A Discussion of Peter Foster’s Why We Bite the Invisible Hand Chapter 16 “The Greenest Businessman in America” Foster examines the expression of anti-capitalism through the promotion of environmentalism in this chapter. He focuses on one businessman in particular, but uses him as an example to suggest that the movement…
Tag: Psychology
Why We Bite the Invisible Hand
The Economic Denialism Built into Climate Change
A Discussion of Peter Foster’s Why We Bite the Invisible Hand Chapter 14 “Moral Climate” I find this chapter a fascinating explanation of the histrionics that surround the climate change topic. I don’t want to get into whether it is man-made or not, real or hoax, but I do want…
Why We Bite the Invisible Hand
The Deep, Dark Roots of Politics: Using Others to Help Ourselves
A Discussion of Peter Foster’s Why We Bite the Invisible Hand Chapter 13 “The Chimpanzee in the Room: Darwinian Politics” In an earlier chapter, Foster has discussed the origins of the instinct to trade. While trading seems natural to people, the disconnected and abstract modern economic system today challenges our…
Why We Bite the Invisible Hand
Behavioral Economics: Correcting a Problem Economics Does Not Have
Part 1 of a Discussion of Peter Foster’s Why We Bite the Invisible Hand Chapter 12 “Homer Economicus” Foster turns his attention to the field of Behavioral Economics that gained a lot of attention in the early 2000’s. However, it is clear Foster is unimpressed. Two psychologists kicked the field…
Why We Bite the Invisible Hand
The Subconscious Source of Morality Is Driving the Culture Wars
Part 2 of a Discussion of Peter Foster’s Why We Bite the Invisible Hand Chapter 11 “The Darwin Wars” In the second half of the chapter, Foster turns to the origin of morality and posits it is not a recent innovation but something that is central to mankind. In the…
Why We Bite the Invisible Hand
Sociobiology’s Unity Blinded Its Progress
Part 1 of a Discussion of Peter Foster’s Why We Bite the Invisible Hand Chapter 11 “The Darwin Wars” Foster turns this chapter to an examination of the field of sociobiology, where evolutionary biology meets psychology, hoping to find answers to why we carry anti-capitalist views instinctively. Seeking the source…
Why We Bite the Invisible Hand
The Need to Unlearn What We “Know” about Economics
Part 2 of a Discussion of Peter Foster’s Why We Bite the Invisible Hand Chapter 8 “Do-It-Yourself Economics” Foster continues in this chapter exploring some of the apparently inborn assumptions we apply to the economy that lead to incorrect conclusions. Much like the do-it-yourself-economics (DIYE) brought up in the previous…