 Economists are not unlike astrologers. Their predictions about the future are pseudo-scientific at best. What gives either of these professions any potenency is the faith of some believers. If enough people become convinced that they are "right", then their predictions will tend to be self-fulfilling. Both professions have a wide canon of rhetoric to prop up their beliefs. And both most confront the uncomfortable truth that life is more complex than any theory. Unless economics puts ecology on the forefront of any decision making table, we will - in the words of Hosiah - "reap the whirlwind". We must come to realize that every economic decision has an economic price and be conscious of the energy and material flows involved in every economic transaction. Economics without ethics is like boxing without rules: moral and legal restraints are needed to control our aggressive impulses. However, it is difficult - and perhaps impossible - to micromanage human interactions. Legal restraints - the products of special interest compromises - tend to be inherently imperfect. Religious restraints may also be imperfect because they vary from culture to culture. We must develop an internal sense of "fair trade" with the world around us. Traditionally, consumption was thought to be the engine driving the capitalist economy. The whole capitalist system appears to be geared towards getting up to consume more and more. This is unsustainable. Marginal analysis is seldom conducted correctly: the true benefits and costs of most endeavors are often uncalculated. |
