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An Introduction to Capital Flow

Capital flow, the moving and swelling and shifting of value, is an emergent property of the interaction between humans and money. Wherever we find money, we find dynamics and properties of capital flow, or rather, how money moves. Where the concept of money is absent (as in historical pure-trade economies) there is no fundamental object of money to move, measure or analyze. So, while capital … Continue reading An Introduction to Capital Flow

The “Purity” of Pure Capitalism

It is important to remember that when capitalism is expressed as “pure” it is to remind that its influence on the system which employs it is unencumbered and unrestricted; its effects (like wealth stratification and environmental degradation-for-profit) are actively realized by participating agents who engage in their own varying degrees of misbehavior. Oftentimes, the idea of capitalism that is used by economists and others is … Continue reading The “Purity” of Pure Capitalism

Phishing for Phools

Phishing—as defined by George A. Akerlof and Robert J. Shiller in their book Phishing for Phools: The Economics of Manipulation and Deception —happens when one economic participant, Party A, knowingly takes economic advantage of another participant, Party B, in a voluntary free market transaction that is specifically harmful to Party B’s financial best interest.   Example: Party A sells cheap knockoffs at inflated prices online. Who … Continue reading Phishing for Phools

Capitalism’s Creature Compendium

Presented in the following section is a selection of qualities exhibited by the system of capitalism-as-usual. Since capital flow fundamentally emerges from human existence, it is only natural that its dynamics might express some life-like qualities, just as the observable effects of breathing express the presence of life in us. We breathe; our breathing permeates our internal systems and perpetuates our life; our continued life … Continue reading Capitalism’s Creature Compendium