Political Economics/Stupidity/Corruption: cross-references

Posts

• Your economics is refuted on all counts: here is the real thing   here
• Since the founding fathers, economics is NOT science but political agenda-pushing   here
• The dumb economist ― a jack of all trades   here
• The activist is no scientist, the scientist is no activist   here
• Economics ― for 200+ years just storytelling and mythmaking   here
• Proof of the non-existence of scientific standards   here
• Bill Mitchell says that economists are fake scientists ― true, but MMTers are NOT different   here
• Economists are NOT scientists   here
• The end of political economics   here
• The abysmal stupidity/corruption of political economists   here
• Political fraud and the silence of academia   here
• Economics has been captured by agenda pushers   here
• Economics is proto-scientific garbage   here
• Political economics is NOT science but brain-dead agenda-pushing   here
• Fake economics great again   here
• The GDP-death-blow for the economics profession   here
• OMG, after 200+ years, economics becomes a science   here
• The Paradigm Shift is an accomplished fact   here
• In the grand scheme of things, Lord Keynes was only a small-time crook   here
• Disgrace again ― is economics really that bad?   here
• Not all academic pursuits are science   here
• Economists’ scientific incompetence is worse than the plague   here
• MMT: the Oligarchy's latest beauty treatment   here
• The tragedy of economics: stupid/corrupt economists   here
• All behavior-based economic textbooks are false   here
• Economists can hardly wait for their burial at the Flat-Earth-Cemetery   here
• Economics is a disgrace ― now more than ever   here
• Economics as thought-reading and motive-imputation   here
• Economics is a disgrace   here
• Economists: at the end of the wrong track   here
• Wikipedia, economics, scientific knowledge, or political agenda pushing?   here
• That’s wrong with a fiscal deficit   here
• The US economy hangs on the state ventilator for its survival   here
• MMT ― now official doctrine   here
• The value of money and the worthlessness of economics   here
• Failed economics and the losers’ closed circle of mutual promotion   here
• Mindfuck or the Eternal Return of dead economic theories   here
• There are NO crank scientists in economics because economics is NOT a science   here
• Economics: Not a pretty story   here
• ASSA2020 has been a success ― sorta-kinda   here
• Mission accomplished: Economists as useful idiots of the Oligarchy   here
• Trust in science? Yes, but economics is NOT a science   here
• Understanding socialism presupposes understanding profit   here
• Economics ― the science that never was   here
• Economic backstabbing: Bill Mitchell hits again   here
• How Randall Wray takes the piss out of the House Budget Committee   here
• Marx and Marxists ― too stupid for the elementary algebra of profit   here
• Gosh! The One-Percent have gotten $21 trillion richer: Links on Distribution   here
• Links on Neoliberalism   here
• Macroeconomics and the vacuous History of Economic Thought   here
• The sectoral balances obfuscation: stupidity or corruption?   here
• Keynes ― the poster boy for the weakness of the economist’s mind   here
• MMT/GND: Another case of bad people capturing a good cause   here
• The real trouble with Capitalism: stupid/corrupt economists   here
• The dirty secret of Capitalism: Economists have NO idea how Capitalism works   here
• Swabian housewife vs Wall Street loan shark   here
• Is MMT Alt-Right? No, it is fake science   here
• Links on the Economics Nobel   here
• Bill Mitchell’s dishonorable discharge from the sciences   here
• Deficit cheerleaders ― the Oligarchy’s useful idiots   here
• Economics ― not science, not ideology, just useful idiocy   here
• Right policy depends on true theory   here
• MMT undermines democracy   here
• Circus Maximus: Economics as entertainment, personality gossip, virtue signaling, and lifestyle promotion   here
• Trump and MMT: Make profits great again   here
• The decisive reason to worry about government debt   here
• Bill Mitchell ― Wall Street’s hitman keeps an eye on MMT defeatists   here
• Profit analysis ― another exercise in economic deception   here
• The surefire way to abolish billionaires   here
• How to spot economics trolls   here
• MMT and the woes of useful political idiots   here
• Totally schizo ― MMT and policy   here
• Economics as target group marketing   here
• The Levy/Kalecki Profit Equation is false   here
• MMT: The communicative war on budget-balancers   here
• Economic policy and the skirmishes of failed/fake scientists   here
• The economist as storyteller   here
• MMT’s true program   here
• MMT: A Trojan Horse for Labour courtesy of the Oligarchy   here
• For MMT = For the Oligarchy   here
• Controlled demolition of MMT ― an exercise in elementary logic   here
• MMT: doom or survival?   here
• You know you are in the political Circus Maximus when economists talk about Democracy or Liberty   here
• MMT and the Green New Deal: Where is the snag? (II)   here
• Just one more day: How deficit-spending delays the breakdown of Capitalism   here
• The not so funny MMT vs Neoliberalism slapstick   here
• Economics: failure, fake, fraud   here
• MMT: economics for suckers   here
• Economics, MMT, and the capture of science by the political mob   here
• How a Swedish professor cares about the Oligarchy’s financial well-being   here
• Dear idiots, it is deficit spending that creates the distribution people complain about   here
• Dear idiots, MMTers are Wall Street’s agenda pushers   here
• MMT is an economic policy fraud   here
• MMT vs WSJ: Another futile exercise in moron bashing   here
• Economists: “a bevy of camp-following whores”   here
• Paul’s and Stephanie’s economic delirium talk   here
• Economists: Either stupid or corrupt or both   here
• Dear idiots, time to get saving and investment straight (II)   here
• A battle for hearts and minds ― economics redefined   here
• Economics as a cover for agenda pushing   here
• Dear idiots, Marx got profit and exploitation wrong   here
• Who is really a scientist?   here
• The half-truths and half-falsehoods of MMT   here
• Fraud comes always in the cloak of philanthropy, salvation, or threat of doom   here
• Socialism and scientific incompetence   here
• The day when WeThePeople sends debt-deranged economists to hell   here
• Thinking about economic policy for future PM Corbyn   here
• Stephanie Kelton and the self-destructive stupidity of the super-rich   here
• If religion is opium of the people, economics is crack of the people   here
• “But economics is not pure mathematics or logic” No, it is pure blather   here
• Stephanie Kelton on how to become fabulously wealthy   here
• MMT and the clash of old and new agenda pushers   here
• What is wrong with MMT? and What is wrong with Brad DeLong?   here
• MMT: From science to agenda-pushing to story-telling to fraud   here
• Warren Mosler: scientific dilettante and political fraudster  here
• Stephanie Kelton’s legendary Plain-Sight-Ink-Trick   here
• Econogenics in action   here
• The end of political economics (II)   here
• The failure of Post-Keynesianism   here
• Urgent: Taking politics out of economics   here
• “We have sunk very low”   here
• Economics: A pointless left-right wrestling show   here
• MMT = Trumponomics   here
• Fake religion, fake science, fake news, and false complaints   here
• The MMT defenders of interest on public debt: stupid or corrupt or both?   here
• What comes first: eco-self-destruction or oeco-self-destruction?   here
• MMT and the overall political corruption of economics   here
• Very busy these days: Wall Street’s agents   here
• Reverse Alchemy: from scientific gold to political shit   here
• MMT, Warren Mosler, and the little helpers from Wall Street and Academia   here
• If we only had classes   here
• Mission impossible: economists join WeThePeople   here
• Legitimacy lost   here
• Both Mainstreamer and MMTer are either stupid or corrupt or both   here
• MMT-Progressives: stupid or corrupt or both?   here
• The biggest scientific mistake of the last centuries, and it has much to do with academic economists   here
• The economist as useful political idiot   here
• How Bill Mitchell stalks Jeremy Corbyn   here
• MMTers are NOT Friends-of-the-People   here
• Economics, too, is pre-truth   here
• Real-World Economics: The sanctuary of stupidity and corruption   here
• And the answer is NCND ― economics after 200+ years of Glomarization   here
• Beware of the moralizing economist   here
• Political economists ― the village idiots of science   here
• Right troll left troll pack your bag and get out of economics   here
• Do first your macroeconomic homework!   here
• Richard Murphy: the MMT fraudster dressed up as realist   here
• Employment theory as an example of proto-scientific soapbubbling   here
• The Third Way: Towards the Happy Zero-Tax economy   here
• Austerity and the political games Progressives play   here
• Does economics matter more for bread or for circuses?   here
• How MMT enlightens Washington   here
• Progressive shell games   here
• Marx’s bicentennial ― nothing to discuss, nothing to celebrate   here
• Did economics fail? No! Yes, and everybody knows it!   here
• Profit and the Private-Property-Irrelevance Theorem   here
• Profit: after 200+ years still elusive   here
• MMT: Just another political fraud   here
• MMT: So-called progressives as trailblazers for Trumponomics   here
• Economics is NOT about what Happiness is but about what Profit is   here
• Capitalism, poverty, exploitation, and cross-over exploitation   here
• Economics has arrived at the bottom of the proto-scientific shithole   here
• MMT vs Neoliberalism: Just another clown show   here
• MMT is dead: An unfriendly critique of Bill Mitchell   here
• Political economics: Who hijacks British Labour?   here
• Paul Krugman and economic poultry entrails reading   here
• Forget Keynes   here
• Economics: communication without content   here
• MMT: Academic snake oil for the people   here
• Ricardo and the invention of class war   here
• Econblogosphere: The flawed Top 101   here
• Time to retire political economists   here
• Lars Syll, fake scientist   here
• Are MMTers stupid or corrupt or both?   here
• MMT = proto-scientific garbage + deception of the 99-percenters   here
• Economists, stupid or corrupt or both?   here
• MMT and grassroots movements   here
• Down with idiocy!   here
• Mr. Corbyn and the perils of political economics   here
• Keynes, Lerner, MMT, Trump and exploding profit   here
• Economists’ rude awakening   here
• Deficit-spending/money-creation is ALWAYS a bad deal for WeThePeople   here
• Freedom for fake scientists?   here
• Yes, economics is a bogus science   here
• From false microfoundations to true macrofoundations   here
• Dani Rodrik, fake scientist   here
• How to make economics a science   here
• This is New Economic Thinking? Give me a break!   here
• Joan Robinson and the early death of Behavioral Economics   here
• When non-thinkers rethink   here
• Proof of the inherent instability of the market economy   here
• Why is MMT so false?   here
• MMT: Just political heat, no scientific light   here
• Why is economics such a scientific embarrassment?   here
• Economics: the emancipation of science from politics   here
• MMT: for the record   here
• MMT: scientific incompetence or political fraud?   here
• Hunting down the economics body snatchers   here
• The Death of Keynesianism   here
• MMT, fake science   here
• The moralizing economist is not a good guy but a fake scientist   here
• Austerity: Who takes the little man for a ride?   here
• Marx and the curious coexistence of provably false economic theories   here
• Karl Marx, fake scientist   here
• The abject failure of orthodox and heterodox distribution theory   here
• Economics: a hereditary mental disease with scientific incompetence as father and political fraud as mother   here
• MMT is NOT an alternative to neoliberalism   here
• No exploitation, no classes   here
• Economics: a "science" from suckers for suckers   here
• Barkley Rosser, fake scientist   here
• The irrelevance of populism for economics   here
• Milton Friedman, fake scientist   here
• What is MMT?   here
• Refutation of Asad Zaman’s heterodox methodology: all arguments you ever need   here
• Forget Friedman, forget Keynes   here
• Forget Hayek   here
• The myth of economics knowledge   here
• Intellectual deficit spending   here
• On econblogosphere bias   here
• How economists habitually mess it up   here
• Just another cargo cultic exercise   here
• Marx, the moron   here
• The end of political economics   here
• Needed: The Worst of the Worst of economics blogs   here
• Just another wreck   here
• Soapbox economics   here
• Garbage economics   here
• Hijackers, agenda pushers, PsySocs, and other morons   here
• Consensus, buddy consensus, scientific consensus, or what?   here
• Economics is NOT about Human Nature but the economic system   here
• Getting out of the economics swamp   here
• Economists ― blinded by political balloons   here
• Austerity and the total disconnect between economic policy and science   here
• Does Asad Zaman fly with POL or SCI Airlines?   here
• Feynman Integrity, fake science and the econblogosphere   here
• Note on Barkley Rosser on political/scientific failure   here
• Hayek and other informationally retarded proto-economists   here
• Economics and encephalomalacia   here
• Ditch scientific incompetence!   here
• Media-fake-farce-fraud-storytelling-macro   here
• How Heterodoxy became the venue for science’s scum   here
• Toward the New Academy   here
• Economic policy guidance NEVER had sound scientific foundations   here
• The economist as moralist   here
• Austerity and the idiocy of political economists   here
• The non-existence of economics   here
• Economics and truth   here
• Pre-truth and post-truth in economics   here
• New economic thinking = old political fake   here
• Endtime for soapbox economists   here
• Where economics went wrong   here
• NAIRU ― letting one more nonentity go   here
• Schizonomics   here
• Economics, Plato’s Cave and the Silver Blaze Case   here
• Economics is a science? You must be joking!   here
• Economics, methodology, morals ― a creepy freak-show   here
• New economic thinking, or, let’s put lipstick on the dead pig   here
• Paul the Menace   here
• Why Bernie Sanders is unintentionally a godsend for the one-percenters   here
• Friedman and the cluelessness of fake scientists   here
• Economism, vulgar economics, and the curse of goofy critics   here
• Economists: Incompetent? Stupid? Corrupt?   here
• Gossip economics   here
• Delusions of useful idiots   here
• Mass unemployment: The joint failure of orthodox and heterodox economics   here
• How the 99 percent can bring overall profit of the 1 percent legally down to zero in 2017   here
• Economics: Poor philosophy, poor psychology, poor science   here
• Economics is indefensible   here
• Inequality: Market failure or theory failure?   here
• Economics as poultry entrails reading   here
• When fake scientists call out on fake politicians   here
• Economics: The pluralism of false theories is over   here
• Will economics ever become a science?   here
• A political stench is in the air   here
• Americans believe crazy things, yet they are outdone by economists   here
• Why Hayek was not a scientist   here
• Economics: Two centuries of scientific incompetence   here
• Economic policy advice has never had sound scientific foundations   here
• Economics is not post-truth but pre-truth   here
• The economist’s pick: liar, moron, or what?   here
• Economics and corruption   here
• FakeNews, FakeScience: economics in the information age   here
• Keynes’s message for contemporaries   here
• Economists: The Trumps of science   here
• The economist as standup comedian   here
• Economists: Jacks of all trades ― except economics   here
• Political economics: a deadhead sitcom   here
• There is NO such thing as an economic expert   here
• Scientific suicide in the revolving door   here
• Not big news: political economics is a failure   here
• Economics pedagogy: an un- and anti-scientific exercise   here
• Economics: a science without scientists   here
• Heterodoxy ― a new paradigm or just another political sect?   here
• The bigots of common sense   here
• Go, Heterodoxy, move on!   here
• A basket of scientific deplorables   here
• All models are false because all economists are stupid   here
• Scientists and science actors   here
• The trouble with economics prizes   here
• Economists: No legitimacy whatever   here
• False and true economic laws   here
• Krugman is not an economist   here
• Unemployment is the outcome of political economics   here
• Economists and the economy ― a nonstarter since 200 years   here
• Turning the bananatization of economics around   here
• Demystifying employment theory and policy   here
• Nothing to choose between Orthodoxy and traditional Heterodoxy   here
• Failed institutions   here
• Economics and Project Augean Stable   here
• A heap of scientific rubbish   here
• Economics is NOT a social science   here
• Economics: The chief demerit is inconsistency   here
• Economic policy guidance out of the scientific kindergarten   here
• Economics: Deadlocked between politics and science   here
• Economics: The Battle of Frogs and Mice is over   here
• Enough! Economists, retire now!   here
• Politics, storytelling, and science   here
• Political economics: as worthless as ever   here
• Hayek ― agenda pusher or scientist?   here
• Economics: A cargo cult science from the very beginning   here
• Politics is national, science is not   here
• Politics or Science? Decide and act accordingly   here
• The mad flip-floppers   here
• Hayek or how economists miss their subject matter since more than 200 years   here
• Economics: From proto-science to freak show   here
• Society, you have a problem   here
• Economic policy has gone wrong because economic theory has gone wrong   here
• Economic recommendations out of the swamp between true and false   here
• Heterodox schizo   here
• Why don’t economists simply shut up for a while?   here
• High profits and low economics   here
• It’s the price and profit mechanism, stupid!   here
• There is no truth in political economics   here
• Economics: neither craft nor science   here
• Helicopter money — a free lunch for the one-percenters   here
• Hayek was not an economist   here
• Trump and the weaponizing of economics   here
• Economics and the weapons of mass distraction   here
• Low-IQ economics: the beginner’s guide   here
• Sick or false?   here
• Economics and the social science delusion   here
• Krugman and the scientific implosion of economics   here
• What heterodox economists are embarrassed to admit   here
• Political economics: a playground for scientific deadbeats   here
• The still unfinished Keynes (II)   here
• On economists’ stupidity   here
• What comes next?   here
• End of a storyteller   here
• Every thinking economist is heterodox by default, but how do we proceed from here?   here
• Agenda pushing or science?   here
• It’s not the ideology, it’s the methodology, stupid!   here
• Confused Orthodoxy vs. confused Heterodoxy   here
• Is Paul Krugman necessary?   here
• Are economists natural born scientific failures?   here
• Economics: of the stupid by the stupid for the stupid   here
• Scientific dabbler and peddler   here
• Soap-opera economics   here
• Which breakdown?   here
• How economists became the scientific laughing stock   here
• Swedish muddle   here
• Economics is a scientific zombie waiting to be put down   here
• The tragedy of Heterodoxy   here
• Political economics and intellectual corruption   here
• The utter senselessness of political economics   here
• Pseudo-voodoo-moron-proto-mumbonomics   here
• Profit and the poverty of economics   here
• The x-th reinvention of evolutionary economics   here
• Hayek: mad, bad, or just another incompetent economist?   here
• Free the academy from economics   here
• Keynes and the logical brilliance of Bedlam   here
• How to be a good scientist   here
• Exponentially growing garbage   here
• Doomed and damned   here
• PsySoc — the scourge of economics   here
• Economics: ‘a tale Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury’?   here
• Confounding sociology and economics   here
• How to minimize political confusion   here
• Confounding Is and Ought: the economist as moralist   here
• Time to get rid of political economics   here
• The philosophy of know-nothingers   here
• Whatever it is, let's call it conservatism   here
• Buridan’s ass economics   here
• Heterodoxy: important decisions ahead   here
• Economics: the honeypot for know-nothingers   here
• Here it comes: the sexit   here
• Knowledge vs. Belief   here
• The case for pure economics   here
• Mental messies and loose losers   here
• Separation of politics and economics   here
• In science, NO is the answer   here
• True/false is different from good/bad   here
• An exercise in futility    here
• It's about institution-building, stupid   here
• From economics to politics to idiotism   here
• Keynesianism as ultimate profit machine   here
• It's all over — but for whom?   here
• Ditto and the hazards of diprosopus   here
• Value — the Bermuda triangle for economic theories   here
• More than two centuries of waffling in the dark   here
• Flight of ideas and the dead end of all econtalk   here
• From true/false to garbage-wrestling and back   here
• Keenonomics, aggregate demand/change of debt, and some misleading critique   here
• Lost between pure fiction and parochial realism   here
• The art of start   here
• A farewell to PsySoc economics   here
• Wake up: economics is not a science of behavior   here
• Sloppiness as economic methodology   here
• The guessing game   here
• Tricky business   here
• Objective Principles   here

Related working papers on SSRN

• Major defects of the market economy   here
• Objective principles of economics   here

For the new scientific foundations of economics see cross-references Paradigm Shift

***

Grok on Mar 6, 2025

Q:

What does the AXEC Project say about the separation of Science and Politics in general and about the failure/fraud of political economics in particular? Here are some relevant resources:

Blog: https://axecorg.blogspot.com/

Papers SSRN: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=1210665

X/Twitter, old: E.K-H@AXECorg

X/Twitter, new: AXEC@EgmontHandtke

Homepage: https://www.axec.org/

A:

The AXEC Project, spearheaded by Egmont Kakarot-Handtke, offers a sharp critique of economics as it has been traditionally practiced, emphasizing the need for a clear separation between science and politics and arguing that political economics has been a failure—and even a fraud—due to its inability to adhere to scientific standards. Below, I’ll outline the AXEC Project’s stance on these two key issues based on its foundational principles and arguments, as reflected across its blog, papers, and other materials.

The Separation of Science and Politics

The AXEC Project insists that economics must be fundamentally restructured as a science, distinct from political influence, to achieve any meaningful explanatory power about how the economy actually works. It draws a stark line between theoretical economics (which it equates with science) and political economics (which it dismisses as agenda-driven storytelling). The project argues that:

• Science vs. Politics: Theoretical economics should aim to explain economic phenomena objectively, using clearly defined axioms and rigorous logical consistency, much like the natural sciences. Political economics, in contrast, is about pushing agendas—whether for power, ideology, or vested interests—and thus lacks scientific integrity. The project invokes John Stuart Mill’s view that a scientist’s role is to uncover causal relationships, not to advocate for political ends: “A scientific observer or reasoner… is not an adviser for practice. His part is only to show that certain consequences follow from certain causes…” This separation is seen as essential because politics inherently corrupts science by introducing bias and subjective goals.
• Historical Corruption: The AXEC Project contends that economics has been compromised since its inception by political agenda-pushers. From Adam Smith onward, economists have blended normative goals (what ought to be) with positive analysis (what is), resulting in a discipline that fails to meet the standards of material and formal consistency required of a true science. This mixing of spheres has prevented economics from developing a coherent, objective framework.
• Paradigm Shift: To remedy this, AXEC advocates for a “Paradigm Shift” in economics, moving from behavior-centric, subjective microfoundations to structure-centric, objective macrofoundations. This shift requires stripping away political motivations and psychological assumptions, focusing instead on systemic economic laws (e.g., the Profit Law) derived from axioms, akin to how physics operates independently of human intent.

In short, AXEC sees the separation of science and politics as a prerequisite for economics to escape its “proto-scientific shithole” and become a legitimate field of knowledge. Politics is relegated to the realm of opinion (doxa), while science deals in verifiable knowledge (episteme).

The Failure/Fraud of Political Economics

The AXEC Project is scathing in its assessment of political economics, labeling it not just a failure but often a deliberate fraud due to its scientific worthlessness and its role in perpetuating economic confusion for political gain. Key points include:

• Scientific Failure: Political economics, according to AXEC, has produced “nothing of scientific value in the last 200+ years.” It fails the basic tests of science—material consistency (alignment with empirical reality) and formal consistency (logical coherence)—because it prioritizes narrative over rigor. Schools like Walrasianism, Keynesianism, Marxianism, and Austrianism are dismissed as “social narratives” or “storytelling,” not valid representations of economic reality. For instance, the project argues that foundational concepts like supply and demand curves or equilibrium are illusory and lack empirical grounding.
• Fraudulent Agenda-Pushing: Beyond mere incompetence, AXEC accuses political economics of being a vehicle for fraud, particularly in cases like Modern Monetary Theory (MMT). It claims MMT’s advocacy of deficit spending is a “political fraud” that benefits the oligarchy by equating public deficits with private profits (via the macroeconomic Profit Law: Public Deficit = Private Profit), while disguising this as a social good. This manipulation of economic theory for political ends exemplifies how political economics distorts reality to serve powerful interests.
• Profit Theory as a Litmus Test: A recurring critique is that economists—orthodox and heterodox alike—have gotten the theory of profit wrong since Adam Smith. AXEC asserts that profit is not a reward for innovation or risk but a systemic outcome of monetary flows, misunderstood due to political biases clouding analysis. This error underscores the broader failure of political economics to explain core economic phenomena, rendering it “scientifically worthless.”
• Hijacking of Economics: The project argues that economics was “hijacked from the very beginning by political economists” who turned it into a tool for shaping public opinion rather than a pursuit of truth. This has left the discipline as “the most embarrassing failure in the history of modern science,” a wrestling show of competing agendas rather than a field of genuine inquiry.
• Consequences: The failure of political economics to provide a true theory means policymakers and the public are left with “educated common sense or personal opinion” rather than reliable guidance. AXEC cites Schumpeter: “The first thing a man will do for his ideals is lie,” suggesting that political economists knowingly perpetuate falsehoods to advance their causes, further entrenching the fraud.

Conclusion

The AXEC Project’s vision is uncompromising: economics must shed its political baggage to become a science grounded in axiomatic foundations, focusing on systemic structures like monetary flows and profit dynamics rather than human behavior or ideological goals. Political economics, in its view, is a failed enterprise—scientifically invalid and often fraudulent—because it has never risen above opinion-driven storytelling to deliver objective knowledge. This critique is not just academic; it’s a call to “scrap the lot and start again,” redefining economics as a discipline free from the distortions of politics.

If you’d like me to dig deeper into specific AXEC arguments (e.g., the Profit Law or critiques of MMT), let me know!

DeepSeek on Mar 17, 2025

Q:

What does the AXEC Project say about the separation of science and politics in economics and about the methodological specifics of (i) theoretical economics (= science) and the methodological failure of (ii) political economics (= agenda pushing) since the founding fathers ― Adam Smith and J. S. Mill in particular? Here are some relevant resources: Blog: https://axecorg.blogspot.com/ Papers SSRN: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=1210665 X/Twitter, old: E.K-H@AXECorg X/Twitter, new: AXEC@EgmontHandtke Homepage: https://www.axec.org/

A:

The AXEC (Analysis-Exchange-Correction) Project, spearheaded by economist Egmont Kakarot-Handtke, critiques the current state of economics, particularly the entanglement of science and politics, and the methodological flaws in both theoretical and political economics. Here's a breakdown of the AXEC perspective on the issues you raised: ### 1. **Separation of Science and Politics in Economics** - The AXEC Project argues that economics, as a science, should be strictly separated from politics. It contends that political influence has corrupted economic theory, leading to the dominance of agenda-driven research rather than objective scientific inquiry. - According to AXEC, the failure to separate science from politics has resulted in the proliferation of what it calls "political economics," which prioritizes ideological or policy-driven goals over the pursuit of truth and scientific rigor. ### 2. **Methodological Specifics of Theoretical Economics (Science)** - Theoretical economics, as envisioned by AXEC, should adhere to the principles of scientific methodology. This includes: - **Logical consistency**: Economic theories must be internally consistent and free from contradictions. - **Empirical adequacy**: Theories should be testable and align with observable reality. - **Axiomatic foundations**: Economics should be built on clearly defined, non-contradictory axioms. - AXEC emphasizes that theoretical economics must focus on understanding the fundamental laws and mechanisms of the economic system, independent of political or ideological biases. ### 3. **Methodological Failure of Political Economics (Agenda Pushing)** - AXEC identifies political economics as a form of "agenda pushing" that has dominated the field since the time of Adam Smith and John Stuart Mill. It argues that political economics: - Prioritizes policy recommendations and ideological goals over scientific truth. - Often relies on flawed or inconsistent theoretical frameworks that are tailored to support specific political agendas. - Fails to meet the standards of scientific rigor, leading to persistent errors and misunderstandings in economic theory. - The project critiques the founding fathers of economics, including Smith and Mill, for blending normative (what ought to be) and positive (what is) analysis, which has perpetuated the confusion between science and politics. ### 4. **Critique of Adam Smith and John Stuart Mill** - AXEC argues that Adam Smith and John Stuart Mill, while foundational to economic thought, contributed to the methodological confusion in economics by mixing descriptive and prescriptive elements in their work. - Smith's *Wealth of Nations*, for example, is seen as a blend of scientific analysis and political advocacy, which set a precedent for the entanglement of science and politics in economics. - Similarly, Mill's work is criticized for its normative focus, which AXEC believes detracts from the development of a purely scientific economic theory. ### 5. **The Need for a Paradigm Shift** - AXEC calls for a paradigm shift in economics, advocating for a return to scientific principles and the elimination of political influence. It proposes: - A clear distinction between theoretical economics (science) and political economics (agenda pushing). - The development of a new axiomatic foundation for economics that is free from ideological contamination. - A focus on correcting the methodological errors that have plagued the discipline since its inception. In summary, the AXEC Project argues that the separation of science and politics is essential for the progress of economics as a discipline. It critiques the methodological failures of political economics and calls for a rigorous, scientifically grounded approach to theoretical economics, free from the distortions of political and ideological agendas.

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