The Republic of Innovation

We cling to a distorted idea of freedom. To be free, we commonly think, means to be unconstrained. This widespread belief makes our societies less fair, as it fails to confront that freedom to act can mean freedom to dominate. But, as Andrea Capussela argues in this highly original combination of philosophy and economics, that is not all: it also makes us less prosperous.

True freedom, Capussela writes, arises when no one is subject to another’s will, be that the will of an employer, Big Tech, or the so-called elite. A citizen who is free in this higher sense is a human being who can look anyone in the eye. A society that strives toward this ideal will become more innovative, as increasing numbers of people are granted enough security to flourish, experiment, and take risks. Capussela intertwines political philosophy with cutting-edge theories of economic growth, presenting the synergy between them as the basis for political programmes that can help western democracies rise above the legacy of neoliberalism and overcome their crisis. Societies of free citizens won’t trust demagogues.