Glass House: The 1% Economy and the Shattering of the All-American Town (Brian Alexander)

Of the downsides, and a few upsides, of private equity and other financial engineering, viewed through the decline of Lancaster, Ohio, a condensed symbol of much that has gone wrong with America.

The written version of this review can be found here:

https://theworthyhouse.com/2021/05/10/empires-of-the-sky-zeppelins-airplanes-and-two-mens-epic-duel-to-rule-the-world-alexander-rose/

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"Private equity has made me rich beyond the dreams of avarice. Yet private equity can be, as this book shows, a tool of the devil, a corrosive and destructive force in American life. Still, I do not think the story is as simple as Brian Alexander, the author of Glass House, would have it. The town in which he grew up, and which he profiles here—Lancaster, Ohio—has fallen far from its glory days, as have hundreds of similar towns across America. But the responsibility for that lies not just with the shady private equity companies that looted its largest employer, glass manufacturer Anchor Hocking, or with other elements of our rotten ruling class. It also lies with all of us, who bear more than some responsibility for the degradation of our towns, and of ourselves." . . .