Smith Is not attacking unions here because there were no active unions at the time. He is attacking business, because powerful business people used their power to take advantage of the public, just as they do today.
Michael Perelman Economics Department California State University Mperelman at csuchico.edu Chico, CA 95929 530-898-5321 fax 530-898-5901 www.michaelperelman.wordpress.com -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Michael Nuwer Sent: Sunday, June 14, 2015 10:49 AM To: Progressive Economics Subject: Re: [Pen-l] An observation by Adam Smith On 6/14/2015 11:41 AM, Carrol Cox wrote: > If I recall correctly, Smith is attacking labor unions, not capitalists. > No, Smith is arguing for market competition (the invisible hand) as the regulator of all those who interact in markets. Such competition would prevent the abuses of power by all people. Smith didn't comprehend the uses of power by capitalists in the economy, and so he put his faith in some metaphysical "natural" power of the market. _______________________________________________ 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
