I found it fascinating on the financial insights Picketty (the role of government bonds in upper class incomes) was able to obtain about upper Georgian England from Victorian Novels of the time.
Yeah, the video certainly made it seem like Piketty has his detractors. I'd not heard of him until I saw that and looked into his book. Schumpeter I have read, as I study a somewhat contemporary of his, Veblen. Thanks for reading and the comment!
What's your complaint about Picketty? That his data are debatable? As for Schumpeter, why is he great? There's creative destruction. There's also ossification and technological bias. Surely, automobiles are not the optimal method for achieving efficient, sustainable urban existence. Schumpeter predicted that socialism would replace capitalism, too, btw.
Regarding Pickett, here’s a synopsis of the criticism of his work by economists from the Austrian school: The Austrian School of Economics heavily criticizes Thomas Piketty’s Capital in the Twenty-First Century, arguing his data is flawed, his interpretation of capital is incorrect, and his policy solutions (such as wealth taxes) would hinder economic growth. Austrians argue that inequality is not inherently negative but a result of market processes, and that capital accumulation is vital for raising wages. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
Key criticisms from the Austrian perspective include:
Data and Methodological Errors: Scholars like Robert Murphy and Phillip Magness argue that Piketty’s data contains severe errors, including misstatements of historical facts and confirmation bias, which weaken his central thesis.
Misunderstanding Capital: Austrians argue that Piketty wrongly treats capital as a homogeneous, self-perpetuating fund, rather than a heterogeneous collection of goods that requires entrepreneurial skill to remain productive.
Ignored Redistribution Failure: The Austrian School contends that Piketty ignores that redistributive policies have historically failed, and that his proposed taxes would stifle investment, ultimately hurting the poor.
Focus on Envy over Growth: Critics argue Piketty focuses excessively on "relative" wealth gaps rather than the absolute improvement in living standards for all, which they argue has improved under capitalism.
Overlooking Causes of Inequality: The Mises Institute argues that historic, rapid reductions in inequality resulted from catastrophes like World Wars, not from progressive taxation, which Piketty favors. [1, 3, 6, 7, 8]
Austrian economists conclude that Piketty's work encourages state control rather than understanding the dynamic, productive nature of free markets. [1, 8]
If you've already decided your views and only consider your own side, that's your right. You're aware, of course, that there's a mountain of objections to the Austrian school.
I read widely and weigh the evidence. Meanwhile, why haven't the Republicans atually shrunken the size of the government? What would happen if they ever did?
What would happen if either the Dems or the Repubs actually cut the budget….preferably back to prepandemic levels….??? Both parties are waiting till the dollar crashes. Leaders in both parties have enough real assets abroad to weather the coming cataclysm
I found it fascinating on the financial insights Picketty (the role of government bonds in upper class incomes) was able to obtain about upper Georgian England from Victorian Novels of the time.
Check out anything by Rothbard or Von Mises
Shumpter is great. Picketty….not so much
Yeah, the video certainly made it seem like Piketty has his detractors. I'd not heard of him until I saw that and looked into his book. Schumpeter I have read, as I study a somewhat contemporary of his, Veblen. Thanks for reading and the comment!
What's your complaint about Picketty? That his data are debatable? As for Schumpeter, why is he great? There's creative destruction. There's also ossification and technological bias. Surely, automobiles are not the optimal method for achieving efficient, sustainable urban existence. Schumpeter predicted that socialism would replace capitalism, too, btw.
By great I mean that Schumpeter is insightful. Creative destruction is a real thing we observe in the real economy all of the time
Regarding Pickett, here’s a synopsis of the criticism of his work by economists from the Austrian school: The Austrian School of Economics heavily criticizes Thomas Piketty’s Capital in the Twenty-First Century, arguing his data is flawed, his interpretation of capital is incorrect, and his policy solutions (such as wealth taxes) would hinder economic growth. Austrians argue that inequality is not inherently negative but a result of market processes, and that capital accumulation is vital for raising wages. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
Key criticisms from the Austrian perspective include:
Data and Methodological Errors: Scholars like Robert Murphy and Phillip Magness argue that Piketty’s data contains severe errors, including misstatements of historical facts and confirmation bias, which weaken his central thesis.
Misunderstanding Capital: Austrians argue that Piketty wrongly treats capital as a homogeneous, self-perpetuating fund, rather than a heterogeneous collection of goods that requires entrepreneurial skill to remain productive.
Ignored Redistribution Failure: The Austrian School contends that Piketty ignores that redistributive policies have historically failed, and that his proposed taxes would stifle investment, ultimately hurting the poor.
Focus on Envy over Growth: Critics argue Piketty focuses excessively on "relative" wealth gaps rather than the absolute improvement in living standards for all, which they argue has improved under capitalism.
Overlooking Causes of Inequality: The Mises Institute argues that historic, rapid reductions in inequality resulted from catastrophes like World Wars, not from progressive taxation, which Piketty favors. [1, 3, 6, 7, 8]
Austrian economists conclude that Piketty's work encourages state control rather than understanding the dynamic, productive nature of free markets. [1, 8]
AI responses may include mistakes.
[1] https://austrianstudentconference.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/ASSC-2019-George-Balabanian.pdf
[2] https://www.heritage.org/report/understanding-thomas-piketty-and-his-critics
[3] https://mises.org/austrian/inequality-capital-and-problem-piketty
[4] https://austrian-institute.org/en/blog/thomas-pikettys-narrative-of-increasing-inequality-is-debunked/
[5] https://www.vox.com/2014/4/24/5643780/who-is-thomas-piketty
[6] https://philmagness.com/2014/12/an-empirical-critique-of-thomas-pikettys-capital-in-the-21st-century/
[7] https://www.cato.org/policy-report/july/august-2015/how-piketty-misses-point
[8] https://mises.org/mises-wire/thomas-piketty-wants-bring-back-communism-guise-democratic-socialism
If you've already decided your views and only consider your own side, that's your right. You're aware, of course, that there's a mountain of objections to the Austrian school.
Have you already decided your views….and so are not open to the materials I posted above criticizing Pikkety
I read widely and weigh the evidence. Meanwhile, why haven't the Republicans atually shrunken the size of the government? What would happen if they ever did?
What would happen if either the Dems or the Repubs actually cut the budget….preferably back to prepandemic levels….??? Both parties are waiting till the dollar crashes. Leaders in both parties have enough real assets abroad to weather the coming cataclysm
I’m aware that all schools of economic thought have their critics