Winners Take All

The Elite Charade of Changing the World

By: Anand Giridharadas

Narrated by: Anand Giridharadas

The New York Times bestselling, groundbreaking investigation of how the global elite's efforts to "change the world" preserve the status quo and obscure their role in causing the problems they later seek to solve. An essential read for understanding some of the egregious abuses of power that dominate today’s news.

Former New York Times columnist Anand Giridharadas takes us into the inner sanctums of a new gilded age, where the rich and powerful fight for equality and justice any way they can--except ways that threaten the social order and their position atop it. We see how they rebrand themselves as saviors of the poor; how they lavishly reward "thought leaders" who redefine "change" in winner-friendly ways; and how they constantly seek to do more good, but never less harm. We hear the limousine confessions of a celebrated foundation boss; witness an American president hem and haw about his plutocratic benefactors; and attend a cruise-ship conference where entrepreneurs celebrate their own self-interested magnanimity.

Giridharadas asks hard questions: Why, for example, should our gravest problems be solved by the unelected upper crust instead of the public institutions it erodes by lobbying and dodging taxes? He also points toward an answer: Rather than rely on scraps from the winners, we must take on the grueling democratic work of building more robust, egalitarian institutions and truly changing the world. A call to action for elites and everyday citizens alike.

Thank you

You help me out into words, what I felt for many years and have given me more works to read so that I may either my understanding of what I feel to be true.

Earth moving

A great book for anyone looking to making a dent in the world while learning the ins and outs of what currently makes it tick.

Who is best equipped to help the less fortunate?

This book offers great insight into how we live in a world where the most fortunate believe that only they can help the less fortunate. This mindset has created a system whereby the lives of the well to do have been protected and the less fortunate have reaped mediocre gains at best. The author argues that the only way inequality can be fixed is if those with resources spend time understanding the problems that the less fortunate face prior to taking action.

Incredible eye opener

Incredible eye opener, must read for anyone in or aspiring to be in the field of global health, international politics and development.

Highly Recommend!

This book was engaging, motivating and enlightening. I’d highly recommend it to anyone. It will help you think critically about the world’s problems and solutions, as well as how they are framed. Hopefully it will motivate you to think about solving problems at the root, rather than putting a band-aid on them. At the very least it will help you watch out for problem-creators who claim to be the solution.