Why I Am not a Market Radical
Why I Am not a Market Radical - RadicalxChange(2020)
Glen Weyl's self-critical article on Radical Markets(2018)
Change in thinking after the establishment of RadicalxChange (2018)
I guess my thinking changed when Vitalik started working with Audrey through an intermediary.
Explanation (summary)
E. Glen Weyl self-critically organizes the ideas in his book Radical Markets and the limitations of "institutional reform through markets". The major problems are (1) that it fell into "economistic=atomistic" thinking that assumes only individuals and the state (top-down governance), and (2) that it largely ignored "shared values" (public goods, economies of scale, etc.) created by social connections and communities. (2) The "common value" (public goods, economies of scale, etc.) created by social connections and communities was largely ignored.
Specifically, it discusses the following
1.Limitations of Atomic Thinking Rooted in Economics (ALONE).
The idea that individuals are considered as discrete "atoms" and that the state (the designer of the system) is the only entity that can solve problems is out of touch with reality.
In reality, people belong to diverse communities, and public goods and social values emerge from such communities.
2.While emphasizing communal values, the design is too close to "individualism x nation".
Radical Markets" emphasizes the importance of public goods ("Increasing Returns"), but the proposed mechanism only includes "individual benefits and taxation of the state" in its basic framework.
As a result, aspects such as joint ownership, distribution of public goods, and collaboration among communities are neglected.
3.Individual criticisms of the proposed system.
COST (Common Ownership Self-Assessed Tax, Common Ownership Self-Assessed Tax): Simply depicts individual ownership, a single tax rate, and dividends, when the essence is "common ownership by the community". In reality, the majority of property is actually owned by a community organization, such as a corporation or municipality, and tax rates and revenue distribution should take into account the multi-layered community.
[Quadratic Voting (QV): the fear that a system that treats individuals uniformly will distort the "common good" by not reflecting the shades of relationships, such as lovers, friends, and colleagues. Collaboration and collective voting behavior are more essential.
VIP (a mechanism for assigning immigrant visas to individuals, [Visas between Individuals Program): in reality, it is the community involved in immigration that is the key, but it is too often reduced to a contract between the individual and the state, overlooking the social friction and distribution of benefits.
Anti-Trust Enhancement: It was originally necessary to consider "economies of scale (IR)" as a cause of market dominance, but it was simply a viewpoint of "reducing power". In reality, it is also important to "create a balance of power in the community" such as [labor unions.
Data as Labor: data must be viewed as a value shared by the community (data involves a multitude of people) rather than a "personal" sellout to gain the inherent collective bargaining power.
4.For the future.
Weyl still believes in the importance of "redistribution of joint value" and "institutional innovation."
However, in order to achieve this, it is essential to abandon the bipolar model of "individual vs. state" and design a system that deals squarely with community and social solidarity.
Related: There are two opposing axes between the three ideologies.
He emphasizes that the ideas presented in Radical Markets should be reconfigured around the community, and that care should be taken to avoid a top-down, technocratic introduction.
Weyl concludes that the design of market mechanisms can only be a theoretical exercise if it does not properly incorporate the perspectives of community and public goods, and that future institutional experimentation and design should incorporate a more social context.
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