"In 1898, long before any builder had even thought of building a ship of 45,000 tons, a novel entitled Futility told the story of how a passenger liner of almost the same dimensions as the Titanic .... The name of the vessel was Titan." Robertson, M. 1898. Futility (London).
-----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Jim Devine Sent: Sunday, June 15, 2008 11:59 AM To: Progressive Economics Subject: [Pen-l] Goolsbee vs. Chicago [was: Naomi Klein: Beware of Obama'sChicago School of Economics boys Yes, it's good to separate the true Chicago school from Goolsbee _et al_. To alter a cliché a little, the latter are arguing about the number of lifeboats needed for the Titanic (capitalism) and their exact placement on various decks, while the true Chicago types are arguing that capitalism does not need lifeboats (government-provided insurance). All that's needed is a clear rule about where and when to sail: thou shalt not violate the icebergs' property rights. The government's role is only to make sure that this rule is followed. None of these economists question the Titanic itself, of course: the fact that most people are in steerage while a small minority sips champagne up above may be relevant (because it promotes disorder), but the general idea of a hierarchy of domination is not. Of course, it is totally unlikely that Obama will listen to any economist (or anyone) who questions capitalism. We will always be disappointed by his appointments. On the other hand, John McCain is more likely to appoint someone whose actions will hurt capitalism. But it won't be because they explicitly oppose the system but because it serves short-term interests of particular capitalist groups (as under Bush). Despite the Titanic/capitalism analogy, I am not saying that capitalism is going to sink the way the Titanic did, Doug. (I don't think it will.) When they were arguing about how many lifeboats to put on it, no-one knew that the Titanic was going to sink. -- Jim Devine / "Segui il tuo corso, e lascia dir le genti." (Go your own way and let people talk.) -- Karl, paraphrasing Dante. _______________________________________________ pen-l mailing list [email protected] https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l _______________________________________________ pen-l mailing list [email protected] https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l
