Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXXXIV)

“… all models are wrong，…” (Hayashi Heikichi)

No, not all models are wrong; only Walrasian, Keynesian, Marxian, and Austrian models are provably false. AXEC models are axiomatically true. ⇓

The representative economist is NOT, and never has been, a competent scientist but… pic.twitter.com/sIEl45f8Cg

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 15, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXXXIII)

The crucial point with Marx/Socialism/Communism/Capitalism is whether Marx understood how the monetary economy works. This presupposes an understanding of the foundational economic concept of profit. The point is that Marx and Marxians have no idea what profit is. For proof, see… pic.twitter.com/vV6gN6BBee

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 15, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXXXII)

Keynes, too, misunderstood the concept of profit because he was too stupid for elementary algebra. ⇓ Consequently, he botched the long-overdue Paradigm Shift from microfoundations to macrofoundations. This initial blunder means that the entire field of economics (both micro and… pic.twitter.com/Sv8IFnZhVW

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 15, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Production (I)

“The argument commits a category error: it confuses matter with value. The Earth is indeed a closed system of atoms. But economic growth does not count atoms — it counts the value those atoms deliver to human beings, and that value lives in arrangement and knowledge, not in… pic.twitter.com/SVvVM8znxg

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 15, 2026

Related 'Matter matters: productivity, profit, and non-marginal factor prices' 

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Distribution, Inequality (XX)

“Its a simple pitch: markets are egalitarian forces that improve living standards really fast. Markets minimize the need for the state to do things, complement some of its (the state) good things, and can offset some of the bad things it does.

The proof is the extended gilded…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 15, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXLII)

“You don't save first and then create investment. In a modern monetary economy, investment comes first.” (Relearning Economics)

Wrong. Nothing comes first or second. The saving of the household sector is absolutely independent of the investment of the business sector.… pic.twitter.com/pwsOj0pFhm

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 14, 2026

Occasional X: How it works (CDLXXXIII)

“If you have any doubt about the mainstream econ psychosis, or in Romer's words, their 'noncommittal relationship with truth,' read their cultish rants about the Guardian piece. We are drowning in debt, fascism is rising and clowns warn about 'the danger of degrowth for…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 13, 2026

Occasional X: I=S ― the biggest idiocy in macroeconomics (IV)

 

“Short version of many great points. If you redistribute wealth in order to support consumption, you get no wealth — no savings, investment, factories, etc. Poor people will not leave 99% of their new wealth invested in productive capital as billionaires do.” (John Cochrane)

It… pic.twitter.com/KbGzQa92Y2

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 13, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXXXI)

“Economics is the study of the economy, not the study of economists.” (Ricardo Reis)

Insane Economic Quotes is disinfotainment.

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 12, 2026

Occasional X: I=S ― the biggest idiocy in macroeconomics (III)

 

“You save money because you value future consumption over present consumption. That's time preference, and it drives everything in a capitalist economy. When you delay gratification, you create the capital that builds tomorrow's wealth.” (Handre)

This is the bedtime story that…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 12, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXXX)

“The bottom line is if you care about economic freedom, democracy is the way to go and if you care about democracy, economic freedom is the way to go.” (A. Tabarrok)

Economists knew that economically/spiritually capitalism is in itself a dead concept. So, they coupled it…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 12, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXXIX)

“The final outcome of the credit expansion is general impoverishment.” (Ludwig von Mises)

Austrians in general, and von Mises in particular, never understood the profit mechanism, which is the pivotal feature of the free-market economy.

The free-market economy runs on profit.…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 12, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXLI)

“Property rights aren't some abstract legal concept. They're the operating system for human cooperation. When you can't secure the fruits of your labor, you stop producing beyond survival. Why build a better mousetrap when the village chief's nephew can just take it?” (Handre)…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 12, 2026

To understand the difference between genuine science and cargo cult science, i.e., business with a lab coat, you just need to look at the long history of rivalry between Tesla and Edison.

“After Edison allegedly dismissed Tesla's AC ideas as impractical and reneged on a promised…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 12, 2026

Related 'Toward the New Academy'  

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXXVIII)

“Keynes, in The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money, set forth a hypothesis which was a beautiful one, and it really altered the shape of economics. But it turned out that it was a wrong hypothesis.” (quoted by Milton Friedman Quotes)

Keynes, too, misunderstood the… pic.twitter.com/CAM0Kdk81p

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 11, 2026

Occasional X: The history of economic thought is the history of scientific failure (XLIV)

“… but that’s bookkeeping, not causation. ” (MacroMadeSimple)

(i) That's one of the dumbest sentences in economics. The speedometer shows exactly the speed of a car, but does not cause it. Likewise with accounting, it shows exactly the amount of macroeconomic profit, which is…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 10, 2026

Yes, we can resume that Austrianism is failed/fake science and that Austrians are dumber than a sack of rocks.

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 10, 2026

Occasional X: Paradigm Shift (CXVIII)

I have summarized 7,354 posts, 78 papers, and 1 book in the table below. ⇓ If you still do not understand economics, your last hope is an excellent brain specialist. pic.twitter.com/wgU8kaQ27O

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 10, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Profit (CLIII)

“History shows capitalism generated profits and rising living standards long before chronic deficit spending.” (MacroMadeSimple)

History shows that you can tell people anything, as long as you make it sound that there is some authority behind it, be it god, holiness, a voice… pic.twitter.com/ab7F8X2G8n

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 10, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXXVII)

 

“Venice built a Republic that lasted 1,100 Years. The United States is about to turn 250 years old.” (Students for Liberty)

Historically true, but from this does not follow that Austrianism is a scientifically true (materially/formally consistent) economic theory. Venice is an…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 10, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXXVI)

“John Maynard Keynes lived as a quintessential elitist who despised the very people his theories claimed to help.” (Handre)

Keynes, too, misunderstood the concept of profit because he was too stupid for elementary algebra. ⇓ Consequently, he botched the long-overdue Paradigm… pic.twitter.com/rAmWjwLNiA

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 9, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Distribution, Inequality (XIX)

“In 1879, JP Morgan paid a man to invent the lie that is the foundation of modern economics. A billionaire [Nick Hanauer],who helped start Amazon just exposed the whole thing on Diary of a CEO, and once you hear it you will never look at paychecks the same way again …So JP… pic.twitter.com/Bh7xeO5sRm

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 9, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Profit (CLII)

“Where do you get the money to save? If it is from your wage income then your spending won't allow the producers to save. Where the profit comes from?” (Shahin Ashkiani)

Neither Shahin Ashkiani nor Miguel Anxo Bastos ever understood profit. Both are scientifically very… pic.twitter.com/LiUSFUU6vF

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 9, 2026

 

Related 'Key Issues: Nature and causes of profit' and 'Key Issues: Profit'.

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXL)

“The standard of living of the common man is higher in those countries which have the greatest number of wealthy entrepreneurs.” (Ludwig von Mises)

Ludwig von Mises never understood profit and, by consequence, how the economic system works.

First of all, it is important to…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 9, 2026

“The richness of America Is provided by NATURAL RESOURCES Like oil.” (Lawrence Widman)

The richness of America consists of valued natural resources, valued capital goods, and financial assets. The source of the latter is private/public deficit-spending, which materializes as…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 10, 2026

Occasional X: Paradigm Shift (CXVII)

“My fav clown once again failed to understand that humans don't optimize and modelling human behavior should begin with observing them not with 'let's assume blah blah blah bc it is easier to model it in this way and aligned with our ideology'.” (Shahin Ashkiani)

That sentence… pic.twitter.com/qEizFdC3Iy

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 9, 2026

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Austrianism (CIX)

“Rothbard didn't just publish another economics textbook in 1962. He torched the entire discipline and rebuilt it from first principles, using only logic and human action as his foundation. … he constructed economic theory the way Euclid built geometry: starting with…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 8, 2026

“Profits arise from entrepreneurs satisfying consumers in voluntary markets.” (MacroMadeSimple)

If the entrepreneurs as a whole satisfy consumers in voluntary markets in the elementary production-consumption economy, but the household sector does not spend the whole period's… pic.twitter.com/S9tCtEPojR

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 10, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Employment (XXXIII)

“The 1970s obliterated the most cherished myth in mainstream economics: the Phillips Curve trade-off between unemployment and inflation. When stagflation hit America with double-digit inflation alongside soaring unemployment, Keynesian economists scrambled like cockroaches when… pic.twitter.com/d2EcTYKrtE

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 8, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXXXIX)

“Jia argued that the past two decades of Chinese academic economics have been dominated by western neoliberal economics and that needs to change.” (Peter Ryan)

True.

'Western neoliberal' economists are look-alike scientists. Economics is what Feynman called cargo cult science.… pic.twitter.com/CDrB6rXTg0

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 8, 2026

Occasional X: Economics curriculum ― the transmutation of plain morons to graduate morons (XII)

“Three Big Myths about What's Plaguing Higher Ed.” (Phil Magness)

As far as economics is concerned, higher ed has no scientific content.

Neither mainstream nor heterodox economists had any idea what science is all about. They are still a cargo cult science and can't do the…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 8, 2026

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Kalecki (XVI)

There is no such thing as Kalecki's Paradoxes.

Kalecki got the subject's foundational economic concept — profit — wrong. ⇓ This is self-disqualifying. Even today, his followers are too stupid to understand the elementary algebra that underlies macroeconomic accounting.

For… pic.twitter.com/D0UhheECqs

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 8, 2026

Occasional X: Paradigm Shift (CXVI)

“The apriori trash they generate and call it economics: …” (Shahin Ashkiani)

It is not the question that microeconomics has been proto-scientific garbage since the beginning; the question is: what will take its place?

The founding fathers defined economics as a social science,… pic.twitter.com/hmDohkGRda

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 8, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXXV)

“Marx never held a real job. Never met payroll. Never risked capital or faced bankruptcy. He spent decades theorizing about labor value while avoiding actual labor. His insights into production came from library books, not factory floors.” (Handre)

Whether this is correct or not… pic.twitter.com/mAmbxDDnoz

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 7, 2026

Occasional X: Paradigm Shift (CXV)

“If I wanted to catch up/refresh with the last ten years of macro, what is the best single resource?” (Vincent Geloso)

Start with the AXEC Blog ⇓https://t.co/4CPfqKAf89 pic.twitter.com/ddT7ekMUgj

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 7, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXXXVIII)

“This is Ricardo’s Vice. The practice of selecting your conclusion first, constructing assumptions that make your mathematics arrive there, and presenting the internally consistent logic as empirical truth about the world. Yet. Logic is not truth. If there is one thing worth…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 7, 2026

Occasional X: How it works (CDLXXXII)

 

“Billionaires increased most in the two places where the economy grew and poverty drastically went down: South Asia and East Asia. The best solution to poverty is a freer, growing, dynamic economy.” (Luis Garicano)

Luis Garicano never understood profit and, by consequence, how…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 7, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXXXVII)

“If an idea sounds compassionate but ignores incentives and basic market realities, it’s not an economic principle, it’s an emotional reaction dressed up as policy. That’s why left policies like minimum wage or rent controls, contradicting basic economics, just make things… pic.twitter.com/ltDKJtQZWP

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 6, 2026

For more about the Totem of the Micro, see AXECquery. 

Related 'Bang — the representative economist and supply-demand-equilibrium are dead'.

Occasional X: Economics and math ― they just can't get it together (XII)

“Murray Rothbard, like other Austrian Economists, believed that the heavy use of mathematics in economic analysis damaged economic understanding instead of enhancing it. This wasn't science, he said; it was 'scientism'.” (Mises Institute)

True, economics is not yet a science,…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 5, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXXXVI)

“Economics has never been, and never will be, a value-free science.” (Jostein Hauge)

Economics has never been a science. Since the Enlightenment, economists have never understood what science is. The comparison says it all: “But though the Wealth of Nations contained no really… pic.twitter.com/JgTR5hSXFy

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 5, 2026

Related 'The case for pure economics' and 'Separation of politics and economics' and 'Key Issues: Political economics ― at wits' end'.

Occasional X: How it works (CDLXXXI)

“… but saying Thomas Piketty is economically incompetent is not serious. ” (Hervé Joly)

No, Thomas Piketty is not the incompetent exception but the rule. The history of economic thought provides proof that the representative economist is NOT, and never has been, a competent…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 5, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXXIV)

“Smith never said incentives were enough. He said markets work when a society develops virtues. Prudence, justice, temperance, courage, faith, hope, love.” (Students for Liberty, quoting Deirdre McCloskey)

This may be true or false psychology/sociology, but it is not economics.… pic.twitter.com/HxSv607DxH

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 4, 2026

For more about McCloskey, see AXECquery.

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXXIII)

“The curious task of economics is to demonstrate to men how little they really know about what they imagine they can design.” (Friedrich Hayek)

The curious task of economics is to figure out how the economy works. Friedrich Hayek never understood profit and, by logical…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 3, 2026

Occasional X: Paradigm Shift (CXIV)

“A great comment from hidetomitanaka on the magisterial paper by guido_lorenzoni and IvanWerning and one I endorse.” (Roger Farmer)

General Equilibrium Theory was dead from the start. It is the unassailable proof that the history of economic thought is the history of scientific… pic.twitter.com/mje42klaur

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 3, 2026

Related 'Still alive in some heads: equilibrium' 

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Price Mechanism (XVII)

“If this interpretation is correct, then the issue is not merely whether prices are flexible or sticky. The deeper issue concerns the social ontology of prices themselves. In the Walrasian tradition, prices are primarily signals. In the later Hicksian tradition, prices are also… pic.twitter.com/kBm1RSnCIg

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 3, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Price Mechanism (XVI)

“Prices diverge from labor values in proportion to the organic composition of capital.” (Students for Liberty, paraphrasing Marx)

Marx got profit wrong. As a logical consequence, he did not understand how the economy works — in particular, how the price mechanism works.

The… pic.twitter.com/4gl6R1bJnx

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 3, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXXXV)

“This comes from the tradition of econometrics. The idea is that everything in economics has to be measurable like in physics. So economists have to keep denying the inexact reality of economics at every turn. A good example of this is the most inexact field in economics: macro.”… pic.twitter.com/KCG3rw2NWU

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 2, 2026

 

Related Postmodernism — the philosophy of scientific write-offs

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXXII)

“Many economists say that criticism in their discipline is very harsh and standards are very high.” (Ryan Briggs)

Economists are look-alike scientists. What they say about themselves and their discipline is hallucinatory.

The major approaches and their derivatives are mutually… pic.twitter.com/BN9UWCif4w

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 2, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXXI)

“Hoppe refuted induction in 1985” (quoted by charsky)

No. He merely summarized the methodological flaws of Austrianism.

Austrianism has always been proto-scientific garbage. Educate yourself with the AXECqueryhttps://t.co/v8xOkJhaWn

Hoppe never understood profit. When the…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 2, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXX)

“We really need to do a thorough purging of the United States.” (Paul Krugman)

This may be right or wrong, but it's not economics.

Economists and scientists have only a superficial resemblance. Neither mainstream nor heterodox economists ever had any idea what science is all… pic.twitter.com/ltU9pfOB2A

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 2, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXIX)

“'Economic theory' is a very strange beast—it has to be wrong, or else your map is the size of the territory, and hence is useless; …” (Brad DeLong)

Brad DeLong is again playing with the word 'wrong'. Wrong in science means material or logical inconsistency: “The chief demerit…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 1, 2026

Occasional X: Paradigm Shift (CXIII)

It's nice when the Walrasian losers Albrecht and Werning offer each other emotional support. It does not help. Supply-demand-equilibrium has been dead from the beginning. If the axioms are false, the analytical superstructure is false. ⇓

For details, see
The monstrous… pic.twitter.com/R8cszi28Dw

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 1, 2026

Occasional X: Paradigm Shift (CXII)

“….we attack a 150 year old Walras question that's gone unanswered, not for lack of trying …” (Ivan Werning)

The founding fathers have defined economics as a social science, and accordingly, it has been based on subjective/behavioral assumptions/axioms. This has been the… pic.twitter.com/yXWQAFMsoo

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 1, 2026

Occasional X: How it works (CDLXXX)

“Musk warns: 'The entire existing economic system is on the verge of collapse, and no force can stop it.” (Trader)

True.

“Because artificial intelligence and robotics are not creating growth — they are destroying the 'scarcity framework' upon which economics is based.”

Not…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) June 1, 2026

Occasional X: How it works (CDLXXIX)

“At the limit, firms automate their way to boundless productivity and zero demand.” (Falk, Tsoukalas, quoted by Jack)

AI brings employment again to the fore. Needless to emphasize that legacy Employment Theory has been axiomatically wrong since the founding fathers. For details,… pic.twitter.com/6bWcY0ZfFI

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 31, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXVIII)

“Marx is actually far more popular in English and history departments than economics departments, which is telling.” (Chris Freiman)

Marx is only one example of economists' scientific incompetence, which is still the dominating mindset in economics departments.

The history of… pic.twitter.com/5eI5ZqjVC6

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 31, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXVII)

When economists talk about the “top 4 leading figures of 20th century economics” one should never forget that economics has never reached the level of a science and that economists are not scientists but look-alikes. Feynman called it cargo cult science.

The major approaches… pic.twitter.com/Md177Ov5Cf

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 30, 2026

Occasional X: Economists’ eternal problem with methodology (XIV)

“The 'Methodenstreit' is back!” (Mises Institute)

No.

The founding fathers defined economics as a social science, and accordingly, it has been based on subjective/behavioral assumptions/axioms. This has been the methodological ur-mistake, and this is why economics is a… pic.twitter.com/W5XFaUPEoW

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 29, 2026

Occasional X: The history of economic thought is the history of scientific failure (XLIII)

The history of economic thought is the history of scientific failure. The major approaches (Walrasianism, Keynesianism, Marxianism, Austrianism, and their derivatives) are mutually contradictory, axiomatically false, and materially/formally inconsistent. They all got profit…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 29, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXXXIV)

“250 years after The Wealth of Nations, William Easterly's Violent Saviors revives Smith's core insight: development must arise from voluntary cooperation, not expert design.” (Econlib)

This may be true or false sociology, but it is not economics.

Adam Smith was not an original… pic.twitter.com/LvINZkNrML

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 29, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXXXIII)

“The Austrian corpus is internally consistent.” (Rothbard, quoted by Law the Lawless)

No, Austrianism is axiomatically false and deductively inconsistent. It is based on the behavioral triviality that human wants have a priority order. ⇓ This is true, but leads to nothing of… pic.twitter.com/UPk1avP5Ih

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 29, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXVI)

“But Marx is only important because his ideas literally changed the course of history!” (Matthew Cole's quote)

Changing the world is easy. Every moron can do it. Change is a weasel word that covers both improvement and deterioration. In public discourse, it is therefore…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 28, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXV)

“You can't study any branch of the social sciences without engaging Marx in some capacity. Hayek is a secondary figure even in 20th century political/economic thought.” (Matthew Cole)

Science is about true/false, not about left/right. This applies in particular to economics.… pic.twitter.com/qMGKbJ0Ljx

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 28, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXXXII)

 

“One of the most common conceptual errors in economics—the error that any economist knows they must explain to the public—is the confusion between identities and equilibrium conditions. It is an obvious error (to those who know the subject) and extremely serious because it easily… pic.twitter.com/M4Fu1GRkK7

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 28, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXXXI)

“We remember Voltaire as the Enlightenment philosopher. We forget that he was also a formidable businessman. (ANTITHÈSE)

A businessman is a very different person from somebody who exploits the construction fault of a lotterie.

Voltaire is an example of the economic construction…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 28, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXIV)

 

“Keynes is a gateway drug to Marx.“ (Mike Lee)

Mike Lee is a gateway drug to total brain evaporation.

In science, you have to materially/formally prove your case. Keynes was provably wrong, ⇓ but Hayek never proved it, because he was also scientifically incompetent.

For… pic.twitter.com/wnnEGa7vkZ

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 28, 2026

Occasional X: How it works (CDLXXVIII)

“I APPLAUD DAVID (SACKS’) NOBLE EFFORTS... BUT AT THE END OF THE DAY, IF YOU LOOK AT OUR NATIONAL DEBT... IF AI AND ROBOTS DON’T SOLVE OUR NATIONAL DEBT, WE’RE TOAST.” (Elon Musk, quoted by Vivek Sen)

AI and robots can't solve the debt problem.

The free-market economy runs on…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 27, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXIII)

“Marx the economist gave way to Marx the alienation theorist, but the policy prescriptions for fighting alienation are still taken from Marx the economist, although that econ analysis has long been debunked ….” (Vlad Tarko)

The crucial point with Marx/ Socialism/ Communism/… pic.twitter.com/lHGQ4r6uXS

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 27, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXII)

“Ayn Rand on the Moral Purpose of Capitalism.” (Students for Liberty)

Ayn Rand's main defect has been that she did not know how the economy in general, and Capitalism/Socialism, in particular, works. She did not have much knowledge (episteme), but a lot of opinion (doxa).

Ayn… pic.twitter.com/8sPGOKKTg0

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 27, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXXX)

“The demand curve is the most basic object in economics.” (Brian Albrecht)

No, the demand curve is the most basic object in microeconomics. But microeconomics is axiomatically false. For methodological reasons, economics must be based on objective/systemic macrofoundations, not… pic.twitter.com/ZPYZBaHCTd

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 26, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLXI)

“ … so they [Marx, Keynes] provide you with useful tools you can use rather than eat your brain …” (Brad DeLong)

Keynes got macroeconomic profit wrong because he was too stupid for the elementary algebra that underlies macroeconomic accounting.

For details, see
The unfinished…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 25, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Money (CXLI)

“Inflation is never an unavoidable natural disaster. It is always the result of the weakness or ignorance of those in charge of monetary policy.” (Friedrich Hayek)

Half true. Inflations are always engineered. The question is who plays which role. The Central Bank is just one…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 25, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXXIX)

“Hyman Minsky's great insight was that stability is itself destabilizing: the credit system and the economy at large progress (or degenerate) through successive stages of high confidence and risk-taking.” (William Janeway)

As long as economists ignore scientific standards, the… pic.twitter.com/Bc0bBLCuQC

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 25, 2026

Occasional X: Economics • Communication • Disinfotainment (V)

“Today I learned JD Vance is a Marxist.” (Nathan Kalman-Lamb)

Those silly games go on as general stupidity increases.

Because Marx got the foundational concept of economics —profit— wrong, his communicative contribution reduces to psycho-social-political-philosophical blather.…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 25, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXXVIII)

“The current common approach to paper-writing in economics is wasteful & annoying.” (Branko Milanovic)

Economics as a whole is failed/fake science; its study is wasteful & annoying. Strictly speaking, more than 100 years of papers (EJ exactly 1891) will go down the scientific… pic.twitter.com/gjkPlr46ze

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 25, 2026

Occasional X: Economics • Communication • Disinfotainment (IV)

“You must have the discipline that the Swiss have. Never run fiscal deficits. In other words, don't turn on the printing press. If you have a deficit, borrow, pay. Never print unbacked bills.” (Lee Kuan Yew)

Lee Kuan Yew never understood the profit mechanism, which is the…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 24, 2026

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Hayek (XLXV)

“Samuelson and Friedman ignorantly and falsely labeled Hayek a 'scholastic'. Hundreds of professors have fraudulently labeled Hayek a fascist, an opponent of the welfare state, a Nazi, and an opponent of democracy. Whatever the professors need to marginalize a scientific rival.”…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 24, 2026

Occasional X: Econ 101― still proto-scientific garbage (XVI)

“Milton Friedman tells the story of 'I, Pencil, …'” (Foundations for Economic Education)

Milton Friedman was a storyteller, not a scientist. He never understood profit and, as a logical consequence, how the economic system works. That's self-disqualifying and is a shame for…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 24, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXXVII)

“Smith did not invent free markets. He explained why the markets that already existed produced order without anyone intending it. The insight was descriptive before it was prescriptive. He was watching something happen and asking: why does this work? Most people who cite him have… pic.twitter.com/vYDVRUEi4s

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 24, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLX)

 

“This painful but necessary correction process would have restored the economy to health relatively quickly.” (Handre)

How could Handre possibly know this?

Keynes failed to understand the concept of profit because he was too stupid for the elementary algebra that underlies… pic.twitter.com/wF2FALWhNr

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 23, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLIX)

“Human dignity shall be inviolable. All persons shall be equal before the law. Men and women shall have equal rights.” (Veronika Grimm)

This may be right or wrong, but it's not economics.

Science is about true/false not about good/bad. This has been known since J. S. Mill, but… pic.twitter.com/9ALFAjxTrZ

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 23, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLVIII)

“In 1936, John Maynard Keynes published The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money. It became the most influential economics book of the 20th century.” (Students for Liberty)

Neither Keynes ⇓ nor Hayek understood the concept of profit because both were too stupid for… pic.twitter.com/ijRlXYYQKp

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 23, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLVII)

“Tell me what you think a Marxist is, and I’ll tell you if that describes me.” (Greg)

The crucial point with Marx/Socialism/Communism/Capitalism is whether Marx understood how the monetary economy works. This presupposes an understanding of the foundational economic concept of…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 23, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXXVI)

 

“AI can process information. It cannot replace the market process that creates it.” (Foundations for Economic Education)

The pivotal concept of economics is NOT information but profit. Austrians never understood the profit mechanism.

Even non-economists understand that… pic.twitter.com/aNpkV8zPgG

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 23, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXXV)

“Every model is wrong” (Econ-Meme, quoted by Shahin Ashkiani)

Somebody plays with the different meanings of 'wrong'. Economics is failed/fake science, and economists need tons of smart excuses. The ultimate reason why economics is 'wrong' is the scientific incompetence of the… pic.twitter.com/fSuxdJXvzR

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 20, 2026

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Austrianism (CVIII)

 

“What Mises showed is that rational economic planning without prices can't be done.“ (Mises Media, Bob Murphy)

von Mises never understood profit, and by logical consequence, how the economic system works. The fundamental concept of economics is profit, and because von Mises gets… pic.twitter.com/S8TAHhRupa

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 19, 2026

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Austrianism (CVII)

“Roger Garrison helped modernize one of the most important insights in Austrian macroeconomics.” (Foundations for Economic Education)

Austrians never understood the profit mechanism, which is the pivotal feature of the free-market economy.

Macroeconomic profit Qm is given by… pic.twitter.com/jLTnUdN3EY

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 19, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLVI)

“Friedman basically didn’t think that a democratic society could be liberal as a democratic majority could vote into power a socialist government.” (Daniel Steinmetz-Jenkins)

This may be right or wrong, but it's not economics.

Milton Friedman never understood profit and, as a… pic.twitter.com/3QEBQ5VgVL

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 19, 2026

Occasional X: How it works (CDLXXVII)

 

“You claim to have refuted Austrian methodology. … The disagreement is about where profit actually comes from.” (NReadmoore)

Yes, and I claim that you are unable to understand (i) science, (ii) economics, (iii) math/accounting, and (iv) profit.

You agree that profit is… pic.twitter.com/8uUNcRTQmN

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 19, 2026

Occasional X: Economic policy guidance has never had valid scientific foundations (XXIII)

“Unless we understand what it is that leads to economic and financial instability, we cannot prescribe policy to modify or eliminate it.” (Hyman Minsky)

Trivially true.

For over 200 years, economics has claimed to be a science, but it still isn't. The major approaches… pic.twitter.com/0tIV1BFSRp

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 18, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLV)

“And in real world, unlike to Mises' fantasy land, you can sell an inferior product using the power of marketing.“ (Shahin Ashkiani)

What von Mises said about marketing was incompetent enough, but what he said about profit is self-annihilation.

von Mises never understood… pic.twitter.com/BRhqfvNnUx

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 18, 2026

Occasional X: Great economic equations (II)

“Equations that transformed the world.” (MathFiles)

For the field of economics, see ⇒
The great economic equationshttps://t.co/sUiSaCV5G0 pic.twitter.com/SGH8ik9gdn

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 18, 2026

For more about equations, see AXECquery. 

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXXIV)

“Just calling a S-D association modelling a 'law' shows someone is illiterate. This level of positivist idiocy is criminally high.” (Shahin Ashkiani)

The founding fathers have defined economics as a social science, and accordingly, it has been based on subjective/behavioral… pic.twitter.com/yndknWkMlF

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 18, 2026

Occasional X: Economics debates ― nothing more than communicative hardcore wrestling (II)

“I was on the 'Team Hayek' side of a debate with Ned Phelps. 'Team Keynes' was Jamie Galbraith and some journalists.” (Lawrence White)

Lawrence White does not know the difference between political economics and economics as a science. ⇓ In the communicative Circus Maximus, it… pic.twitter.com/7OkAXC6v2O

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 18, 2026

For more about communicative hardcore wrestling, see AXECquery. 

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLIV)

“From just a cursory look at your site, it seems your economic worldview consists mainly of claiming other schools of thought are wrong and yours is right, but never saying what it is or giving even a small glimpse of it.” (Egon Alter)

Next time you better use Artificial… pic.twitter.com/4m1z8lUqGG

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 18, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Breakdown (XXVI)

“Your grandchildren won't even pay off Labour’s 100bn debt. The interest alone costs us about 5bn every single year. What did we get for all that money?” (NuZillund)

NuZillund has no clue how the economy works.

The free-market economy runs on profit. Macroeconomic profit Qm is…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 17, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Price Mechanism (XV)

 

“It is not people, it is your tool that is rubbish. It puts 'price' in the centre of attention, and not only that but a nonsensical concept: Equilibrium price.” (Shahin Ashkiani)

The supply-demand-equilibrium concept has been dead for more than 100 years.‡

For details, see… pic.twitter.com/BO2CEqDfV5

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 17, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXXIII)

“… and refusing to engage with any of the substantive points.” (NReadmoore)

The opposite is true. Summary of AXEC's argument:

(1) Premise: A monetary economy without profit cannot exist.

(2) In mathematical terms, the objective/systemic minimum requirement is Qm≥0.

(3) The…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 17, 2026

Related 'The Profit Law' 

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Austrianism (CVI)

“This is not a methodological disagreement. This is a direct denial of the actual subject matter of economics.“ (NReadMoore)

As a matter of fact, this is a refutation of Austrian methodology. The subject matter of economics is not Praxeology but the economic System. Human Nature…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 16, 2026

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Austrianism (CV)

“A professor proposed ethno-mathematics: maybe 2+2 could be something else in your culture.” (Mises Media)

Yes, question the premises, but don't stop there. Advance to the Paradigm Shift. The new premises represent the ultimate critique of the old ones.

This applies primarily…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 16, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXXII)

 

“'Time preference' is one of the sharpest concepts in the Austrian School of Economics. … Those who exhibit 'high time preference' prioritize immediate gratification: consume today, go into debt, plunder the present. Those with 'low time preference' sacrifice current pleasures… pic.twitter.com/UaWMvDvQEx

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 16, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Money (CXL)

“'Monetary expansion' and 'quantitative easing' are just euphemisms for counterfeiting. Counterfeiting is evil.” (Joshia Lippincott, quoted by Mises Institute)

The Mises folks never understood profit. Because profit is the foundational economic concept, to get it wrong means to… pic.twitter.com/nYe9KDJQlJ

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 16, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXXI)

“Even supercomputers won’t solve the problems inherent to central planning.” (Jacobin)

Science is about true/false, not about left/right. This applies in particular to economics. Economists have never understood the difference between politics and science. This is why economics… pic.twitter.com/bmESIfmV2O

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 16, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXX)

“… economics studies purposeful human action, not inanimate objects.“ (NReadMoore)

No. Austrians are in the wrong film.

Human Nature/motives/behavior/action are the subject matter of psychology, sociology, political science, social philosophy, history, anthropology, biology,…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 15, 2026

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Marx (LIX)

“Marx completed the inversion. Surplus was no longer understood as mere excess product, but as surplus labor embodied in value form.” (Beyon.D)

False, again!

Because Marx got the foundational magnitude of economics —profit— wrong, his communicative contribution reduces to…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 15, 2026

Occasional X: Paradigm Shift (CXI)

“Even by standards of evolutionary theory, it's not clear whether economics is a science, yet: …” (oc)

The founding fathers have defined economics as a social science, and accordingly, it has been based on subjective/behavioral assumptions/axioms. This has been the… pic.twitter.com/IWUvJ1QUz7

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 15, 2026

Related 'Critique is good, refutation is better, Paradigm Shift is best'. 

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLIII)

“Economics is the study of the economy, not the study of economists.” (Ricardo Reis)

“Then he enrolled in economics 301, the legendary Frank Knight's price theory course at Chicago. Knight was crusty, skeptical, and intellectually devastating. His course went well beyond…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 15, 2026

Related: 'Key Issues: One way to get profit right, many ways to get it wrong' 

Occasional X: Economists’ eternal problem with methodology (XIII)

“The sectoral identity is true by definition after the fact.“ (NReadMoore)

This is one of the dumbest statements in all of methodology. It clearly shows the scientific incompetence of Austrians.

When an apple falls from the tree, science tells one exactly which distance it has…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 15, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLIII)

“In a 1920 paper, Ludwig Heinrich Edler von Mises (German; 29 September 1881 – 10 October 1973) an Austrian School economist, historian, logician, and sociologist wrote and lectured extensively on socialism. He is best known for his work on praxeology studies which compared… pic.twitter.com/UCbVgIJ7zu

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 15, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLII)

Austrians do not understand the pivotal economic concept of profit. As a consequence, Austrianism is not a science. Every intelligent layman with some scientific instinct can replicate the proof.

How the intelligent non-economist can refute every economist hands down…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 15, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Breakdown (XXV)

“Japan carries the world's highest debt-to-GDP ratio (~260%). As rates rise, the cost of servicing that debt becomes alarming, and investors are demanding a risk premium.” (Tobias Carlisle)

If you didn't see this coming since 2020‡, you are scientifically incompetent.

The…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 14, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCLI)

“Hayek’s work on price theory is central to my thinking about how to manage the Wikipedia project. One can’t understand my ideas about Wikipedia without understanding Hayek.” (Jimmy Wales, Wikipedia co-founder)

The founding fathers have defined economics as a social science, and…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 14, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXIX)

“'If you wish to converse with me,' said Voltaire, 'define your terms.' How many a debate would have been deflated into a paragraph if the disputants had dared to define their terms! This is the alpha and omega of logic, the heart and soul of it, that every important term in…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 14, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCL)

“Absolutely agree that the insane premises/deductions are likely MMT.“ (Aristrides)

You don't do much research before spouting off your uninformed guesses on X, do you?

Both MMT and Keynesianism are refuted on all counts. For those of your Austrian friends who can read and have…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 14, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCXCIX)

“I'd almost bet you my LIFE you aren't able to define 'profit' properly.“ (Conza)

You don't do much research before spouting off your uninformed opinion on social media, do you?

Profit (not mathematics) is the keyhttps://t.co/dUWhvczxy1

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 14, 2026

Economics is not about smelling but thinking, if you know what I mean. Educate yourself. Start now. You are light-years behind the curve.

First Lecture in New Economic Thinkinghttps://t.co/UGl1M4831W

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 14, 2026

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Austrianism (CIV)

“I see you’re unfamiliar with Ludwig von Mises.“ (NReadMoore)

I wonder how you can see what I read.

“He wrote extensively on profit, far more than most economists.”

Yes, he did, but all that was proto-scientific garbage. The problem is not how much he wrote but whether it is…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 14, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Profit (CLI)

“Or we can keep it simple.” (thatoriginalist)

This is the characteristic Austrian The-Earth-Stands-Still logic. It is practically right for myopic morons, but scientifically dead wrong. Microeconomic Austrians habitually commit the Fallacy of Composition, i.e., they don't…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 14, 2026

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Austrianism (CIII)

“Praxeology is the rigorous, deductive method that defines Austrian economics and offers the only logically sound way to do economics.“ (Creative Deduction)

von Mises never understood profit, and by logical consequence, how the economic system works. To this day, Austrian…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 13, 2026

Occasional X: Paradigm Shift (CX)

“Keynes knew very little economics... He was much more concerned with influencing policy at a particular moment than developing a true theory.” (Friedrich Hayek)

Neither Keynes nor Hayek developed the true theory.

Keynes, too, misunderstood the concept of profit because he was… pic.twitter.com/LNsh8I8oek

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 13, 2026

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Marx (LVIII)

 

Marx never understood profit.

For proof, see the working paper ⇒
Profit for Marxistshttps://t.co/fQinxTPBcJ

Stigler did not understand that Marx never understood profit.

Elliotism did not understand that Stigler did not understand that Marx never understood profit.

With…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 13, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXVIII)

“Very much looking forward to the 𝐙𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐐𝐮𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐜𝐫𝐨 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐩 next week! Excited to welcome an outstanding group of macroeconomists pushing the very frontier …” (Yucheng Yang)

Keynes, too, misunderstood the concept of profit because he was… pic.twitter.com/up9loOrYhm

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 13, 2026

For more about the Starting Problem, see AXECquery. 

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXVII)

“The amount of energy necessary to refute bullshit is an order of magnitude bigger than to produce it.” (Meme, quoted by Brian Albrecht)

Not true. The correct economics is concentrated to the minimum in the formula below. ⇓ It turns the libraries of Walrasian, Keynesian,… pic.twitter.com/eiRpitGcRg

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 13, 2026

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Austrianism (CII)

“And no my friend, capitalism NEVER relies on government deficits, we abhor and condemn politicians’ wasteful overspending and squandering.” (Hubertus the Austrian)

Everybody hates 'politicians’ wasteful overspending'. That's not economics. Everybody does it. Everybody… pic.twitter.com/172bO45XCM

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 13, 2026

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Austrianism (CI)

“The task of economics is to explain action using a priori logic, and empirical science is impossible in economics, stipulates Mises.” (TakingHayekSeriously)

The founding fathers have defined economics as a social science, and accordingly, it has been based on…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 12, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Money (CXXXIX)

 

“If you want to understand money and monetary theory, you have to read this book.” (Fabian Wintersberger)

Download the book and search for the word profit. The result is zero. An economics book that fails to mention profit is scientifically worthless. That holds for Austrianism…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 12, 2026

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Austrianism (C)

“The State Theory [of Money; MMT] is not a bad monetary theory; it is not a monetary theory at all. “ (Ludwig von Mises, quoted by Fabian Wintersberger)

von Mises never understood profit, and by logical consequence, how the economic system works. To this day, Austrian economics…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 12, 2026

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Kalecki (XV)

 

Because Marx got the foundational concept of economics —profit— wrong, his communicative contribution reduces to psycho-social-political-philosophical blubber.

Marx/Engels called their common project Scientific Socialism, but its scientific content has been zero from the…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 12, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXVI)

“One wonders, since he had so little time and knew nothing about economics how did he manage to write 'The treatise....' and 'The General Theory' ...” (Branko Milanovic)

Branko Milanovic does not know the difference between political economics and economics as a science. ⇓ It… pic.twitter.com/v4tHrH0g1g

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 12, 2026

Related 'Complexity, scientific incompetence, and the art of asking the right questions' 

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Austrianism (XCIX)

“Mises already understood the modern MMT claim that the government can print as much money as it needs.” (Fabian Wintersberger)

The Mises folks never understood profit. Because profit is the foundational economic concept, to get it wrong means to get the entire science of…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 12, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Employment (XXXII)

“Mises: wages cannot be set by institutions. They are a market phenomenon.” (Fabian Wintersberger)

von Mises was a common-sense microeconomist who did not understand what profit is, and consequently, how the economic system works. He will be finally buried in the darkest corner… pic.twitter.com/4YMHzF0svS

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 11, 2026

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Kalecki (XIV)

Kalecki got the subject's foundational concept — profit — wrong. This is self-disqualifying. Even today, his followers are too stupid to understand the elementary algebra that underlies macroeconomic accounting.

For proof, see
Kalecki got it wrong, Allais got it right…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 11, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXV)

“Die 4 ökonomischen Denkschulen. / The 4 schools of economic thought.” (Der rosarote Panzer)

The history of economic thought is the history of scientific failure.

Economics claims to be Science, but it isn't. The major approaches (Walrasianism, Keynesianism, Marxianism,… pic.twitter.com/DaYuc9dWSa

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 11, 2026

 

 For more about poultry entrails reading, see AXECquery.

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Austrianism (XCVIII)

“Keynes knew very little economics... He was much more concerned with influencing policy at a particular moment than developing a true theory.” (Friedrich Hayek)

That's right.

Keynes, too, misunderstood the concept of profit because he was too stupid for elementary algebra.… pic.twitter.com/lAM374w4nF

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 11, 2026

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Austrianism (XCVII)

“The delusion that macroeconomics is both viable and useful is encouraged by its extensive use of mathematics, which must always impress politicians lacking any mathematical education.” (Friedrich Hayek)

That sentence sums up the whole problem with the Austrian method. The… pic.twitter.com/gICthRlU1b

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 11, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Money (CXXXVIII)

“Economist Jesús Huerta de Soto argues that central banks face the same knowledge problem that Ludwig von Mises and Friedrich Hayek identified in socialism.” (Foundation for Economic Education)

Central Banks face no knowledge problem, except for random natural events. As a…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 10, 2026

Occasional X: How it works (CDLXXVI)

 

“The immense power of the new plutocracy: How billionaires like Musk, Bezos and Zuckerberg shape our lives and our democracies.” (Branko Milanovic)

Billionaires are not independent and innovative entrepreneurs who risk their own money to create progress for humanity, but…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 10, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXIV)

“You open by quoting Klant on scientific standards and then immediately declare that Austrian economics 'has been proven to be logically inconsistent' because we 'get profit wrong.' This is still just an assertion.” (Yang)

Austrians never had any idea of science, and Yang is no… pic.twitter.com/8Z3K575hyX

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 9, 2026

Related: 'Economists: scientists or political clowns?' and 'The curious non-existence of profit in economics' and 'Profit: after 200+ years still elusive' and 'The miracle cure of economists’ micro-macro schizo' and 'Clueless economists / Science (CCXCXIII)'

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXIII)

Scientific standards are well-defined: “Research is, in fact, a continuous discussion of the consistency of theories: formal consistency insofar as the discussion relates to the logical cohesion of what is asserted in joint theories; material consistency insofar as the agreement…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 9, 2026

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle Austrianism (XCVI)

“If you strip away that fancy façade of notation, you are essentially left with the same old 'government deficit = private sector surplus' identity everyone who understands basic accounting already knows is true by definition.” (Yang)

The sentence 'true by definition' is the… pic.twitter.com/Y95UVoltA2

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 8, 2026

Related 'Profit, income, and the Humpty Dumpty Fallacy' 

 

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Profit (CL)

“Government deficit = private sector surplus (math, not a theory)” (?whispers?)

There is no such thing as the Private Sector, but only the household sector and the business sector. The respective balances are saving Sm and profit Qm. So, the correct formula says Government… pic.twitter.com/4n8Vnwmh4R

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 8, 2026

Also on fiat money. 

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXII)

“Franklin Roosevelt’s pragmatism and John Maynard Keynes’s ideas 'saved capitalism from the capitalists', writes Joseph Stiglitz, a Nobel-prizewinning economist.” (Economist)

Neither Roosevelt nor Keynes understood how the economic system works. Both just applied common sense.…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 8, 2026

Related 'Economists ― medics or barber-surgeons?' 

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCXCVII)

“Well, try maximizing that 'aggregate profit' through government … You're just justifying genocide by maximizing a dumb accounting system pursuing numbers that don't make sense.” (Cezary Baginski)

The Profit Law is a specific application of elementary math, i.e., 5=7-2. This is…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 8, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCXCVI)

“So if the general public holds increasing cash balances and the money supply is constant, you conclude that business have suffered a loss?” (Bushido)

No.

What I say is: Macroeconomic profit or loss Qm is given by the axiomatically correct Profit Law…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 8, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCXI)

“Mathematics brought rigor to Economics. Unfortunately, it also brought mortis. (Kenneth E. Boulding)

As cargo cult scientists, economists copied the dominant math of their time: calculus. They never understood that their specific branch of math is the elementary algebra that… pic.twitter.com/UBx9Q8N3WY

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 8, 2026

Related 'The common error of common sense: an essential rectification of the accounting approach' 

Occasional X: The futile attempt to recycle MMT (CCIII)

“Did you not just recreate MMT’s 'public dept is private net savings' from first principles?” (Doxasryx)

No.

For MMT's full-spectrum refutation, see
Cross-references: MMThttps://t.co/eXlgPKrinA

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 7, 2026

Related 'Grok: the final implosion of MMT'

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCX)

“Neither was Marx a dye-in-wool economist.Rather he &Engels did division of labour to study diverse sciences,social sciences.His books did create a cyclopean ideology that served ultimate purpose but first brought catastrophic upheavals.” (Chris Ugosky)

Because Marx got the…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 7, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Profit (CXLIX)

“Is monetary profit the same thing to you as (increasing) cash balances?” (Bushido)

Monetary profit is the difference between flows and a change in stock. ⇓ pic.twitter.com/nBXTFtga4a

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 7, 2026

Occasional X: The foul spirit of political economics (CCXCV)

“Adam Smith used the phrase 'invisible hand' just once in The Wealth of Nations. And yet it became the defining idea of modern economics. ” (Mariana Mazzucato)

Adam Smith was not an original thinker, not a scientist, not an economist; he was a populist moralizer. ⇓ People like… pic.twitter.com/G6UYL5376G

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 7, 2026

Occasional X: There is an absolute limit to the growth of public debt (IV)

“Debt by itself is a lousy guide. A $500,000 mortgage can be manageable or terrifying depending on salary, rates, and future earnings. Same with countries: the real question isn’t 'how much debt?' but 'can they carry it?' (Justin Wolfers)

That's a lousy answer. Private…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 7, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Inflation / Deflation / Stagflation (XLXXI)

“Inflation emerges when financially validated monetary claims grow faster than the economy’s nominal carrying capacity for surplus realization at existing prices. — Marx · Kalecki · Young. (Beyon)

Both Marx and Kalecki got profit wrong. So, forget them.

The axiomatically… pic.twitter.com/ho9DXCrRto

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 7, 2026

Occasional X: Clueless economists / Science (CCCIX)

“Is Libertarianism Incoherent?” (Mises Wire)

Yes.

The Mises folks never understood profit. Because profit is the foundational economic concept, to get it wrong means to get the entire science of economics wrong.

The free-market economy runs on profit. Macroeconomic profit is…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 7, 2026 

“If government deficits were the foundation of capitalism, then the larger the state, the richer society should become. Austrian economics says the opposite …” (Asuijuris)

The Profit Law says that profit depends on the public deficit, not the size of the State. The State can be…

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 7, 2026

If anyone can access the true national accounting figures for Zimbabwe, they will discover that the Profit Law is accurate to two decimal places.

— AXEC (@EgmontHandtke) May 7, 2026