Forward: The Market as God
Date: February 20, 1999 To: IFFS/CAIA listserve CSARE Ag Ethics Task Force New Economics of Sustainability Group Ecological Economics listserve SANET - MG (Please pardon duplicate mailings, those of you on more than one list). From: J. Patrick Madden Subject:The Market as God The latest issue of Atlantic Monthly contains a very insightful article by Harvey Cox, entitled "The Market as God." (March 1999, vol. 283 No. 3, starting on page 18) Professor Cox does a superb job of unpacking and documenting this concept. After studying the Wall Street Journal and the business pages of weekly news magazines, he discovered a post-modern theology has emerged, complete with "myths of origin, legends of the fall, and doctrines of sin and redemption .. chronicles about the creation of wealth, the seductive temptations of statism, captivity to faceless economic cycles, and ultimately, salvation through the advent of free markets, with a small dose of ascetic best tightening along the way, especially for the East Asian economies. The East Asian troubles, votaries argue, derive from their heretical deviation from free-market orthodoxy - they were practitioners of 'crony captialism,' of 'ethnocapitalism,' or 'statist captialism,' not of the one true faith. .. "Soon I began to marvel at just how comprehensive the business theology is. There were even sacraments to convey salvic power to the lost, a calendar of entrepreneurial saints, and what theologians call and 'eschatology' - a teaching about the 'end of history.' At the apex of any theological system, of course, is its doctrine of God. In the new theology this celestial; pinnacle is occupied by The Market, which I capitalize to signify both the mystery that enshrouds it and the reverence it inspires in business folk." He goes on to describe how advocates for this new religion call on doubters to repent and to place full and unquestioning faith in the unseen and often incomprehensible Market God. >From personal experience, I can testify that heretics may be dealt with severely. The article calls to mind my comment during the closing wrap-up session of the IFFS conference in Massachusetts last summer: "The deity most widely worshiped in the world today is the Invisible Hand of the Market." Harvey Cox makes my point exactly, elloquently. So what? What are the implications? First, let us be not deceived about the virtually unlimited power of the market to transform communities, the lives of people, and ecosystems in devastating ways that generate profits for entrepreneurs, especially transnational corporations. Mark Ritchie spelled out the problem during his superb presentation on the last day (should have been the keynote on the first day) of the IFFS conference. Our challenge, the challenge to humanity, is to put a human and ethical face on the market. The challenge is to deliberately reform market institutions and political institutions in directions compatible with quality of life and opportunities for present and future generations, and conducive to continuation of life and emergence of an honorable peace on Planet Earth. If the Harvey Cox thesis is correct, if the Market has become the post-modern deity, and worship of the so-called free market has become the predominant religion of our time, then the United States has surely fallen into a severe and chronic violation of the Constitutional principle of separation of church and state. One of our challenges should be to call a halt to blind and officially sanctioned faith in the Market God. J. Patrick Madden 1153 Melrose Ave. #1 Glendale, CA 91202 USA phone: 818-240-2966 fax: 818-545-0665 email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] website: ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/patrickmadden
Re: Forward: The Market as God
Jay Hanson wrote: > (snip) > > If the Harvey Cox thesis is correct, if the Market has become the > post-modern deity, and worship of the so-called free market has become the > predominant religion of our time, then the United States has surely fallen > into a severe and chronic violation of the Constitutional principle of > separation of church and state. One of our challenges should be to call a > halt to blind and officially sanctioned faith in the Market God. Harvey Cox is speaking in terms of Ultimate Concern and its working out through the practical but in the Market's case there is no church because there is no competitive alternative except for the now defeated Communism. To claim that the market is the church is like claiming that the Puritan's church was a hospital since their marital practices "cured" syphilis through taboo. Or that their church was validated by the disappearance of disease in their communities while the natives died all around them from the germs they carried as a natural part of their biology.It certainly made no difference in the lives of the natives, by their becoming Christians, as to whether they lived or died by the Puritan germs.98% died either way. But the Market as God seems absolutely reasonable in the theological doctrines and climes where Cox lives.It could be much of the same as with the Puritans. I tend to like what Lord Russell said about Religion and Science even though he was a bit biased: "Science tells us what we can know, but what we can know is little, and if we forget how much we cannot know we become insensitive to many things of very great importance. Theology,. on the other hand, induces a dogmatic belief that we have knowledge where in fact we have ignorance, and by doing so generates a kind of impertinent insolence towards the universe. Uncertainty, in the presence of vivid hopes and fears, is painful, but must be endured if we wish to live without the support of comforting fairy tales. It is not good either to forget the questions that philosophy asks, or to persuade ourselves that we have found indubitable answers to them. To teach how to live without certainty, and yet without being paralyzed by hesitation, is perhaps the chief thing that philosophy, in our age, can still do for those who study it." >Bertrand Russell, "A History of Western Philosophy. I suspect that Cox was claiming the Market as Idolatry. "That shalt have nothing that is less than truly Ultimate before the Ultimate Bottom Line." On the other hand Russell would say that the Market's need for psychological security has caused it to claim the validity of all kinds of credos that are in truth nothing more than fairy tales and a "dogmatic belief that we have knowledge where in fact we have ignorance." Since the Market as well as the study of Economics has such an effect on our lives in spite of our wishes, I am reminded of an earlier section in which Russell claims that an "individual facing the terror of cosmic loneliness" is forced to study and become an amateur philosopher: >"To understand an age or a nation, we must understand >its philosophy, and to understand its philosophy we must >ourselves be in some degree philosophers." It seems that today's situation demands that we all become "in some degree" economists and sophisticated about the political implications of both the Market and the Dictatorship of the Proletariat simply in order, not to face Russell's Cosmic Loneliness, but the likelihood of financial ruin.(See Sunday's NYTimes Front Page on the effects of the "Welfare Reform" on the elderly poor forced to go through another age of childrearing.) It makes one envy the poor economist/philosopher who is only required to have only one job, and be good at it, rather than the rest of us being required to work two or more ( i.e. Arts and Economics) just to survive. Makes one long for the days of benevolent Chiefs chosen carefully by the Clan Mothers. Ray Evans Harrell, artistic director The Magic Circle Chamber Opera of New York, Inc. [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: Forward: The Market as God
I actually agree with the gist of this one I think Eva > > Harvey Cox is speaking in terms of Ultimate Concern and its working out through > the practical but in the Market's case there is no church because there is no > competitive alternative except for the now defeated Communism. To claim > that the market is the church is like claiming that the Puritan's church was a > hospital since their marital practices "cured" syphilis through taboo. Or > that their church was validated by the disappearance of disease in their > communities while the natives died all around them from the germs they carried > as a natural part of their biology.It certainly made no difference in the > lives of the natives, by their becoming Christians, as to whether they lived or > died by the Puritan germs.98% died either way. But the Market as God > seems absolutely reasonable in the theological doctrines and climes where Cox > lives.It could be much of the same as with the Puritans. > > I tend to like what Lord Russell said about Religion and Science even though he > was a bit biased: > > "Science tells us what we can know, but what we can know is little, and if we > forget how much we cannot know we become insensitive to many things of very > great importance. Theology,. on the other hand, induces a dogmatic belief that > we have knowledge where in fact we have ignorance, and by doing so generates a > kind of impertinent insolence towards the universe. Uncertainty, in the > presence of vivid hopes and fears, is painful, but must be endured if we wish > to live without the support of comforting fairy tales. It is not good either > to forget the questions that philosophy asks, or to persuade ourselves that we > have found indubitable answers to them. To teach how to live without > certainty, and yet without being paralyzed by hesitation, is perhaps the chief > thing that philosophy, in our age, can still do for those who study it." > >Bertrand Russell, "A History of Western Philosophy. > > I suspect that Cox was claiming the Market as Idolatry. "That shalt have > nothing that is less than truly Ultimate before the Ultimate Bottom Line." On > the other hand Russell would say that the Market's need for psychological > security has caused it to claim the validity of all kinds of credos that are in > truth nothing more than fairy tales and a "dogmatic belief that we have > knowledge where in fact we have ignorance." > > Since the Market as well as the study of Economics has such an effect on our > lives in spite of our wishes, I am reminded of an earlier section in which > Russell claims that an "individual facing the terror of cosmic loneliness" is > forced to study and become an amateur philosopher: > >"To understand an age or a nation, we must understand > >its philosophy, and to understand its philosophy we must > >ourselves be in some degree philosophers." > > It seems that today's situation demands that we all become "in some degree" > economists and sophisticated about the political implications of both the > Market and the Dictatorship of the Proletariat simply in order, not to face > Russell's Cosmic Loneliness, but the likelihood of financial ruin.(See > Sunday's NYTimes Front Page on the effects of the "Welfare Reform" on the > elderly poor forced to go through another age of childrearing.) It makes one > envy the poor economist/philosopher who is only required to have only one job, > and be good at it, rather than the rest of us being required to work two or > more ( i.e. Arts and Economics) just to survive. Makes one long for the days > of benevolent Chiefs chosen carefully by the Clan Mothers. > > Ray Evans Harrell, artistic director > The Magic Circle Chamber Opera of New York, Inc. > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: Forward: The Market as God
- Original Message - From: Ray E. Harrell <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Since the Market as well as the study of Economics has such an effect on >our lives in spite of our wishes, I am reminded of an earlier section in >which Russell claims that an "individual facing the terror of cosmic > loneliness" is forced to study and become an amateur philosopher: >>"To understand an age or a nation, we must understand >>its philosophy, and to understand its philosophy we must >>ourselves be in some degree philosophers." Excellent analysis Ray! And Russell is right on target. The choice is between the certainty of a lie or the uncertainty of truth. Only a philosopher can thrive on worldview uncertainty. Jay - "When Leon the tyrant of Phlius asked Pythagoras who he was, he said, 'A Philosopher,' and he compared life to the public festivals, where some went to compete for a prize and others went with things to sell, but the best as observers; for similarly, in life, some grow up with servile natures, greedy for fame and gain, but philosophers seek the truth." Diogenes Laertius
