|Peter Boettke|
Sorry Fred, Karl Polanyi was wrong then and he remains wrong today. But I admit it is a challenge worthy of serious analysis by comparative historical political economists. In the end, the result will not be pretty to those who are hoping he was right.
Henry Simons argued that price theory was a prophylactic against popular fallacies, and indeed it is, but as Deirdre McCloskey has also explained you cannot answer philosophically questions that are empirical in nature. Theory and History must work together to dispel fallacious ideas.
I hope younger scholars in political economy understand the importance of taking up this challenge.
I think there are ideas in K. Polanyi's The Great Transformation, ideas treated only glancingly in the Fred Block interview, that have great importance and merit, and that liberals need to better faced up to.
I briefly explain those ideas in this 17-min talk:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=NTvf04BxoFw#t=3711
Posted by: Daniel Klein | September 26, 2014 at 03:16 PM