On cornucopianism vs the Jevons paradox and the Khazzoom-Brookes postulate (love these names) – I’m not a techno-optimist, in the sense of thinking that technology will provide limitless efficiencies and allow for limitless growth, but I am optimistic that given the right societal structure it can be harnessed to bring about abundance.
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Harry Potter and the Khazzoom-Brookes Postulate
#harrypotterand
The Earth was made a common treasury for all!
I grew up in Wigan, and sadly this part of its history was lost on me at the time. Good to rediscover it.
The Diggers were a group of Protestant radicals in England, sometimes seen as forerunners of modern anarchism, and also associated with agrarian socialism and Georgism. — Wikipedia
One cool thing I’ve noticed listening to music on #resonate, is that it feels like I’m hearing music from more countries and languages. For whatever reason, when I use Deezer, it’s all pretty anglophone. https://resonate.is
Chapter 2: The Commons: From Tragedy to Triumph
The chapter starts by outlining Garret Hardin’s tragedy of the commons argument. In short, my understanding of the argument is that due to the inherent selfishness of individuals the commons are doomed to overuse — unless they are turned into private property, or turned over to the state, and unless the users of a resource are regulated through coercion. Hardin’s paper is more generally about population limits and his views appear quite bluntly Malthusian.
Having seen functioning commons, Ostrom disagreed with Hardin’s analysis. She studied commons that worked (and also those that didn’t), and captured her analysis of what made a commons sustainable in her work “Governing the Commons.”
Continue reading “Thoughts on Ostrom’s Rules for Radicals, Chapter 2”
This chapter starts out with a brief biography of Ostrom and her work, providing some context. I think it’s the right amount – the ideas are more important, but it is interesting to get some biographical context. The patriarchal system she faced early on is pretty galling – difficulties in getting where she got to, just by virtue of being a woman.
Ostrom doesn’t slot into a particular predefined school of thought, with some ties to some conservative right thinkers, yet some radical views. I like that Wall approaches it not so much trying to pin her ideas down to any particular ideology, but looking at what practical effects the ideas have had (and can have).
Continue reading “Thoughts on Ostrom’s Rules for Radicals, Chapter 1”
It’s Sunday morning, I’ve got a cup of coffee and a spare hour – time to get stuck in to our #readinggroup book.