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Viennese kaleidics: Why it’s liberty more than policy that calms turbulence

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  • Richard Wagner

Abstract

The idea of a kaleidic economy or society is strongly associated with George Shackle and his vision of Keynesian kaleidics. This essay asserts that the central thrust of the Austrian tradition in economic analysis can be described by the term Viennese kaleidics. In either version of kaleidics, the analytical stress is placed on treating time seriously and not just notionally. Either version of kaleidics leads to recognition that economic processes are better treated as turbulent than as equilibrated. While that turbulence is a natural feature of the unavoidable incompleteness of intertemporal coordination, it is subject to mitigation. This essay explains how it is that individual liberty and private ordering is generally superior to state policy and public ordering in calming the turbulence that naturally characterizes a kaleidic economy. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2012

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  • Richard Wagner, 2012. "Viennese kaleidics: Why it’s liberty more than policy that calms turbulence," The Review of Austrian Economics, Springer;Society for the Development of Austrian Economics, vol. 25(4), pages 283-297, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:revaec:v:25:y:2012:i:4:p:283-297
    DOI: 10.1007/s11138-012-0172-x
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Richard E. Wagner, 2012. "Deficits, Debt, and Democracy," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 14477.
    2. Peter J. Boettke, 2007. "Liberty vs. Power in Economic Policy in the 20th and 21st Centuries," Journal of Private Enterprise, The Association of Private Enterprise Education, vol. 22(Spring 20), pages 7-36.
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    4. Leland B. Yeager, 1997. "Austrian Economics, Neoclassicism, and the Market Test," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 11(4), pages 153-165, Fall.
    5. Agnello, Richard J & Donnelley, Lawrence P, 1975. "Property Rights and Efficiency in the Oyster Industry," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 18(2), pages 521-533, October.
    6. Richard E. Wagner, 2007. "Fiscal Sociology and the Theory of Public Finance," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 12713.
    7. Lachmann, Ludwig M, 1976. "From Mises to Shackle: An Essay on Austrian Economics and the Kaleidic Society," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 14(1), pages 54-62, March.
    8. Clower, Robert & Leijonhufvud, Axel, 1975. "The Coordination of Economic Activities: A Keynesian Perspective," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 65(2), pages 182-188, May.
    9. Koppl, Roger, 2001. "Alfred Schutz and George Shackle: Two Views of Choice," The Review of Austrian Economics, Springer;Society for the Development of Austrian Economics, vol. 14(2-3), pages 181-191, September.
    10. Vincent Ostrom, 1996. "Faustian bargains," Constitutional Political Economy, Springer, vol. 7(4), pages 303-308, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. William Luther, 2014. "Evenly rotating economy: A new modeling technique for an old equilibrium construct," The Review of Austrian Economics, Springer;Society for the Development of Austrian Economics, vol. 27(4), pages 403-417, December.
    2. Richard E. Wagner, 2014. "Entangled Political Economy: A Keynote Address," Advances in Austrian Economics, in: Entangled Political Economy, volume 18, pages 15-36, Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
    3. Veetil, Vipin P. & Wagner, Richard E., 2018. "Nominal GDP stabilization: Chasing a mirage," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 227-236.
    4. James Caton & Richard E. Wagner, 2015. "Volatility in Catallactical Systems: Austrian Cycle Theory Revisited," Advances in Austrian Economics, in: New Thinking in Austrian Political Economy, volume 19, pages 95-117, Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
    5. Jonathan W. Plante, 2022. "Richard E. Wagner, Macroeconomics as Systems Theory: Transcending the Micro-Macro Dichotomy. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2020. Xiii +313 pages. 119.99 USD (hardback)," The Review of Austrian Economics, Springer;Society for the Development of Austrian Economics, vol. 35(4), pages 561-566, December.
    6. Simon Bilo, 2018. "Entrepreneurial Errors in a Kaleidic Democracy," Journal of Private Enterprise, The Association of Private Enterprise Education, vol. 33(Summer 20), pages 53-66.
    7. Richard Wagner, 2013. "What kind of state in our future? Fact and Conjecture in Vito Tanzi’s Government versus Markets," The Review of Austrian Economics, Springer;Society for the Development of Austrian Economics, vol. 26(1), pages 93-104, March.
    8. Vipin P. Veetil & Richard E. Wagner, 2015. "Treating Macro Theory as Systems Theory: How Might it Matter?," Advances in Austrian Economics, in: New Thinking in Austrian Political Economy, volume 19, pages 119-143, Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
    9. Marta Podemska-Mikluch, 2014. "Public Policy: Object of Choice or Emergent Phenomena? Learning from the Implementation of the Medical Reimbursement Act in Poland," Advances in Austrian Economics, in: Entangled Political Economy, volume 18, pages 93-110, Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
    10. Abigail N. Devereaux & Richard E. Wagner, 2020. "Contrasting Visions for Macroeconomic Theory: DSGE and OEE," The American Economist, Sage Publications, vol. 65(1), pages 28-50, March.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Kaleidic economy; George Shackle; Time and economics; Monetary non-neutrality; Private vs. public ordering; B20; D20; D80; E30; E52; E62;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • B20 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - History of Economic Thought since 1925 - - - General
    • D20 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - General
    • D80 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - General
    • E30 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - General (includes Measurement and Data)
    • E52 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit - - - Monetary Policy
    • E62 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook - - - Fiscal Policy; Modern Monetary Theory

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