No one makes you shop at Wal-Mart : the surprising deceptions of individual choice

We live in a culture of choice. But, in an age of corporate dominance, our freedom to choose has taken on new meaning. Upset with your local big box store? Object to unfair hiring practices at your neighbourhood fast food restaurant? Want to protest the opening of that new multinational coffeeshop? Vote with your feet! What if it's not that simple? In __No One Makes You Shop at Wal-Mart__, **Tom Slee** unpacks the implications of our fervent belief in the power of choice. Pointing out that individual choice has become the lynchpin of a neoconservative corporate ideology he calls MarketThink, he urges us to re-examine our assumptions . Slee makes use of game theory to argue that individual choice is not inherently bad. Nor is it the societal fix-all that our corporations and governments claim it is. A spirited treatise, this book will make you think about choice in a whole new way. List of Figures Acknowledgements Chapter 1 A World of Choice A Short Modern History of Choice MarketThink Wanted: A Better Way of Thinking about Choices Jack Shops at Wal-Mart Chapter 2 Good Choices and Bad Outcomes Jack and Jill’s Ugly Divorce The Prisoner’s Dilemma Choosing the Right Words Choosing the Right Starting Point Chapters 3 Private Choices and Public Failures Jill Drops a Coffee Cup Choosing Our Environment Choosing Our Cities Choosing Where to Shop The Kind of Problem a City Is Chapter 4 Arms Races and Red Queens Jack Keeps up with the Joneses A Selection of Arms Races Choosing to Be Cool From Commodity to Status Symbol Chapters 5 Co-operation and Its Limits Enduring Love Choosing to Reciprocate Choosing Not to Compete Choosing in Groups and Crowds Choosing Temptation Chapter 6 Divide and Conquer Choosing Not to Vote Companies and Individual Choice The Market as a Public Good Chapter 7 That Obscure Object of Desire Buying Sneakers at Whimsley Mall Identifying the Real Choice Game Theory: What Is It Good For? Chapters 8 Join or Get Run Over Choosing a Nightclub in Whimsley A Selection of Herd Choices Choosing Our Schools Choosing Our Technologies Fooled by Randomness Chapter 9 The Devil You Know Jack Goes to the Movies Choosing Our Fashions Choosing Our Culture Jill Buys a Lemon A Basket of Lemons Choosing Where to Eat Squeezing the Lemons Chapter 10 Free to Choose, but Exploited Power, Relationships, and Context Choosing Stability Choosing to Be Exploited Chapter 11 Beyond Whimsley The Ultimatum Game Jill Hits the Ceiling Choosing to Reject A Backward Glance Notes Bibliography Index In No One Makes You Shop At Wal-mart, Tom Slee Unpacks What It Means To Believe In The Power Of Choice. Pointing Out That Individual Choice Has Become The Lynchpin Of A Neo-conservative Ideology He Calls Marketthink, Slee Urges Us To Re-examine Popular Assumptions. He Draws On Game Theory To Argue That Individual Choice Is Not Inherently Bad. Nor Is It The Panacea That Corporations And Governments Claim It To Be. A Spirited Treatise, This Book Will Make You Think About Choice In A Whole New Way. Book Jacket.--jacket. A World Of Choice -- Good Choices And Bad Outcomes -- Private Choices And Public Failures -- Arms Races And Red Queens -- Co-operation And Its Limits -- Divide And Conquer -- That Obscure Object Of Desire -- Join Or Get Run Over -- The Devil You Know -- Free To Choose, But Exploited -- Beyond Whimsley. Tom Slee. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 225-230) And Index. Annotation We live in a culture of choice. But, in an age of corporate dominance, our freedom to choose has taken on new meaning. Upset with your local big box store? Object to unfair hiring practices at your neighbourhood fast food restaurant? Want to protest the opening of that new multinational coffeeshop? Vote with your feet!What if it's not that simple?In No One Makes You Shop at Wal-Mart, Tom Slee unpacks the implications of our fervent belief in the power of choice. Pointing out that individual choice has become the lynchpin of a neoconservative corporate ideology he calls MarketThink, he urges us to re-examine our assumptions . Slee makes use of game theory to argue that individual choice is not inherently bad. Nor is it the societal fix-all that our corporations and governments claim it is. A spirited treatise, this book will make you think about choice in a whole new way