Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Chaos in Economics: Elegantly Stating the Obvious

       
         Hayek's Cosmos and Taxis talks about the implications of spontaneous order in Economics. While a very interesting read I don't believe it brought anything dramatically new to the table. Looking back at previous blog posts I have written I have stated my opinions on the shaky science that economics lies on. While there are undoubtedly guidelines for things that cannot work and things that are significantly more likely to succeed than others with the insane amount of variables that goes into accounting for basic things like a single family's monthly budget that trying to expand that lens to the rest of the world seems almost conceited.
         Unfortunately for my anarchic wishes there Hayek describes some of the order that arise with organizations, individuals, and governments trying to succeed. He cites Adam Smith's theory of the invisible hand as one of the most recognizable instances of the spontaneous order that appears to happen behind the scenes. It seems that going along with Smith's idea, is that a great amount of the order comes from humanity's (for the most part) consistent character traits. In most instances it would be common sense to place your bets on the fact that human beings will choose the actions that will most benefit themselves or others they have a vested interest in. While this viewpoint might seem slightly jaded "we're all out to get the best deal for ourselves" I believe it is beneficial to the society we are in. My specific view on economics is a type of ethical hedonism which purports that everyone is entitled to as much pleasure as they can achieve within their own power.
         

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