I came across this gem while reading Hayek’s discussion of private monopoly and competition in Law, Legislation and Liberty. Hayek is discussing the relationship between competition and economic rationality, disputing those who argue that economic rationality or the ‘commercial spirit’ needs to exist for competition to work. In contrast, Hayek
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Molly'sBlog: CAN CHINA INNOVATE ?
CAN CHINA INNOVATE ? The immense weight of China dominates much economic prognostication these days. Will it overtake the USA and become the dominant power of this century ? What are its strengths and weaknesses ? In the November 18 edition of Time Magazine Michael Schuman looks at this question
Continue readingMolly'sBlog: CAN CHINA INNOVATE ?
CAN CHINA INNOVATE ? The immense weight of China dominates much economic prognostication these days. Will it overtake the USA and become the dominant power of this century ? What are its strengths and weaknesses ? In the Novembe…
Continue readingMolly'sBlog: CAN CHINA INNOVATE ?
CAN CHINA INNOVATE ? The immense weight of China dominates much economic prognostication these days. Will it overtake the USA and become the dominant power of this century ? What are its strengths and weaknesses ? In the November 18 edition of Time Magazine Michael Schuman looks at this question
Continue readingThe Common Sense Canadian: With LNG, Asian takeovers of Canadian energy assets still booming
Asian investment explodes in BC’s LNG market, rivalling the scale of resource development in the tarsands, as new trade deals threaten to entrench foreign state ownership of Canada’s key energy assets. “The relationship is suffering,” or so goes the mantra in our mainstream press. For the last number of months, politicians, media
Continue readingParchment in the Fire: Orthodox economists have failed their own market test | Seumas Milne | Comment is free | The Guardian
Orthodox economists have failed their own market test | Seumas Milne | Comment is free | The Guardian. From any rational point of view, orthodox economics is in serious trouble. Its champions not only failed to foresee the greatest crash for 80 years, but insisted such crises were a thing
Continue readingParchment in the Fire: Academics back students in protests against economics teaching | Education | The Guardian
Academics back students in protests against economics teaching | Education | The Guardian. A prominent group of academic economists have backed student protests against neo-classical economics teaching, increasing the pressure on top universities to reform courses that critics argue are dominated by free market theories that ignore the impact of financial
Continue readingThe Common Sense Canadian: Canada’s largest energy union wants national fracking moratorium
First Nations and supporters protest fracking in Vancouver last month (Damien Gillis) Canada’s largest private sector union, Unifor, has joined the growing chorus of concern over controversial shale gas development. The labour organization representing over 300,000 members in a wide range of economic sectors, including energy, is calling for a
Continue readingThe Common Sense Canadian: The five elements of a financial crash
Financial crashes are common in modern market economies. The first notable one occurred in Amsterdam in the 1630s when a bursting speculative bubble on tulips caused enough financial ruin for wealthy investors to create a recession. Other crashes occurred in the 1700s and the 1800s linked to risky colonial exploits
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: NAFTA, “Free Trade” and the TPP: Fast-Track To Full Corporate Rule
“Twenty years ago, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was signed into law. At the time, advocates painted a rosy picture of booming U.S. exports creating hundreds of thousands of new jobs, and economic development in Mexico, which would bring the struggling country in line with its wealthier northern
Continue readingThe Common Sense Canadian: Encana laying off 20% of workforce, slashing dividend
Encana’s Calgary headquarters – The Bow building Read this Nov. 5 story from CBC.ca on Canadian natural gas titan Encana’s series of cutbacks. Canadian natural gas giant Encana says it will cut its workforce by 20 per cent and close its office in Plano, Texas. At the end of the
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: The new epidemic: Death cults and the culture of despair
An article in The Atlantic speaks to the growing death-fetish that is gripping more and more youth. It is a bad omen for the state of modern industrial civilization as a whole, I would contend, and it indicates a broader trend toward anxiety, hopeless and despair, which must be confronted
Continue readingThe Common Sense Canadian: More Oliver oil: Canada a “world leader” in energy efficiency?
The ever slippery Joe Oliver, Canada’s minister of natural resources – who never misses a chance to put a positive spin on Canada’s horrendous energy track record – is happily trumpeting the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) alleged recognition of Canada “as a world leader in energy efficiency”. Says Joe, “The IEA’s
Continue readingThe Common Sense Canadian: Canada’s fossil fuels are risky business with Global Carbon Budget
Alberta Tar Sands operation near Fort McMurray (photo: Kris Krûg) by Carol Linnitt – republished from Desmog Canada In its latest report the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) gave global greenhouse gas emissions a worldwide limit, know as the global ‘carbon budget.’ In order to prevent temperatures from rising
Continue readingParchment in the Fire: Mainstream economics is in denial: the world has changed | Aditya Chakrabortty | Comment is free | The Guardian
Mainstream economics is in denial: the world has changed | Aditya Chakrabortty | Comment is free | The Guardian. Rebellions aren’t meant to kick off in lecture theatres – but I saw one last Thursday night. It was small and well-read and it minded its Ps & Qs, and I
Continue readingSaskboy's Abandoned Stuff: TD;CSR. OMG No Way!
2012 was a strong year for TD, despite ongoing economic challenges and market volatility. Our total adjusted earnings were more than $7 billion dollars — up more than $600 million, or about 10 per cent, from 2011. -Colleen Johnston, Group Head and Chief Financial Officer, TD Bank Group Through a
Continue readingSaskboy's Abandoned Stuff: Where Canada Is Going
It’s very important to Canada’s economy that we send a resource (we can’t use without killing the planet) to Communist China so their economy can continue to pollute at record pace as they ship unneeded goods to the United States and Canada so we can bury them in our landfills
Continue readingParchment in the Fire: Economics students aim to tear up free-market syllabus | Business | The Guardian
Economics students aim to tear up free-market syllabus | Business | The Guardian. Undergraduates at Manchester University propose overhaul of orthodox teachings to embrace alternative theories Phillip Inman, economics correspondent The Guardian, Thursday 24 October 2013 19.17 BST The Post-Crash Economics Society at Manchester University. Photograph: Jon Super for the
Continue readingSaskboy's Abandoned Stuff: To Vote, Or To Resolve Change
I noticed maybe a month ago that this Brand guy had a brain, and it’s a good one. Paxman: “You’re not going to solve world problems by facetiousness.” Brand: “We’re not going to solve them with the current system! At least facetiousness is funny.” – To detract from Brand’s point,
Continue readingTerahertz: Vancouver too expensive, not over-taxed
It must be easy to write right-wing anti-tax screeds when you don’t have to actually research any facts. Take for example, this new piece in the Vancouver Sun which blames the local tax system for “scaring off potential businesses.” Author Roslyn Kunin notes that 46 new businesses were licenses in
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