23 Things They Don't Tell You About Capitalism
23 Things They Don't Tell You About Capitalism by Ha-Joon Changby Ha-Joon Chang
Shares rank 18 of 19 economics books by recommenders
People recommend it for a broader, more detailed view of how capitalism and markets work, and for clarifying the difference between free markets and capitalism.
People recommend it for a broader, more detailed view of how capitalism and markets work, and for clarifying the difference between free markets and capitalism.
2 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 2
- criticize it
- 0
- approval share
- 100%
Recommended in 2 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 2 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- Nobody criticizes itNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 2 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
More detail and broader perspective
“It goes into a lot more detail and helps you understand things in a broader perspective.”
Comment from 9 Dec 2025 in “Microsoft has a problem: lack of demand for its AI products” Clarifies free markets versus capitalism
“Ha-Joon Chang completely flips the meaning between free markets and capitalism”
Comment from 28 Jul 2026 in “Mondragon Corporation – a federation of co-operatives”
Other economics books people recommend
The four most recommended other economics books, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capital in the Twenty-First Centuryby Thomas Piketty | 12 | 6 | 67% | 7 | — | Approved |
| Why Nations Failby Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson | 9 | 0 | 100% | 7 | — | — |
| Progress and Povertyby Henry George | 6 | 0 | 100% | 5 | — | — |
| Free to Chooseby Milton Friedman | 5 | 0 | 100% | 5 | — | — |
| 23 Things They Don't Tell You About Capitalismby Ha-Joon ChangThis page | 2 | 0 | 100% | 2 | — | — |
What people said
All 2 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“Ha-Joon Chang completely flips the meaning between free markets and capitalism”
“It goes into a lot more detail and helps you understand things in a broader perspective.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.