With all the fuss about the French economist’s tome on capital and perpetually growing inequality, one perspective that is uncommon in the commentary is what “the market” thinks of Piketty’s characterization of it. In other words, do those involved in investing and developing capital agree with Piketty’s analysis? Whereas one should hesitate to place too much value on individual people’s anecdotes, the “real world” rather than outrageously simplified models should be close to any Austrian’s heart on economic theory. After all, we are proponents of causal-realist analysis of the market and economy. So whereas it may not serve as scientific evidence, this comment by well-known investor Marc Andreessen is as interesting as it is revealing about the “socialist calculation” view of the economy held by the likes of Piketty:
The funny thing about Piketty is that he has a lot more faith in returns on invested capital than any professional investor I’ve ever met. It’s actually very interesting about his book. This is exactly what you’d expect form a French socialist economist. He assumes it’s really easy to put money in the market for 40 years or 80 years or 100 years and have it compound at these amazing rates. He never explains how that’s supposed to happen.
The comment, from an interview in Vox, goes to the core mechanistic assumption in Piketty’s system - and shows why it is wrong: it includes neither uncertainty nor entrepreneurship. Sometimes economists would benefit from listening to “the market.”
