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Issue-24, March 8, 2006
From the Editor
Ranking journals and departments is still an
ongoing problem for European economists—I say this because I have
been told by some that the problem is a non-problem and papers on
issues of ranking should not really be published. In Greece, higher
education is about to officially initiate research assessments and
to play the journal ranking game. This will put into practice a
relevant law passed a few months ago in Greece in compliance with a
European Union directive regarding the evaluation of higher
education. Dr. Andriana Vlachou and others are trying to do
something to resist the implementation of the law or at least some
of its devastating implications. If you have papers and other
documents that address the issue of ranking and how to deal with its
implications, please send then to Dr. Vlachou—her e-mail address is
Vlachou@aueb.gr.
In the newsletter there are more call for papers and of particular
note the call for papers from AFEE, IAFFE, ASE, and URPE for the
2007 ASSA in Chicago have now been listed in the Newsletter. In
addition, there are a jobs posting, and notices for ROPE, David
Colander’s Economics, and Ray Canterbury’s book on Alan Greenspan.
Moreover, a new section has been introduced that deals with
heterodox economics archive material which you might find
interesting. Finally, under FYI you will find an article on the
teaching of economics at Columbia University which you may find
quite interesting.
Fred Lee
In
this issue:
-
Call
for Papers
-
European Association for Evolutionary Political Economy, EAEPE
- Union of Radical
Political Economists
- The History of
Capitalism in North America
- 2006 Society for the
Development of Austrian Economics Sessions
- Japan Academy for Asian
Market Economies (JAFAME)
- 2007 World Congress,
University of Amsterdam
- Another World is
Necessary: Justice, Sustainable Development & Sovereignty
- Conferences, Seminars
and Lectures
- Future of Europe: "Euroland - Global Player or Global Drag?"
- Economics in the
Postwar Period
- Labour Internationalism
- Production and
Consumption
- Value Theory and
Knowledge Based Economy Workshops
- History of Strikes,
Lock-Outs & General Strikes
- Economic Institutions
Under the Many Forms of Capitalism
- Keynesian Policies on
Welfare- Past and Present
- Histories of the 8 Hour
Day and Working Life-Working to Live
- Eighth International
Workshop on Institutional Economics
-
Job Postings for
Heterodox Economists
- Brighton Business School
-
Heterodox Journals and Newsletters
- Review of Political Economy
- European Journal of the
History of Economic Thought
- Economic Sociology - the
European Electronic Newsletter
- The Talking Economics
Bulletin
-
Heterodox Books and Book Series
-
Colander's Economics
- Alan Greenspan: The
Oracle Behind the Curtain
-
Heterodox
Graduate Program and PhD Scholarships
- New MA at Tallinn
University of Technology
- Annual Student Contest
for Canadian Students around the World and For Students in Canada
-
Heterodox Economics
Archive Material
-
Real-World Economics
Teach-In March 20, 1996, University of Victoria, Canada
-
For Your Information
- 2006 Workers' Rights
- Metaphysics of McCarthyism
Call for Papers
European Association
for Evolutionary Political Economy, EAEPE
18th Conference – Istanbul, Turkey, November, 2-4, 2006
Research Area C – Institutional Change
Special session on “Development and institutional change”
The general theme of the EAEPE conference in Istanbul is “Developing
Economies: Multiple Trajectories, Multiple Developments”. The topic of
this special session focuses on a specific aspect of this theme, i.e.
the relation between development and institutional change.
Although most heterodox economists acknowledge that development implies
institutional change a key question is what kind of change is involved
and how it should be assessed. Three approaches may be envisaged. The
first one focuses on development in terms of economic performance in a
market economy, measured by indicators such as allocative efficiency,
dynamic efficiency, growth, etc.. Social justice is taken into account,
here, either as a constraint determined by social and political
circumstances or because it is functional to development, i.e. it
establishes or reinforces social cohesion. Insofar as this
interdependence between social justice and economic performance is
community-specific, it is likely to determine distinct institutional
setups and distinct patterns of economic evolution. This suggests that
the institutional change required to achieve a given market performance
is, at least to some extent, dependent on local specificities: how
important these specificities are remains open to debate.
The second approach switches the relation between social justice and
economic performance by arguing that efficiency is pursued according to
a specific legal-economic nexus – involving, inter alia, the assignment
of property rights and entitlements. Since the nexus is the outcome of
historically determined social and political truces, this view
reinforces the idea that different patterns of development are possible.
However, while the first approach contends that the market provides a
benchmark for institutional change, this one suggests that change in the
institutions underlying a given nexus depends on power relations, both
domestic and international. Whether any distribution is possible,
independently of market and power constraints is an open issue.
The above approaches view social justice in distributive terms. The
third one extends the notion of social justice to the quality of life,
i.e. to a concept that goes beyond money (income and wealth)
distribution, involving a social accounting that transcends the market’s
relative prices, economic relations based on reciprocity and care rather
than on the mere exchange of commodities, and freedom to choose how to
conduct one’s life. You might wish to add “empowerment” or the
“capabilities” approach (A. Sen) Basically, what this approach suggests
is that development consists in achieving the conditions whereby the
members of a community jointly choose what ends must be pursued. Thus
two types of institutional changes may be identified: those what the
community identifies as functional to its ends; those that determine the
conditions whereby the community formulates its choices. Participatory
democracy as a search process, rather than a mere reflection of
preferences, emerges as a key issue. Despite its conceptual clarity,
institutional change is difficult to assess, here, owing to the variety
of its qualitative, as well as quantitative, features.
This sketchy outline suggests that theoretical research is important to
clarify the value judgements underlying each approach and to understand
the relations among them, possibly qualifying the outline itself.
Applied research may provide insights on the relevance of the issues
that each approach puts forward and on the problems that policies based
on these approaches lead to.
Participants may submit papers that relate:
- to the general topic of institutional change (please indicate:
Research Area C)
- to the above call for papers (please indicate: Research Area C - Call
for papers)
Paper proposals (600-1000 words) must be uploaded to:
www.eaepe.org (conferences -
abstracts) by 30 April 2006 and sent to both Paolo Ramazzotti
(ramazzotti@unimc.it ) and
Wolfram Elsner
(welsner@uni-bremen.de ) who will care to forward them to the
conference organisers.
For further information on this call for papers contact Wolfram Elsner
or Paolo Ramazzotti at the above e-mail addresses . See
www.eaepe.org for general
information concerning the conference.
Union of Radical Political
Economists
Annual Meeting- Chicago January 5-7, 2007
URPE invites proposals for individual papers and complete sessions for
the URPE at ASSA annual meeting. URPE welcomes proposals on radical
political economic theory and applied analysis from a wide variety of
theoretical traditions.
The deadline for proposed papers and sessions is May 1, 2006.
Proposals for complete sessions should include the session title, a
brief description of each paper, and the names, institutional
affiliations, and email addresses of the chair, discussants, and
presenters. Proposals for sessions should contain four papers. If you
are proposing a complete session, please arrange to have discussants for
your papers and a chair for your session. As the organizer of this
session, you are responsible for conveying administrative information to
session members, including confirmation that the session has been
accepted, the time and location, and deadlines.
Proposals for individual papers should include the title, the abstract,
and the author's name, institutional affiliation, and email. Individuals
whose papers are accepted may also be expected to serve as a discussant
for a different paper at the meetings. If you list the areas you prefer
to discuss, all attempts will be made to match your preferences.
Individual papers that are accepted will be assigned to sessions and
each session will have an assigned organizer. It is the organizer's job
to convey administrative information to session members, including
confirmation that the session has been accepted, the time and location,
and deadlines. URPE has no paid ASSA staff, so those presenting papers
must share the burden of organizing.
We regret that high quality individual papers may be turned down due to
the inability to place them in a session with papers with similar
themes. For this reason, we strongly encourage proposals for full
sessions. The number of sessions we can accept is limited by ASSA, and
we regret that high quality sessions may be turned down as well.
Please note that the date, time, and location of sessions is assigned by
ASSA, not URPE. You should receive word from URPE that your
paper/session was accepted by mid-June. ASSA will not assign dates and
times until much later in the summer.
Please note that anyone who presents a paper (but not the chairs or
discussants) must be a member of URPE (except at joint sessions with
other groups, in which case they can be a member of the other
organization). Contact urpe@labornet.org or 413-577-0806 for membership
information. We will confirm membership for accepted proposals.
A completed copy of the Program Registration Form (below) is required
with your submission. Submissions will NOT BE ACCEPTED BY EMAIL. Only
applications received by the May 1 deadline will be considered.
If you have any questions, please contact one of the URPE at ASSA
coordinators:
Robin Hahnel (rhahnel@starpower.net)
; American University Kristen Sheeran (kasheeran@smcm.edu)
St. Mary's College of MD
For registration form:
URPECall2007.doc
The History of Capitalism in North
America
Graduate Student Conference at Harvard, October 27-28, 2006
Keynote speaker: Richard White (Stanford University)
This conference aims to bring together emerging scholars who see
capitalism as an important category of analysis and a topic for
historical inquiry in its own right. We seek papers from fellow graduate
students whose work broadens our knowledge of the history of American
capitalism and uses capitalism as a prism through which to understand
American history as a whole.
We welcome papers that focus on a variety of topics, not just those
usually associated with economic history. We are looking for submissions
on subjects related (but not limited) to:
• Legal structures and the state
• The built and the natural environments
• Work and labor
• Race and slavery
• Migration and immigration
• Ideas and culture
• Gender
• Class formation
• Consumerism
• Agriculture
• Trans- and multinational corporations
• Industries and commodities
• Imperialism and colonialism
• Innovation and technology
• Business strategies
Interested graduate students should submit a C.V. and a 750-word
abstract of their paper (description, significance, sources, current
status) to:
History of Capitalism Conference
Charles Warren Center
4th Floor Emerson Hall
Cambridge, MA 02138
The submission deadline is April 15, 2006. For additional information,
please see
www.fas.harvard.edu/polecon or email
polecon@fas.harvard.edu
This conference is made possible by the David S. Howe Fund for the Study
of Economic and Business History, with additional support from the
Charles Warren Center for Studies in American History, the Radcliffe
Institute for Advanced Study, the Graduate Program in the History of
American Civilization, and the Harvard History Department.
2006 Society for the Development
of Austrian Economics Sessions
The Society encourages contributions from a diversity of economists, and
is always especially open to good work in the history of economic
thought. More information on the Society, including a membership form,
can be found at
http://it.stlawu.edu/sdae
Southern Economic Association Meeting Charleston, South Carolina,
November 18-21, 2006 (Saturday-Tuesday)
Members interested in presenting papers, serving as chairs/discussants,
or proposing entire panels should submit proposals by April 1st. All
submissions must include the following information for each participant,
including non-attending co-authors:
Name
Affiliation
Street address
Phone
Fax
Email address
Those proposing papers must also include a one-page abstract as well as
an indication of their willingness to serve as a chair or discussant. If
you just wish to serve as a chair or discussant, please indicate so in
your submission. All information should be returned by April 1, 2006. If
you are proposing an entire panel, please have all the contact
information for all the participants when you send the materials. Also
keep in mind that paid-up SDAE members are given priority for SDAE
panels.
Please send your submissions to Randall Holcombe, SDAE President-elect
at:
Randall Holcombe
Department of Economics
Florida State University
Tallahassee, Florida 32306
or email to:
holcombe@garnet.acns.fsu.edu
Japan Academy for Asian Market
Economies (JAFAME)
We are pleased to invite you to submit an abstract for the 10th JAFAME
Conference, which will be held in Osaka from 15th to 16th July 2006.
This Conference is scheduled to have workshops for international
participants. Those scholars and researchers who are interested in Asian
economies are welcome to participate in these workshops. We are
expecting to have farsighted and challenging papers from all over the
world. Papers from Asian countries are most welcome. Also we are
expecting to have graduate students who would like to contribute their
excellent papers for the presentation in these workshops. Official
languages are English or Japanese.
Abstract should be written in English or Japanese, in about 300 -500
words in English or 1000 characters in Japanese. The deadline is
February 28, 2006. All abstracts will undergo a competitive review.
Applicants will be notified by April 30, 2006 whether their papers have
been accepted for presentation. Papers presented at a workshop will be
submitted for publication review.
For detailed information:
JAFAME2006.doc and
http://www.eco.kindai.ac.jp/onishi/index.html
2007 World Congress, University of
Amsterdam
Social Values and Economic Life
Twelfth World Congress of Social Economics
University of Amsterdam
June 8-10, 2007
The Association for Social Economics has scheduled its Twelfth World
Congress of Social Economics for June 8-10, 2007, at the University of
Amsterdam in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. The general theme will be
“Social Values and Economic Life.” It is not necessary to be a member of
the Association to participate in the World Congress. We hope that non-
members who participate in the World Congress will be interested in
joining the Association.
Social economists assume that all economic theory and policy is strongly
influenced by social values, whether or not these values are explicitly
articulated, thereby rejecting the notion of a value-free, positive
economic science. Social economists therefore view the economy as a
social, cultural, and political institution. Social economics questions
mainstream economic assumptions of homo economicus, rational economic
man, and recognizes the interconnectedness of people’s life and work -
both paid and unpaid. The Association for Social Economics (
www.socialeconomics.org
) was founded in 1970 as the successor of the Catholic Economic
Association, founded in 1941. Social economists challenge the dominant
paradigm of neoclassical economics, endeavor to broaden the scope and
methodology of economics, encourage the pursuit of economic justice, and
support research and analysis on policies to eradicate poverty,
unemployment, hunger, inequality, and that promote an economy that
values human beings and allows them to live with dignity.
Proposals for the World Congress may include: (1) individual or
coauthored papers; (2) entire sessions of 4 papers; (3) roundtables of
4-5 persons on a particular topic; and (4) pedagogical sessions on
teaching in the social economics tradition. The editors of the two
journals of the Association—Review of Social Economy and Forum for
Social Economics—are especially interested in papers suitable for
publication. There will be no formal discussant assigned to
papers/sessions. Instead, we encourage participation and discussion
among the panelists and participants.
We encourage historical, theoretical, empirical, and policy papers. We
are particularly interested in research that explicitly articulates a
particular framework of social values. Five broad areas for exploring
the theme of social values and economic life include: (1) family and
community relationships; (2) the workplace and its social organization;
(3) the social nature of market relationships; (4) macroeconomic social
policy issues; and (5) economic methodology and the history of economic
thought.
The Program Committee prefers to receive proposals by e-mail. In your
proposal, include:
- Author/Panelist name(s), postal address, telephone, fax, e-mail
address Paper, Panel, or Session title
- A 100 word (maximum) abstract of the Paper, Panel, or entire Session
Please send these materials, preferably by no later than January 31,
2007, to each member of the Program Committee:
Betsy Jane Clary, College of Charleston, USA -
claryj@cofc.edu
John B. Davis, Marquette University and University of Amsterdam -
john.davis@marquette.edu
Edith Kuiper, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands -
kuiperedith@hotmail.com
Harro Maas, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands,
h.b.j.b.maas@uva.nl
Ellen Mutari, Richard Stockton College, USA,
ellen.mutari@stockton.edu
Another World is
Necessary: Justice, Sustainable Development & Sovereignty
July 19-26, 2006
Center for Global Justice, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
Costs: Registration fee: $250 includes all sessions, reception, lunches
and coffee breaks. Site visits: $50 covers both. Lodging & sessions at
the Hotel Real de Minas, a quiet, full service hotel 10 min from San
Miguel's historic center
http://www.realdeminas.com/ Single or double: 702 pesos or $68
USD per night. Check our website for options. Scholarship assistance is
available for low-income participants, including travel expenses, and
lodging & dinners with local friends. Full fees (and contributions) help
provide scholarships for low-income participants. The registration fee
is due by May 15.
We welcome tax deductible contributions to our Scholarship Fund. All
checks are payable to: “Research Associates Foundation” Ctr. for Global
Justice, 9902 Crystal Ct. #107, Laredo TX 78045. For credit card payment
& more info:
www.globaljusticecenter.org
Workshop results, including any joint conclusions, will be published in
Spanish and English on our website--www.globaljusticecenter.org--and
very likely also in print. The Center is devoted to research and
learning for a better world.
Co-Sponsors: Radical Philosophy Association, Global Studies Association,
Union of Radical Political Economists and Argentina Autonomista Project
We call on social change researchers and activists to join this 6-day
workshop in seeking alternatives to corporate globalization that are
just, sustainable, and respect popular sovereignty. Participants are
invited to join the Center for Global Justice and share in the job of
renewing its mission. All sessions will be in both English & Spanish.
"There is no alternative", (TINA) said Margaret Thatcher of neo-liberal
capitalism as led by the United States at least since the 1980s. And
this system's defenders still argue TINA. But this flies in the face of
reality. Without waiting for governments, victims of neo-liberalism have
themselves constructed many viable alternatives aiming at justice,
sustainability, and popular sovereignty. And new majorities are
directing governments to join this construction and the global justice
movement. For another world is not only possible, it is now necessary.
Amidst signs of a deep global economic crisis, the present system's
environmental and social unsustainability is clear. Failure to honestly
ponder options invites disaster by mindless recycling of a toxic system.
Another world needs to be invented by us all - morally, economically,
environmentally, politically, & culturally.
We aim for bi-lingual, publishable results of our joint work on
suggested themes like:
1. Grasping the crisis: how capital pits working classes against each
other; conflicting agricultural models & the rural crisis; the
neo-liberal offensive today - economically, ecologically, politically;
water & ecocide; new imperialism & war; recycling racism.
2. Women world-wide: women's rights; migration of women; indigenous
women; reproductive rights; women's new economic activity; feminist
ecology.
3. Goals & Alternatives: How is the people's resistance redefining
social and global justice, autonomy, and participatory democracy? New
kinds of democratic socialism including "socialism for the 21st
century"; how to undo racism; gender democracy; “una vida digna.” 4.
Strategies & Tools: occupy, resist, produce; regional economic unity;
global justice movements; solidarity economy, recuperated factories, &
co-ops; can pursuit of local economic autonomy be combined with
electoral action?; North-South cross-border organizing; ambiguities of
new technologies; Tobin tax & international legal reform; food
sovereignty; the subsistence perspective; reclaiming the commons;
distinguishing means that are unjust, unsustainable, & disrespectful of
peoples' sovereignty from those that are not.
We welcome individual or joint papers, performances or other creative
presentations on such themes. All papers will be posted on our website
so we can prepare for joint work by reading each other's work in
advance. Site visits will concretize our debates.
Proposals due by April 15; full presentations in English & Spanish
(over) by June 10. Proposals & queries to Beatriz SĂşcar at:
conference@globaljusticecenter.org
Notification of acceptance: May 1, 2006. Final, full presentations in
both Spanish and English, for mounting on our website, are due by June
10, 2006. If you cannot get your paper translated we will supply a list
of translators who charge reasonable prices.
Top
Conferences, Seminars and
Lectures
Future of
Europe: "Euroland - Global Player or Global Drag?"
Franklin College Switzerland, in collaboration with Banca Julius Baer (Lugano)
SA and Fingroup Financial Management & Consulting SA of Lugano, is
pleased to invite you to the Keynote Address on Thursday, March 2, 2006
presented by Charles Goodhart, Professor Emeritus, London School of
Economics, to commence the:
Franklin Conference on the Future of Europe: "Euroland - Global Player
or Global Drag?"
The Lecture will be held in the Franklin College Auditorium at 6.00 pm
and will be followed by a cocktail reception at Holman Hall.
You are kindly invited to join us for this interesting presentation. For
details please see the
attachment.
Economics in the
Postwar Period
History of Postwar Social Science Seminar
Roger Backhouse of the University of Birmingham organizes a seminar on
Economics in the Postwar Period at the London School of Economics,
UK on March 14, 2006.
Labour Internationalism
ESSHC Session
Labour
Internationalism, a session of the European Social Science History
Conference (ESSHC), will be held in Amsterdam in the Netherlands from
March 22 to 25, 2006.
Production and Consumption
Social History Society Annual Conference
Production and Consumption is one of the thematic strands of the
Social History Society Annual Conference, from March 31 to April 2, 2006
at Reading University, UK.
Value Theory and Knowledge
Based Economy Workshops
The Lancaster Institute of Advanced Studies has forthcoming workshops on
Value Theory and the Knowledge-Based Economy (KBE) in April to June
2006 as part of the Institute's inaugural Annual Programme on KBE.
History of Strikes, Lock-Outs
& General Strikes
British General Strike 80th Anniversary
To commemorate the 80th anniversary of the British General Strike and
miners' lock-out, the Society for the Study of Labour History and
Historical Studies in Industrial Relations organize a conference on
The History of Strikes,
Lock-Outs and General Strikes at Keele University on May 6, 2006.
Economic Institutions Under
the Many Forms of Capitalism
The Economic History Research Area of the European Association of
Evolutionary Political Economy, and the Economic Policy Laboratory
organize a joint colloquium, "The
variety of economic institutions under the many forms of capitalism"
on May 12-13, 2006 at Athens University of Economics and Business,
Greece.
Keynesian Policies on Welfare-
Past and Present
Seventy years after J. M. Keynes's General Theory was published, the
Italian Association for the History of Political Economy (STOREP)
devotes its III
National Conference in Lecce, Italy from June 1 to 3, 2006 to
discussion of the characteristics and applications of Keynesian policies
and to the dialogue between economists and historians.
Histories of the 8 Hour Day
and Working Life-Working to Live
On June 20 & 21, 2006 Histories of
the 8 Hour Day and Working Life, a joint initiative of the
Australian Society for the Study of Labour History and the Australian
Centre at the University of Melbourne, commemorates the 150th
anniversary of the 8 Hour System established by the Melbourne
Stonemasons.
Eighth
International Workshop on Institutional Economics
"Human Needs and Markets: New Foundations for Health and Social Policy"
Organised by the Centre for Research in Institutional Economics,
University of Hertfordshire, UK
The subsided/reduced rate is only 100 GBP including accommodation and
meals. Those wishing to apply for low-income rates should send a letter
or email to Geoff Hodgson
(g.m.hodgson@herts.ac.uk – mailing address below). You should
explain your financial circumstances and confirm that there is no
possibility of adequate financial support from your own institution.
This information will be treated in the strictest confidence.
Speakers:
Stephen Dunn (Department of Health), Barbara Harriss-White (University
of Oxford), Colin Haslam (University of Hertfordshire), Geoffrey Hodgson
(University of Hertfordshire), Robert McMaster (University of Aberdeen).
19-20 June 2006
This residential workshop will be held on the De Havilland campus of the
University of Hertfordshire, in Hatfield, England.
This workshop is designed to provide in-depth discussion of cutting-edge
issues in institutional economics, in a forum that permits the attention
to detail and definition that is often lacking in larger,
conference-style events. The expected maximum number of participants is
50. Please book early to avoid disappointment.
The De Havilland Campus of the University of Hertfordshire is about one
mile from Hatfield railway station. There are regular trains from
Hatfield to London Kings Cross, taking about 20 minutes. There is easy
access to all London airports.
Geoff Hodgson
Research Professor
The Business School, University of Hertfordshire, De Havilland Campus,
Hatfield, Hertfordshire AL10 9AB, UK
For detailed
information: workshop.doc
Top
Job Postings for
Heterodox Economists
Brighton
Business School
Two appointments: Professor of Strategic Management and Professor in
Human Resources Management
For detailed information: MB3016.pdf
Top
Heterodox Journals and
Newsletters
Review of
Political Economy
Individual members of the following societies can subscribe to Review of
Political Economy at the special rate of Ł34/US$56:
Association for Evolutionary Economics
Association for Heterodox Economics
Eastern Economic Association
European Association for Evolutionary Political Economy
European Society for the History of Economic Thought
History of Economics Society
International Association for Feminist Economics
Union for Radical Political Economics
Volume 18, 4 issues per year, 2006
Print ISSN 0953-8259
Online ISSN 1465-3982
To subscribe visit
www.tandf.co.uk/journals/offer/crpe-so.asp
European Journal
of the History of Economic Thought
Volume 13 Number 1/March 2006 of European Journal of the History of
Economic Thought is now available on the journalsonline.tandf.co.uk
web site at
http://journalsonline.tandf.co.uk
- An ‘exception culturelle’? French sensationist political economy and
the shaping of public economics *
Gilbert Faccarello
- Subjectivism, joint consumption and the state: Public goods in
Staatswirtschaftslehre*
Richard Sturn
- The Italian approach to the theory of public goods *
Domenicantonio Fausto
- Morally ruled behaviour: The neglected contribution of Scholasticism *
Oscar De-Juan and Fabio Monsalve
- Money, interest and capital accumulationin Karl Marx's economics: a
monetary interpretation and some similaritiesto post-Keynesian
approaches *
Eckhard Hein
- The Kaldor/Knight controversy: Is capital a distinct and quantifiable
factor of production?
Avi J. Cohen
- Book reviews
Economic
Sociology - the European Electronic Newsletter
Current Issue: Vol. 7, No. 2 - February 2006
In this issue you will find a coda to the previous special issue on
historical perspectives. Bruce Carruthers gives a plethora of reasons
why economic sociology should take history seriously. The simple answer?
‘Because it matters.’
Edward Nik-Khah provides a critique of Michel Callon’s performativity
thesis (see volume 6, no. 2 of this newsletter). Callon’s and Donald
MacKenzie’s classical example of performativity are the spectrum
auctions of the American Federal Communications Commission, where game
theory allegedly was constitutive, not merely descriptive, of the
auctions’ design. On the basis of a detailed empirical account, however,
Nik-Khah disputes the performativity thesis.
Niall Bond explains how Joseph Schumpeter was key in classifying Max
Weber as a sociologist rather than an economist. In particular, while
Weber redefined the limits of the discipline of economics through the
merging of the "social" and the "economic" in his notion of
Sozialökonomik (social economics), Schumpeter rejected Weber’s project
in hostile terms.
In the interview series Frank Trentmann, director of the Cultures of
Consumption research programme of the British Economic and Social
Research Council (ESRC), answers ten questions about consumption. Fabian
Muniesa of Ecole des Mines (Paris) recommends readers recent literature
in economic sociology. As usual, you will find job announcements and
calls for papers in the back of this issue.
Olav Velthuis
velthuis@dds.nl
Links:
economic sociology - the european website:
http://econsoc.mpifg.de
economic sociology - the european electronic newsletter:
http://econsoc.mpifg.de/newsletter/newsletter_current.asp
The Talking
Economics Bulletin
1) Associative Economics Monthly March 06, Editorial
2) Event Details
3) Whither Fair Trade?
1) From Associative Economics Monthly March 06, Editorial
"In the social organism 'money as such' does not exist; there are only
the three kinds of money." So states Rudolf Steiner in his lectures on
economics. In this issue what such a statement might mean and how it is
pertinent to today's global financial predicament is examined by way of
three interpretations of Steiner's thinking about money, along with
extracts from the lectures themselves. John Bloom, in 'Money's Inner
Landscape'
suggests how Steiner's ideas can inform one's own financial behaviour in
discerning the different strata of meaning within monetary phenomena.
Christopher Houghton Budd considers how the idea of 'differentiated
money' enables one to make sense of today's financial system, a system
that is becoming increasingly unstable. Bernard Jarman documents a
currency scheme in Germany, 'The Chiemgauer Project', that seeks at the
local or regional level to enable ordinary men and women to recognise,
and participate in, a process of transforming today's monetary
arrangements.
The Rare Albion column 'Money and Capital' encourages us to see the way
in which trade and finance, by being understood in a distinct and
thoroughgoing manner, allow one to realise that the monetary world is
nothing other than the skin of human relationships in their deepest
sense. The Signs of the Times column asks what is to be made of the
Federal Reserve's decision to stop publishing the M3 monetary aggregate
at a time of increasing concern about the burgeoning level of US debt
and ability of the dollar to maintain its role as a reserve currency.
In 'CSA Plus! New Ground for Farming Economics', Douglas Wylie reports
on a recent Toronto conference that explored how agriculture might be
treated in an associative economy. D'Arcy Mackenzie uses Accountants
Corner to distinguish what is meant by a gift in the ordinary sense from
Rudolf Steiner's concept of 'gift money' when understood as the
conversion of loan money into purchase money.
2) Events
IN LONDON, UK:
8 April, 2006 - Associative Economics and Rudolf Steiner's Thinking A
presentation in association with The Network Project, at the London
School of Economics, England.
contact: Rosamund Stock, restock@cooptel.net
10 Mar, 28 Apr, 19 May, 9 Jun 2006
The Metamorphosis of Capitalism - An introductory course in associative
economics. Fridays, 2 - 5 pm, booking only (Venue below)
3x3x3 - An opportunity to study Rudolf Steiner's Economics Course (Come
occasionally or sign for the whole course) Fridays, 7.15 - 9.15 pm
(Venue
below)
Rudolf Steiner House, 35 Park Road, NW1 6XT London
IN STROUD, UK:
Talking Economics Evenings - Star Anise Arts Café, Stroud, UK , Mondays
7-9pm Whither Fair Trade? - 6 Mar
The Trial of Taxation. - 3 Apr
Time for a World Currency? - 8 May
Ethics with Everything - 5 Jun
For details of above events: info@talkingeconomics.com 01452 810764
IN HOLLAND AND NORWAY:
The Colours of Money - An introduction to associative economics
Netherlands, 21 - 23 April, 2006 Oslo, 16 - 18 June, 2006 Details from:
mail@cfae.biz
IN DORNACH, SWITZERLAND:
Events at the Goetheanum, Dornach, Basel, Switzerland, January - June
2006:
Lectures: Thursdays: 8.00-9.30pm, Goetheanum Too much loan money...
Understanding the financial markets - 16 March Ethical financialism:
Modern finance as a mirror of ourselves - 11 May Rudolf Steiner's True
Price: The key to transforming modern economic life - 1 June Beyond
competition: The prospects for associative economics today - 29 June
Workshops: Fridays: 9.00-12.00 am, Conference Room, Youth Section House
24th February, 17th March,12th May, 2nd June, 30th June 2006 For further
details contact: Email: economics@goetheanum.org / Tel: Christopher
Houghton Budd (0044 1227 738207) / Jesse Osmer 061 706 4391
3) Whither Fair Trade?
In an age of competitive marketing for brand value, what does it mean to
say that one represents fairness? Now that Fairtrade products are widely
available, the spotlight is falling increasingly on what lies behind
these new brands. It is not just their trading practices that are
examined, but also the conceptual integrity of what they promote. For
example, if a number of new 'fairly traded' brands appear, what other
than the market and competitive pricing will they base themselves on?
Can each maintain its own version of fairness without reference to the
others or will they eventually come round full circle to a competitive
'beauty contest' to decide who is the fairest of them all? To be able to
say what one means by 'fair' is, of course, crucial, taking account of
the inherent dynamics of true economic relationships in a way that is
rigorous enough to lay down in criteria, but avoiding anything
bureaucratically conceived or outwardly imposed. In the words of Michael
Wilson from The Golden Blade 1978: "The ability to decide wisely is an
art, not a system, and can be developed only from man to man, and from
moment to moment. But if a group of people, however small, succeed in
developing it, they will have enormous coherence as a unit. Our concept
of 'fair' will deepen immeasurably with the penetration of our insight
and the widening of our responsibility."
The next Talking Economics evening, on Monday 6th March at the Star
Anise Arts Cafe, Stroud, provides an opportunity to look a little deeper
at how fair trade is to be understood.
Formal presentation is kept to a minimum such that the discussion is
participant driven and question led.
Cost Ł3.50 / Venue Star Anise Arts Café, Stroud, UK - Enquiries Arthur
Edwards 01452 810764
--
'Associative Economics Monthly', is available at www.cfae.biz/publications
The associative approach to economics is based on the idea that economic
life is the shared responsibility of every human being. Talking
Economics is about making this responsibility conscious and finding ways
to give it effect. www.talkingeconomics.com-- www.talkingeconomics.co.uk
The Centre for Associative Economics, Forge House, The Green, Chartham,
Canterbury, CT4 7JW, 01227 738207
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Heterodox
Books and Book Series
Colander's Economics
An economics textbook that addresses various perspectives...
Most heterodox economists believe that no major principles of economics
textbook treats heterodox economics fairly. That's probably true. But at
least one tries. Colander's Economics is the only consciously
pluralistic major text around. It presents the mainstream material, but
it does not present that material as the "truth" as most books do.
Instead, it offers different perspectives, which allows heterodox
economists to present their views in class and to set up a dialog with
students.
Colander’s sixth edition of Economics (
http://www.mhhe.com/economics/colander6
) contains “Questions from Alternative Perspectives” at the end of each
chapter, to emphasize the fact that there are many different views of
economics. These questions include material from the Austrian, Institutionalist, Radical, Feminist, Religious, and Post-Keynesian
perspectives. An example is given here.
Questions from Alternative Perspectives for Chapter 16, Work and the
Labor Markets.
1. How might the minimum wage lead to greater racial and gender
discrimination in the labor market? (Austrian)
2. In his book Forbidden Grounds, University of Chicago Professor
Richard Epstein argues that federal employment antidiscrimination laws
ought to be abolished. [Hint. Reading Westmont College economist Edd
Noell’s paper “Racial Discrimination, Police Power and the 1964 Civil
Rights Act in Richard Epstein’s Forbidden Grounds: An Evaluation of The
Case Against Discrimination Laws” (available on the web at ACE,
www.gordon.edu/ace ) will be
helpful in answering this question.] a. How might a Christian economist
evaluate the need for federal laws prohibiting racial discrimination? b.
Why should a Christian economist think more carefully than another
economist about the relation between economic liberty and tolerance of
the taste for discrimination? (Religious)
3. Gloria Steinem pointed out the following: “I’ve yet to be on any
campus where women weren’t worried about some aspect of combining
marriage, children, and a career. I’ve yet to find one where many men
were worrying about the same thing.” a. What does this insight suggest
about the working of the labor market in the United States? b. Does this
male bias in the labor market affect the efficiency of the economy?
(Feminist)
4. Table 16-1 in the text provides data about starting salaries for
selected professional degrees; in it you can see that Ph.D. Economists
are paid less than MBAs. If economists are rational, why are they
economists? (Institutionalist)
5. Radical economists argue that labor markets are governed by
non-market forces such as discrimination as well as by the supply and
demand for labor. As they see it, poverty and inequality are not
aberrations but systematic labor market outcomes. They also believe that
unions are much-needed equalizers that help low-wage workers. a. How
does the radical view of the workings of labor markets and role of
unions differ from that presented in your textbook? b. In your opinion,
how fairly do labor markets operate? c. Do labor market outcomes need
redress through collective action? (Radical)
To find out more about Colander’s textbook including some samples of
other Alternative Perspective Questions go to
www.mhhe.com/economics/colander6 or contact your local
McGraw-Hill Sales Representative (www.mhhe.com).
Alan Greenspan: The Oracle Behind
the Curtain
World Scientific and Imperial College Press is pleased to announce the
publication of a new book by Professor E Ray Canterbery entitled Alan
Greenspan: The Oracle Behind the Curtain. The author has recommended us
to introduce this book to you for a possible textbook adoption.
In this highly thought-provoking title, Professor Canterbury goes
against the wave of applause for Alan Greenspan and the Fed to oppose
Greenspan's fundamentalist market ideology as overwhelming rationality
in the making of economic policy. For more information, please visit
http://www.worldscibooks.com/economics/5987.html .
If you wish to adopt this as a textbook and would like to receive an
inspection copy for review, please email us at sales@wspc.com. Please
note that the distribution of inspection copies is subject to
availability and the following conditions:
1. Inspection copies are available on a 28-day basis (from date of
invoice).
2. If book is adopted as a course text, the bulk quantity order must be
5 copies or more.
3. If book is not chosen for adoption, you may either return it in good
saleable condition or purchase it at 30% discount.
For more information, please go to
http://www.worldscibooks.com/custserv/textbook_inspect.shtml .
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Heterodox
Graduate Program and PhD Scholarships
New MA at Tallinn University of
Technology
http://hum.ttu.ee/tg/
We attempt to bring together traditional Continental European economics,
“State Science”, with evolutionary and post-Keynesian economics. We add
two subjects rarely found in economics: the Theory of Uneven Development
and the History of Economic Policy.
Annual Student Contest for
Canadian Students around the World and For Students in Canada
PROGRESSIVE ECONOMICS FORUM ANNUAL STUDENT ESSAY CONTEST
Prizes will be awarded to an essay of 20-40 pages double-spaced
(5,000-10,000 words) on any subject related to the theory or policy of
economics or political-economy, which best reflects a critical approach
to the functioning, efficiency, and social and environmental
consequences of unconstrained markets.
Deadline For Applications: May 1, 2006
For detailed information:
pef_contest.pdf
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Heterodox Economics
Archive Material
Real-World Economics Teach-In
March 20, 1996, University of Victoria, Canada
Prior to “The Student Petition of Autisme-Economie” (2000), the “Opening
Up Economics: A Proposal by Cambridge Students” (2001), the “Kansas City
Proposal” (2001), “The Harvard Students’ Manifesto” (2003), and other
recent student proposals (see http://www.paecon.net for the above
proposals), there was an uprising among students in 1996 at the
University of Victoria. The link includes a brief introduction to the
teach-in by Tom Green and then documents explaining the reason for it.
For detailed information:
Archive1-reform at UVic 1966.doc
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For Your Information
2006 Workers' Rights
Here's the link to our Spring semester 2006 Workers' Rights teach-ins
power point presentation:
http://www.aflcio.org/joinaunion/voiceatwork/upload/teachins_d10.ppt
http://www.aflcio.org/joinaunion/upload/teachin_toolkit.pdf
Please help us spread the word among interested economists. I'd also
appreciate hearing whether & how people make use of the power point
presentation--and would welcome feedback on its content.
Many thanks.
Sheldon Friedman
Research Coordinator, Voice@Work Campaign AFL-CIO
815 Sixteenth Street NW
Washington, DC 20006
202-637-5310
sfriedma@aflcio.org
Metaphysics of McCarthyism
Juice Is Stranger Than Friction
By Jacob McKean
February 16, 2006
Academic freedom” and “intellectual diversity” are the two primary
buzz-phrases of the right-wing movement to remake academia in its own
image. This struggle has played out pretty dramatically at Columbia,
with most of the major manifestations of the movement having made
appearances on campus. We’ve had the effort to intellectually cleanse
the MEALAC department of professors critical of Zionism, the continuous
right-wing mudslinging directed at a few outspoken professors, and the
occasional militaristic attempt to silence war critics. But most
departments have escaped such scrutiny.
One can’t help but conclude that the promoters of “academic freedom” and
“intellectual diversity” have been a tad disingenuous. A quick
investigation shows just how selective these charlatans are.
Warning: what follows may shock and upset sensitive readers. There is an
entire department at Columbia so ideologically monolithic that its
students are not even aware that dissenting viewpoints exist. Worse yet,
this academic monoculture extends into other related departments and
classes, producing an academic environment so stifling and intimidating
that no one I spoke to would go on the record for fear of retribution.
The department? Economics.
As a history major, I have no experience with econ classes and certainly
none with science. So rather than jump to conclusions based on my study
of course curriculums, class Web sites, and casual observation, I
decided to interview actual economics majors and other students in
related departments, like industrial engineering and operations
research. I spoke to many students, but I heard similar things from all
of them. I’ve included their most representative comments here.
So, does the economics department offer its students an intellectually
diverse education? “There is no diversity of perspective in the ...
department. We don’t talk about different schools of economic thought. I
don’t even know what they’re called or what other ideas of economics
would be. The professor mentioned that there were different schools of
thought once in Principles of Economics [an introductory course], but we
weren’t tested on it.”
There are never any dissenting opinions presented? “Every econ class is
taught from the same perspective, but I couldn’t even tell you what that
perspective is because I don’t know what else there might be. It’s not
critical at all.”
So what is the model that these dogmatists are pushing? “We only have
one model. There’s a firm that owns a company and there are employees
that work for it. We’ve never used any other kind of production model.”
Imagine if a Middle Eastern history class were taught this way. Do you
think I’d be the only the one who would care about this?
It seems reasonable to expect professors to at least allow students to
openly discuss and question their view. But does that happen in
economics? “There’s no discussion of whether the models we’re studying
are right or wrong, or if there are different models, or even if they
apply to the economy.”
And do professors explain their point of view or try to justify their
ideology? “We’ve never discussed the implications of the assumptions we
make in econ. Most of the time the professors don’t even mention what
the assumptions are.”
What about the practical implications of this ideology—are they ever
mentioned? “No one would ever ask a question like, ‘Why is unemployment
natural?’ There’s just no discussion of anything like that.”
Some classes do talk about things like unemployment, however. Here’s an
exchange I had with a student in industrial engineering and operations
research:
“One time we made a ‘termination curve’ to figure out how many jobs
you’d have to cut to make a business run optimally.”
“Have you ever discussed how to save jobs?”
“Uh, no.”
“Have you ever made an ‘executive compensation curve’ to figure out how
to optimize profits by reducing executive compensation?”
“(Laughs) Definitely not.”
The domination of these departments by a single ideology has naturally
led to uniformity on other levels as well. Every single student I talked
to in economics and industrial engineering reported that their
department is entirely geared towards putting them in financial services
occupations. They reported a complete lack of resources for students
interested in other types of work and a constant reinforcement of the
assumption that they would all become investment bankers.
Many students said they would prefer a more diverse curriculum but that
it was unavailable to them. Those who found all of this rather troubling
reported an intimidating and isolating environment for dissenting
viewpoints of any kind.
With this in mind, and really it’s all rather obvious, I am left to
wonder where all those shrill advocates of “academic freedom” and
“intellectual diversity” have gone. Could it be, just maybe, that they
don’t object to the ideological uniformity of the economics department
because it happens to mirror their own right-wing politics? I can only
conclude that they were completely self-serving to begin with, nothing
but grandstanders promoting a reactionary political agenda. But I will
give them a chance. I patiently await their campaign to overhaul the
economics department.
Jacob McKean is a Columbia College senior majoring in history and
African-American studies. Juice is Stranger Than Friction runs alternate
Thursdays.
http://www.columbiaspectator.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2006/02/16/43f41fa11b3e4?in_archive=1
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