Lubos Motl, a bright young Czech physicist with a winning way with those he considers idiots (including envirofacists like me), has decided to cogitate on fiat money and the US`s screwed up monetary system, and proposes to peg the dollar to the Dow.
I think Motl is hopelessly self-deceived on his proposal, but it`s one made in good faith and presents an opportunity to explain Austrian views of money, government and markets to Motl and his audience on . Any takers?
"The first principle is that you must not fool yourself - and you are the easiest person to fool."
-- Richard Feynman
Something should be done so that the price of the average stocks - let's say, the Dow Jones Industrial Index - becomes essentially constant in time.
What a nut.
I attempted to read the article and fight through the physics buzz words. I did not give up on the physics speak but gave up on the assumptions he is making. The first one I saw was the line about optimizing the creative power of the economy and the wellbeing of the participants. This is modeling crap as there is no way to measure these things. How do you measure creativity? How do you measure wellbeing? The point is that these are just measuring indexes or averages of some behavior at a certain time among a certain group of people. The reality is far more complex. The point is that there is no way to know how to value these things much less how to optimize them.
Can't remember where I read it (must be Searle), but a quote I like was that the 20th century basically consisted of treating utterly immeasurable concepts as though they were measurable.
To darkness I condemn you...
I think there was a Mises article talking about how physicists try to apply the method they are so used to, to economics, always resulting in lulzy theories which require you to be high to even take them seriously.
Apparently I, a high-school dropout, am smarter than a Nobel prize winning economists, a number of physicists and those incoherent Marxist/Chomskyian scholars. Feels good.
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