Based on the interview that someone posted the link for to pen-l, it looks like a good book. One thing that confused me is that where he uses the word "credit," Karl Polanyi uses the word "reciprocity." But either usage seems valid.
On Wed, Oct 5, 2011 at 1:32 PM, nathan tankus <[email protected]> wrote: > "Also, he claims there are no historical examples actual barter, and in > the same article describes Egypt as not having debt and interest ( but > Mesopotamia does). Egypt had "trade" so , without money and interest , > they had barter." > > please actually read the book. i finished reading my copy 2 weeks > ago, i'm willing to send it to you if you want. he does not say that > there are no examples of actual barter. he says there is no such thing > as a barter economy (defined as a series of spot exchange > transactions). the fact that barter happens occasionally between > strangers who have no obligation to treat each other well is not > surprising and doesn't contradict the argument. there is no historical > evidence for a moneyless society bartering with their next door > neighbor or anyone they regularly interact with. goods were > distributed in various customary ways, but not through barter. -- 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
