Re: Hayek's Conception of Knowledge (was Re:Harry Magdoff on market socialism)

["Charles Brown" <CharlesB@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

>>> jdevine@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 07/17/00 03:51PM >>
Hayek's position -- so ably put forth by Justin -- seems to be (a) in order
to avoid market rule, there needs to be a God; but (b) God does not exist;
so (c) market rule is inevitable. But then he assumes that God exists in
the form of the Invisible Hand.

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CB: It is hard to see how Hayek's theory is not a modern version of the Invisible Hand and God.  Somehow, the market allows people to accomplish unconsciously what it is impossible for them to accomplish consciously, even collectively consciously.   This is to conceive of the market as a superhuman agency.

The idea that satisfactory production and distribution of goods and services to a large population is unknowable in principle is definitively a religious concept. Materialism treats no problem as unknowable in principle. Otherwise, the human genome project etc. wouldn't be pursued.

Secondly, this theory ignores the fact that the only "market" that has ever existed in the real world causes mass poverty and war. In other words, Hayek's satisfaction with the performance of the market in history ignores some very critical facts.