Inventing Retirement: The Development of Occupational Pensions in Britain

Book Description

Pension funds now account for a large portion of old age incomes, of capital ownership, and of employee fringe benefits. A hundred years ago they hardly existed. This book, by one of Britain’s leading business historians, examines the interplay of business, political and social forces in this profound transformation, showing why old age saving became rooted in the employment contract. The analysis is based on historical materials on pension funds, most of which have never previously been analysed, but this new interpretation is skilfully interwoven with the more familiar story of the development of state welfare and of personnel management. The original perspective of the book will be of interest not only to economists, historians and sociologists, but to practitioners in the field of pensions management and old age welfare who wish to understand the constraints and opportunities provided for modern pension design by the legacy of the past.

Book Description

Joan Robinson was one of the most prominent economists of the century. She made fundamental contributions to many different areas of economic thought. She studied economics at Girton College Cambridge, graduating in 1925. During the 1930s she published three books and participated in Keynes "Circus". Her early contributions to economics were extensions of neo-classical theory, and in 1933 she introduced the theory of imperfect competition. She became an ardent follower of Keynes and produced expositions of his theory. She was one of the first economists to take Marx seriously as an economist. She became Reader in economics at Cambridge in 1956, and in 1956 she published "The Accumulation of Capital" in which she began to extend Keynes theory, in particular to take into consideration long run issues of growth and capital accumulation. Her work on growth theory in 1962, alongside Nicholas Kaldor, led to them developing the Cambridge Growth Theory. She became the first ever female Fellow of Kings College, Cambridge in 1979. This collection of her writings is a testament to the depth and breadth of the impact she had on economic theory as a whole.

Amazon.com

Probably no American outlaw has attracted more attention--much of it flattering--than Jesse James. This revisionist biography by T.J. Stiles delves into the exciting life James led--"a tale of ambushes, gun battles, and daring raids, of narrow escapes, betrayals, and revenge." Yet it also places James within a specific political context, showing why it was possible for this murderous bandit to emerge as a folk hero among Southern sympathizers following the Civil War (in which he fought as a teenager). James is often grouped with famous frontier criminals like Billy the Kidd and Butch Cassidy, but he's best understood as a Southerner who forged partisan alliances in postwar Missouri and promoted himself as a latter-day Robin Hood. Stiles describes James as "a foul-mouthed killer who hated as fiercely as anyone on the planet" and places his life in the context of "the struggle for--or rather, against--black freedom." Stiles's fundamental point about James is as startling as it is convincing: "In his political consciousness and close alliance with a propagandist and power broker, in his efforts to win media attention with his crimes ... Jesse James was a forerunner of the modern terrorist." Tough words, but also deserved. --John J. Miller

Book Description

In this brilliant biography T. J. Stiles offers a new understanding of the legendary outlaw Jesse James. Although he has often been portrayed as a Robin Hood of the old west, in this ground-breaking work Stiles places James within the context of the bloody conflicts of the Civil War to reveal a much more complicated and significant figure.

Raised in a fiercely pro-slavery household in bitterly divided Misssouri, at age sixteen James became a bushwhacker, one of the savage Confederate guerrillas that terrorized the border states. After the end of the war, James continued his campaign of robbery and murder into the brutal era of reconstruction, when his reckless daring, his partisan pronouncements, and his alliance with the sympathetic editor John Newman Edwards placed him squarely at the forefront of the former Confederates’ bid to recapture political power. With meticulous research and vivid accounts of the dramatic adventures of the famous gunman, T. J. Stiles shows how he resembles not the apolitical hero of legend, but rather a figure ready to use violence to command attention for a political cause—in many ways, a forerunner of the modern terrorist.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent Biography of an interesting time and man.......2006-12-14

Jesse James has led a life that is shrouded in mystery. Stiles tries to put a perceptive that shows him as carrying on the civil war and fighting the style against the industrialized north that was popular at the time. It is an interesting biography and takes several different perspectives that are hard to find. There are few good James biographies out there and this is basically the best. For those looking for more on the outlaw group there are several about the whole gang but for those who just want one book about the robbers this is by far the best choice. It is thorough and gives enough information without being overbearing. Highly recommend for any civil war library as well.

Well written, but light on Jesse James.......2005-07-17

Stiles' book is a well written, well researched, and informative exploration of violence in Missouri in the Civil War era. The biggest problem, however, is that only the last few chapters focus on Jesse James. Because James did not leave behind many documents detailing his actions and motivations, Stiles provides lengthy context about the political and social environment in which James lived. Far too much context, in my opinion. The focus of his book is often far away from James's and his gang's actions. Although a historical figure cannot be divorced from the context of his/her times, a historian should not stray too far from the central figure of a biography. A more accurate title of this book would be "Jesse James's Missouri." Page after page passes with little or no reference to James or his gang. Only after Reconstruction ends does the author focus on Jesse and his crimes.
Stiles faces a problem in convincing the reader that Jesse was a diehard Confederate. Although James came from a slaveholding family and seemed to have no sympathy toward Yankees and Northern Reconstruction policies, James's Confederate identity seemed the brainchild of his greatest defender, the newspaper man John Edwards. Stiles provides little information about James's racial views, which were central to Confederate and post-war Southern politics. Although James no doubt shared the racist convictions of his day, he seemed to act with no clear idea of how his crimes would undermine Republican political aims: civil rights legislation and fiscal/state activism. Since Missouri was never officially a Confederate state, it was not occupied in the way the Deep South states were. Nor was there a large black population in Missouri. James seemed not to have directed attacks at black men or women or their white Republican allies, the people who were the targest of ex-Confederate violence in other states. Many of James's victims were Unionists. Although Unionists certainly were not liked by Confederates, James lived in a very different environment than say, South Carolina, where one's Unionist past was less important than the color of one's skin. One should also be very cautious of Stiles labeling James a "terrorist." Although there are some similarities between nineteenth century bushwhackers and present-day terrorists, the term bushwhacker or bandit for James and his gang seems sufficient.

Good, but somewhat biased.......2005-05-30

The first half of this book is a mesmerizing, and fascinating read on the young James' role in the Missouri guerilla campaign during the War Between the States. This unconventional struggle had some of the most vicious and impassioned combatants in any theatre of the war, continuing long after the Confederate surrender in 1865. Along with the combat being discussed in great detail, the book also describes the local politics and personalities of the day in a provocative and alluring manner.

Midway through the book you start to discover the author is biased in that he gives no benefit of the doubt to Jesse James' stories or those people on his side- even in circumstances where that is clearly warranted such as James' own reaction to being shot. This is partly understandable because there is no question that aside from being a legend, he was a cold-blooded killer and bank robber, as well as being a fallible man of his time.

On the flip side, if I had fought in a particularly vicious and personal Civil War between local neighbors when I was 16, my path may have been different in life as well.

Overall, a good book for a Sunday afternoon read.

Lost Cause Terrorist.......2005-04-25

With `Jesse James Last Rebel of the Civil War', J. T. Stiles has given us a most insightful, penetrating, and serious study not just of that outlaw, but more importantly, of the place and times that produced him, and which are necessary for an understanding of who and what he was. Stiles book is as much a study of the social/political/economic history of Missouri from 1845 through 1882 as it is a biography of James. Indeed, Jesse James is not even a principal actor in the book through its first one hundred pages. These are devoted to a vigorous examination of the James family, the Missouri society in which they lived, and the coming of the Civil War to that society. Outside of this context, the actions of Jesse James' life have no coherent meaning.
Stiles writes of a Missouri that was deeply divided on the burning issues of the times, both before and after the Civil War. It did not belong to any one section of the country, but contained many different inhabitants who looked variously South, North, or West for their cultural identification. When the war came, this caused violent splits in Missouri society. Great atrocities were committed by both sides as neighbors fought and killed each other in bloody, no holds barred guerrilla warfare. The end of the war with a Northern victory did not stop this conflict in Missouri, where the victors and vanquished still lived side by side, and where their pre-war differences now were enhanced by blood feuds. The Missouri guerrillas, or Bushwhackers as they were known, continued right on fighting for their Lost Cause, still hoping to shape the future of their state according to their values. It was as one of them, fighting for the Lost Cause of the South, that Jesse James made his mark on history.
Jesse James entered manhood and history as a sixteen year old, riding with the infamous Bloody Bill Anderson's band of Bushwhackers. Stiles sees this as the experience that left an indelible mark on Jesse's character, predetermining the direction that this intelligent, outgoing young man would take for the rest of his violent life. It was here that he learned to kill ruthlessly for his cause, and to love the excitement of the violent life. It was also here where he met the men who would be his partners in his outlaw endeavors, men who were bound by their war-time experience and loyalties, and who all shared the vision of the Lost Cause.
The years after the war were a time of great political conflict in Missouri. Confederate Democrats fought Unionist Democrats, and they both fought Radical Republicans for control of the state. According to Stiles, this was Jesse's battle ground. He points to the friendship between Jesse and Confederate newspaperman John Newman Edwards, whose editorials made Jesse famous, and suggests that they actually were working in partnership - Jesse as the warrior, and Edwards as the propagandist creating a hero for the Confederate Democrats to rally around. He makes a strong case that nearly all of the robberies committed by the James gang were carefully crafted to create the maximum political effect, and suggests that Jesse should be seen not in the context of social bandit, as he often has been cast, but as a prototype of the modern political terrorist. After reading all of the evidence that Stiles presents in this carefully researched book, this interpretation of Jesse James looks not only possible, but probable.
This book is recommended for anyone with an interest in the Civil War and Reconstruction, as well as those interested in the James gang.

Theo Logos

From one Missourian to another.......2005-04-22

I grew up in Jackson County, Missouri, the backyard of the James family and the true heart of the Civil War. The war in the east was grand, sweeping, and all-encompassing in scope, but the war in the west was vicious, brutal, and very, very personal. Even a hundred years after the war, the divisions between Missourians and Kansans was still evident, and even the divisions between Missourians of southern heritage compared to those from northern families was still in evidence. Stiles, being from Minnesota, does have a northern imprint on his work, whether you accept that fact or not. But despite some of his obvious biases against the South, his excellent work here has done a marvelous job in digging out the underlying tensions and history to a very complex subject - the emotional and political structure of a frontier society thrust into the largest event in American history. That Jesse James was racist, none can deny, but Stiles and many others view that mindset from a 21st century perspective, rather than a 19th century one, in which even President Lincoln himself did not accept the equality of the races and did not feel that black men were to have any parity with white men. Stiles also ignores the tremendous effect of the abolition movement in Missouri and Kansas, in which groups from the northeast, who had no connection to the area whatsoever, attempted to influence the politics of the region and shut down slavery, which like it or not, was legal and the economic backbone of the area. This is akin to Europeans coming to America, and attempting to establish laws in which pickup trucks and SUV's are to be made illegal, damned the effect on local families and their livelihoods. Needless to say, they opposed these attempts and the result was "Bleeding Kansas", and the impetus of the formation of groups such as Kansas state senator Jim Lane's Jayhawkers, who continually raided and burned Missouri farms. Lawrence, Kansas, was targeted by Quantrill precisely because Lawrence was Abolition Central and the home of Jim Lane, and to avenge the murderous raids into Jackson, Clay, and Cass counties. It became so bad that this area was known as the "Burnt District", where nearly every farm for miles was burned and destroyed, and the Union Army actually declared with Order No. 11 that families were to vacate the area, rather than the Army restoring order and to protect its citizens. It is actions such as these that continued to drive groups like Quantrill's and Bloody Bill Anderson's. After several years of war, they ended up with an entire generation of young men who knew nothing but death and destruction, and for many of them, going to a civil life was impossible. Follow this with the policies of Reconstruction, and a new cause was born. Certainly Jesse James loved this life, and knew no other, and men like Edwards capitalized on it to further political agendas. Typical works on Jesse James and the Civil War ignore the great political and pure emotional instability of the Missouri-Kansas border, and how truly personal the war was here, and how it really defined the word "civil war", on par with those in recent years in the Balkans. Another excellent work that gives insight on the Reconstruction years and the terrible effects of that period is Leon Metz's "John Wesley Hardin: Dark Angel of Texas", which also gives excellent insight into how war and a violent upbringing can produce such terrible and brutal killers.
There is no doubt that technology was rapidly making slavery out-moded and impractical, and it would have ended anyway. I think people like Jesse knew this as well, and whether he was defending some southern philosophy of plantation living, I have serious doubts. Abolitionists were often as racist as the men they opposed; even men like Grant owned slaves. In short, I think Jesse was simply a megalomaniac who enjoyed his aura of celebrity, and was more than happy to allow men like Edwards to use it, as it assisted him in his endeavors. That Jesse also chose his targets carefully is true too, he had many enemies and many scores to settle. If he could enrich himself, smite his enemies, and satisfy a politcal agenda all in one fell swoop, why wouldn't he? For the casual Jesse James buff, this book is not for you. This book gives a very detailed history and picture of the political life of the border region, a complete accounting of life at that time. If you are looking for the "whys" and "hows" that monsters like Jesse James, Bloody Bill Anderson, and William Quantrill are created, this is a great start. Another good companion book is Jay Monaghan's "Civil War on the western border, 1854-1865", which details "bleeding Kansas" and the effects of the Kansas-Nebraska act very well, the forerunners to the Civil War in the west. Even Hollywood got in the act with Clint Eastwood's "Outlaw Josey Wales", a story of a Missouri farmer who entered the war in the same fashion as many of James' contemporaries.

Jesse James and the Civil War in Missouri (Missouri Heritage Readers)

Average customer rating:

Good Reading
Easy Read ... for a Reason

Jesse James and the Civil War in Missouri (Missouri Heritage Readers)
Robert L. Dyer
Manufacturer: University of Missouri Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0826209599

Customer Reviews:

Good Reading.......2001-12-07

I really enjoyed this book. I wanted to know more about Jesse James and what was going on in Missouri during the time of the civil war and Jesse's robberies and this book gave me a good basic understanding.
It was very easy reading and helpful.

Easy Read ... for a Reason.......2000-04-26

When I picked up this book, I quickly discovered that I'd overlooked something: It is designed for adults who are learning to read. With that caveat in mind, Jesse James and the Civil War in Missouri is an interesting glance at the influence of the Civil War and Quantrill's Raiders on the infamous Frank and Jesse James.

Book Description

Gen. Joseph Orville Shelby's involvement in the Civil War began when he raised a cavalry company for Southern service after refusing a commission in the Federal army. Shelby's company of Rangers became known as the most disciplined company in the pro-Confederate Missouri State Guard.

General Shelby's reputation as a fierce commander on the battlefield coexisted with his reputation for acts of compassion toward prisoners of war and innocent civilians. His actions were actuated by his principles, and he permitted no dishonorable act. He was relentless in the punishment of crimes against the weak and helpless, showing regard for all civilians. One example illustrating this occurred prior to the war, when he single-handedly faced down a lynch mob in Lexington, Missouri, to rescue a man who had insisted on his right to vote for Abraham Lincoln at the polls. Shelby's actions set a high standard of courage and honor for his men. While he was not sentimental over fallen comrades, he did not subject his men to dangers that he did not face himself. As a result, the men of Shelby's Brigade idolized him and followed him without question.

Every march, camp, and battle that could be identified from reliable source material is incorporated here in this thoroughly researched book. Information was obtained from officers' reports and correspondence from both armies, the National Archives and Records Service, newspapers from that period, articles written by veterans after the war, and the memoirs of Confederate brigadier general M. Jeff Thompson, who temporarily commanded Shelby's Brigade near the end of the war.

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