Living Standards in Southeast Asia: Changes over the Long Twentieth Century, 1900–2015

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Notes

1 Booth’s succinct discussion in chapter 1 of the debate about the impact of the British industrial revolution on living standards of workers nicely clarifies these ‘big issues’ and sets the stage for their discussion later in the book, in the historical context of Southeast Asia. Booth is particularly concerned about the use of hourly or daily male wages as a robust indicator of household living standards over an extended period of time.

2 Keynes’ observation seems appropriate: ‘Practical men who believe themselves to be quite exempt from any intellectual influence, are usually the slaves of some defunct economist. Madmen in authority, who hear voices in the air, are distilling their frenzy from some aca- demic scribbler of a few years back.’