Re: You Can’t Make Me Talk

On Apr 6, 2007, at 10:21 AM, Bill Bartlett wrote:

What people really mean when they argue that markets are necessary, or more efficient, is that such an incentive system is necessary, or more efficient, as part of a social economy.

Not exactly. Soviet planners used wage levels as incentives, though I
suppose some state cap type would say “I told you so” on that news. A
lot of people who argue that markets are necessary do so because
planners can’t know everything about the present much less the
future, so some kinds of decentralized adjustment mechanisms are
necessary. I really don’t want to set off another market vs. plan
debate though.

Doug

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