Online Extra: The Free Market's "Softer Side"
Political scientist Jacob Hacker says Americans believe in self-reliance -- and in a government that protects them when needed
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Jacob Hacker's research on the uneven state of the American safety net has made the young Yale University political scientist a top idea merchant to Democratic think tanks. On Mar. 17, BusinessWeek Washington Bureau Chief Lee Walczak interviewed Hacker and discussed his ideas at length. Edited excerpts of their conversation follow:
Q: We've heard a lot about the Ownership Society. Is there a flip-side -- a group of Americans who shrink from assuming more financial risk?
A:
Sure. But people's views about risk really vary depending on what you're talking about -- retirement security, personal savings, home ownership, or health care. Even people who feel perfectly comfortable investing in the stock market and owning their own homes often have qualms about individual medical accounts or Social Security private accounts.