"Capitalism isn't inevitable, isn't scientific, and isn't natural--it's a relatively young system that can be replaced. In this radical rethinking of economics, Clara Mattei argues that enduring problems such as poverty, unemployment, and inflation are not bugs in the economy but core features. They are justified with pseudoscientific models, fabrications built to support a capitalist economy that unfairly rewards people with the most resources. The tools of economic experts--budget cuts, interest rate hikes, and regressive taxes-never work as promised. Central bankers raise interest rates knowing this will cause a recession. The government slashes IRS jobs, which ends up costing trillions. Textbooks teach that unemployment must rise to fix inflation. But this model creates conditions that force people to accept crummy jobs and low pay. In the wake of World War I, when the world's economy was in turmoil, economics was elevated to a scientific discipline, legitimized through mathematical formulas and new economic institutions considered too sophisticated for the average person to understand. Today's economic institutions, from the Fed to the IMF, wield immense power over monetary policy yet are shielded from democratic scrutiny. Why should we accept a system that delegates important decisions to institutions in which we have no say? All the major problems that ail us--from a healthcare system that prioritizes profits over wellbeing to the rise of ultranationalism--are rooted in an economic system that fails to serve the common good. In this revelatory manifesto, Mattei sets out a revolutionary vision that may one day allow us to achieve true economic freedom . . . and escape from capitalism"-- Provided by publisher.