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of Justice Statistics.) Gilbert reminds us that much of the advocacy re–
search on gender issues and violence demonizes men, portrays them as
dangerous predators and defines women as helpless victims. He urges
journalists to learn about the limits of social research in order to protect
their readers against misleading data and wasteful policies.
Gilbert takes us back in time to the New Deal era and provides his
readers with trend data and descriptions of policies that have fostered in–
equities and long-term dependencies on the American welfare system. He
challenges us to create a system of social protection that enables private
responsibility while maintaining a reliable framework of public care for
those unable to help themselves. Gilbert understands the need to create a
safety net to protect those who are unable to meet their own basic needs
because of disabilities, financial hardships, and incompetence. Yet he
points out that while the welfare policies of Sweden, Denmark, and
Norway seek to eliminate all class distinctions, in the United States there
is still a sharp division between the class of welfare recipients and other
citizens and an emphasis on private schemes. He is a strong supporter of
an "enabling" (rather than a "welfare") state, the goals of which are work
and individual empowerment. Under such a state the poor would be
viewed as the prime agents of their own development rather than as pas–
sive clients of the welfare system. Individual responsibility must play a
strong competitive role against the notions of social entitlements. For
every policy that is advocated Gilbert would urge that it contain an ele–
ment of consumer choice, an opportunity for the private delivery of social
service subsidies oriented to strengthen families, opportunities to accu–
mulate assets, and work incentives.
Instead of the strident debate currently being conducted in Congress
and the media about orphanages, cutting off welfare to teenage mothers,
and doing away with school lunches, Gilbert offers a clear statement
about the goals of welfare, the recognition that there will always be some
people who will need government assistance, and the insistence upon in–
dividual responsibility as opposed to indefinite entitlements.
Many of the pieces and ideas in this book have appeared elsewhere as
op-eds, essays, and journal articles. Especially, in these times, it is ex–
tremely useful to have Neil Gilbert's criticisms and proposals about many
aspects of the welfare system readily available in a single volume.
Rita
J.
Simon
