A Peasant Surprise

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"When peasants in developing countries lose their direct access to land and the means of production, and become reliant on markets for food, land, and wage labour, they can actually become more dependent and even more vulnerable than they would have been in a peasant society with limited market influence..." -- Bas van Bavel, The Invisible Hand?, p. 6

PS -- Apple voice recognition rendered the previous text as "Bas van Bavel and the invisible hand." This suggests a new series of Harry Potter novels, e.g.:

Harry Potter and the tragedy of the commons
Harry Potter and the prisoner's dilemma
Harry Potter and the paradox of thrift
Harry Potter and the fable of the bees

Etc.


Comments

  1. Greg Pandatshang9:52 AM

    Bas van Bavel does sound like it would be the name of one of Harry's less important classmates. If it were Basil von Basel, that would be too over-the-top for J.K. Rowling's style.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Greg Pandatshang11:01 PM

    Harry Potter and the Road to Serfdom? Sounds like a best seller. Harry Potter and the Affluent Society? Well, maybe. But I don't think this works with more recent titles. Harry Potter and the Free to Choose? Harry Potter and the Super Freakonomics? Harry Potter and the Great Stagnation? Harry Potter and the Economics for Real People? The major publishers might balk.

    On the other hand: Harry Potter and the Hidden Order, Harry Potter and the Machinery of Freedom. Now we're talking. Kudos to David D. Friedman.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. gcallah8:15 AM

      My suggestions were social science concepts, not book titles. ( they might also have been a book title, but that was not the theme I was going on.)

      Delete

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