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Strategies & Market Trends : Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Moominoid who wrote (91847)	12/20/2008 8:31:42 PM
From: pogohere	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116555

Is the invisible hand required to keep itself above the covers after the economic lights go out?

To: Moominoid who wrote (91847)	12/21/2008 10:18:13 AM
From: skinowski	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 116555

The good results of the invisible hand occur when there are no market failures. When there are market failures the invisible hand instead leads to disaster. I think it's a misunderstanding. "Invisible hand" does not "lead" - it does not exist - it is merely a metaphor for what occurs as result of economic activity, whatever it happens to be during a given period. From a liberal economic viewpoint it's the role of regulators to set a framework that is more likely to let the invisible hand result in positive outcomes instead of ones which benefit some at the greater expense of others or benefit no-one. Let's just hope that those "regulators" know their arse from their elbow. Too often, it seems, they simply forge ahead and act on good intentions, all the way remembering to grab more power as they go. For some reason people think that downturns are market failures. They are not - life is cyclical.