CAPITALISM FOR KIDS: Growing up to be Your Own Boss by Karl Hess Reviewed by Joseph Uphoff Hess advocates that children should be taught the benefits of the capitalist system as early as they can understand money and that others are willing to pay for what they have to offer. While the bulk of this volume is taken up with practical suggestions for work, several philosophical ideas are discussed. Primary is individual choice over following the crowd. Throughout, the concept of independent thinking provides the impetus for decision making, even to the extent of disregarding the suggestions and ideas of this work. Few authors would be as consistent in their views as Hess when he tells his readers not to follow him, if that is their choice not to. He also believes that self-respect is more important than making a profit. It is the individual ownership of property, regardless of whether that property is real or intellectual, voluntary associations of people, and freedom of choice as long as others are not denied the same freedom that defines capitalism. While Hess maintains that to own property is a basic human right, he believes that all rights originated with people agreeing as to what they should be. He also claims that rights do not exist in nature. While he uses the term: "basic human rights" when discussing property ownership, nothing is said about inalienability and he implicitly denies a divine origin. One aspect of Hess that I did not like is his tendency for oversimplification and seeing issues in terms of only two choices. While this is geared to a young audience, other options could be discussed. As he begins discussing capitalism, he defines socialism and communism as well and gives very easy-to-understand illustrations of how they worked (or didn't according to his bias). He also defines the Democratic and Republican Parties in terms of government control. The former to regulate business, the latter, how people behave. The Libertarian perspective that the government should stay out of both is not mentioned. Another either/or Hess presents is land use. His question is whether it should be owned by the government to parcel out as it sees fit on short-term rentals, resulting in over-use, or by the individual who can plan for the long term. He supports the latter. The idea that people are the land's stewards and not its owners is not discussed. Once these ideas are dispensed with, Hess moves on to discuss how to start a business and to keep it going. Much of this section is devoted to various ideas to make money, examples of children who have, and inspirational quotes from businessmen who started young. Before any venture is begun, the child needs to understand the risks involved, especially if the family is included. Also, he would like to see parents give allowances and have the child learn to manage those, so as to better understand money, rather than rely on the parent to pay directly for food or recreation. This self-reliance is an underlying theme throughout. Yet, he tends to equate monetary gain with self confidence and a positive self image (his words to the contrary). While discussing private enterprise and entrepreneurship, politicians enter the picture as the enemies of business. While perhaps true to some extent, it seems he is creating a straw man. He does mention that, while there are laws against hiring children, it is perfectly legal if they are self- employed. Taxes passed by these politicians are also discussed. He believes that one of these, in particular, the sales tax, is a form of slavery as it causes the businessperson to involuntarily serve the politician through its collection. He seems to be reaching here, as I do not see that type of correlation. The final section is entitled, "This Part is for Your Parents". As if that would stop the inquisitive child he is encouraging from reading it. Notwithstanding that, most of this chapter deals with the education system and what can be done to improve it to promote individualistic thinking and capitalist ideas. Once again, Hess sees a dichotomy between ideas. This time it is between advocates of content learning (rote memorization) and process learning (understanding the why of something). He is pessimistic as he sees the content side winning. While discussing these ideas, he mentions school prayer. His perspective is that this is not the panacea the Conservatives think it is. However, it is not clear whether he rejects the idea entirely. Another idea he postulates is what would happen if the Soviet Union encouraged more independent thinking and by so doing cause their system to collapse (this was written in or before 1987). They did, and it did. While there are several practical suggestions throughout for children to learn to be capitalists, too much space is devoted to discussing political and economic issues that only tangentially touch on the subject at hand. Hess' audience is ostensibly those under 18, yet it seems that an older group (the parents) is the actual target. There is a useful directory of agencies that can provide assistance at the back of the book. In spite of these concerns and those mentioned previously, I can recommend this book for any interested in capitalism and how to start teaching it and self-reliance at an early or any age. On a more somber note, while in the process of working on this review, I learned of the author's passing in early 1994.   Capitalism For Kids: Growing Up to be Your Own Boss, by Karl Hess. 1987. published by Dearborn Financial Publishing, Inc. 520 N. Dearborn St., Chicago, III. 60610-4354. 247pp paperback. ISBN 0-94210- 306-8. Joseph Uphoff is a writer of numismatics, history, and book reviews for Truth Seeker. He is a member of Mensa and tends toward libertarian in politics. Table of Contents | 1995 Issues | Subscribe Truth Seeker | Feedback | Freethought.com Webmaster Credit card Orders call: 800-321-9054 or fax: (619)676-0433 Or send check or money order to: Truth Seeker / 16935 W. Bernardo Drive, Suite 103 / San Diego, CA 92127 $20.00 annual U.S. subscription ($35.00 international). Individual issues—$10.00 + $2.50 postage and handling Or be a committed freethinker and send $35.00 for a two year subscription. Truth Seeker is published by Truth Seeker Co., Inc. (ISSN 0041-3712) © 1996