Are You an Austrian, Axiomatic or Mainstream Economist?

Are You an Austrian, Axiomatic or Mainstream Economist?


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    2

Onion Eater

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Jun 28, 2008
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The Mises Institute has distributed a list of 25 questions which purport to sort out Austrians, Keynesians, monetarists and Marxists. Apparently, in their world view, axiomatic economists do not exist. Many people have taken this test and almost all of them have been told that they are 80 to 90% Austrian. This would imply either that Austrianism is far more prevalent in society than hitherto suspected, or that the test takers were hoodwinked.

Actually, it is the latter. The Mises Institute is conflating Austrianism with libertarianism. Most of their questions are about jurisprudence, not economics, and are really just asking if one is libertarian. The 80 to 90% represents the prevalence of libertarianism in society, or at least among people who visit their site. The purpose of the Mises Institute’s test is to convince libertarians that there is no other economic theory compatible with their beliefs, not to convert mainstream or Marxist economists, who are assumed to be irredeemable.

In contrast to the Mises Institute, my test asks only theoretical, not ideological, questions. I assume that everybody taking it is more or less supportive of capitalism and the free market. (If you are a Marxist, you might want to read my Critique of Montagne rather than take this test.) I intend to sort out followers of the axiomatic, Austrian and mainstream schools of economic thought. By “mainstream” I mean concepts that are widely taught in the universities, not just Keynesianism. Austrians tend to assume that the two terms are synonymous, which is not true.

Take the 20-question quiz at Are You an Austrian, Axiomatic or Mainstream Economist?

Take the 6-question quiz at Short Version of Quiz.
 
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One thousand respondents.

All Answer Totals
Axiomatic = 308 || Austrian = 309 || Mainstream = 383 || Total = 1000
 
The Axiomatists are pulling ahead of the Austrians! Go team!

All Answer Totals
Axiomatic = 458 || Austrian = 437 || Mainstream = 609 || Total = 1504
 
Re: The Axiomatists are pulling ahead of the Austrians! Go team!

Jeez, c'mon man. Here too?
 
Your Answer Totals
Axiomatic = 10 || Austrian = 3 || Mainstream = 7 || Total = 20

All Answer Totals
Axiomatic = 591 || Austrian = 530 || Mainstream = 722 || Total = 1843
 
Your Answer Totals
Axiomatic = 10 || Austrian = 3 || Mainstream = 7 || Total = 20

All Answer Totals
Axiomatic = 591 || Austrian = 530 || Mainstream = 722 || Total = 1843

Cool!

Which ones did you answer axiomatic, Austrian or mainstream?

Note: The order of the answers changes every time someone takes the quiz, so you cannot refer to the 1st, 2nd or 3rd choice; you have to specify them by their content.
 
Statistics as of 8 May 2009

All Answer Totals
Axiomatic = 753 || Austrian = 787 || Mainstream = 957 || Total = 2497

As you can see, unlike the Mises Institute, which turned their “quiz” into a propaganda tool to convince the sheeple that 90% of the other sheeple were also Austrians and, thus, it was nothing to be ashamed of, my quiz is for real. I honestly want to know what the proportions of Austrian, axiomatic and mainstream economists are. I knew that mainstream economists were the majority – if they were the minority position, they wouldn’t be called “mainstream” – but I really had no idea whether the Austrian or the axiomatic economists were greater in number.
 
Hóigh, gach duine (hello, everybody)

I actually think of some the Austrian ideas on economics are worthy of discussion. However, a questionaire by Mises is taking the mickey. As an ardent Republican (think France rather than the US political party) and a socialist, I also have to square the political with the economic.

As I don't adhere to the bastardised communist doctrine, I find this quite easy. Boiled down to its essentials, socialism should release the individual from merely being an accumulator of capital and transform relationships away from economic ownership, a the defining human activity, into a social being who places politics and economics in its proper sphere. Republicanism, adopted from a local level, fits this bill.

I suppose the Austrians feel they have a similar argument to make in relation to libertartian politics. However, finance come first in the Austrian school of economic through and all else second. This ordering distorts the spirit of Repulicanism and libertarianism alike.
 
All Answer Totals
Axiomatic = 899 || Austrian = 954 || Mainstream = 1147 || Total = 3000

Boiled down to its essentials, socialism should release the individual from merely being an accumulator of capital and transform relationships away from economic ownership, a the defining human activity, into a social being who places politics and economics in its proper sphere.

You are assuming your conclusion.

If (and this is a BIG "if") we accept that your economic program will usher in a socialist paradise where people will enjoy unlimited wealth and their only concern will be what to do with all their liesure time, then it is easy to say that "socialism should release the individual from merely being an accumulator of capital and transform relationships away from economic ownership into a social being."

But I argue that socialism will NOT usher in such a paradise. Just the opposite, it will bring us ruin and misery if implemented. See my Critique of Profit-Oriented Market Socialism for more details.
 
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