Behind the Veil of Economics: Essays in the Worldly Philosophy

In Robert Heilbroner's short but superb analysis, the key factor in economics is property (wealth). 'Wealth is power, says Smith, quoting Hobbes'.The subject over which the veil is spread is a specific social order: capitalism.Economists anthropomorphize property. 'Land, labour and capital' are identified as the 'factors of production', whereby the crucial social difference between labour and property is elided.Certainly, Adam Smith was not duped: 'Civil government as far as it is instituted for the security of property is in reality instituted for the defence of the rich against the poor.'R. Heilbroner shrewdly analyses capitalism as an amoral ideology, which is not a sufficient condition for freedom. Therein, he considers work as a fundamental expression of subordination (also to get power or prestige) and as opposite to freedom (the 'activities' in a pre-capitalist society). And he rightly quotes Jevons: 'the value of labour must be determined by the value of the product, not the value of the product by the value of labour.'But he is far from being a rabid anti-capitalist. On the contrary, he recognizes its huge potential as a wealth creating machine.What he castigates magisterially is the (un)conscious and untold ideological prejudices behind the 'economic' viewpoints of Milton Friedman, Jude Wanniski, George Gilder and others.This book is a remarkable reflection by a superb free mind. A must read.