real Cost of Cheap Food", "The Sociology of Food and Agriculture", "Reclaiming Food Security" and "Society and the Environment: Pragmatic Solutions to Ecological Issues".

1. Free Enterprise, Socialism, and Cheaponomics Part 1: Cheap Stuff 2. You Bought that Computer but Someone Else Paid for It 3. Free Plastic Bags (and Other Costly Ephemeral Commodities) 4. The High Cost of Cheap Foods Part 2: Cheap Economies and Communities 5. The Real Cost of Automobiles and Car-munities 6. Retail Concentration and Rock-bottom Prices...But at What Cost? 7. Working Less for More Part 3: Transitioning toward Affordability 8. Comforting the Productivist Zombie 9. Real Prosperity is Priceless 10. Ten Recommendations for the Good, Affordable, and Affording