Divine Economy Consulting

Liberty Is Not Concessionary.

2009-11-06T20:53:00.000-08:00

This is very similar to the emphasis that I give in MORE THAN LAISSEZ-FAIRE. Laissez-faire is not merely a philosophical point of view to be defended or not. It is an expression that was used in the past (and up to the present) to indicate that there is no moral authority to meddle in the economy.

This is the esence of the divine economy theory although the theory itself proves unequivocally that there is no moral authority to meddle in the economy. Upon this foundation rests all of the other new and exciting discoveries!

For more information go to my website.

To earn a Masters Degree in Divine Economy Theory go here.

Go here to read about MACRO & MICRO Economics Renewed.

Reply to: Atheism Does Not Undermine Classical Liberalism.

2009-10-12T13:33:00.000-07:00

So not to be misunderstood this is the context of the statement that ruffled some feathers:

"Transition to a society envisioned in the philosophy of classical liberalism needs our attention. Atheism and interventionism are the two major distortions."

Who can seriously say that the society envisioned in the philosophy of classical liberalism can either have interventionism or atheism? To say that or to think that is a distortion of that 'ideal' society.

An atheist can adopt classical liberalism as a meritorious philosophy and then choose to personalize it. However the roots of classical liberalism do not change simply because an individual has selectively deleted those things that are considered abrasive.

Again the easy way out is to pretend that science is flawless and that religion is flawed.

In truth, science can be flawed and religion can be flawed. In truth, both science and religion are valuable tools for the discovery of that which you are seeking. Some use only one tool while others choose to use both.

It is because interventionism and atheism are major distortions of classical liberalism that they undermine classical liberalism.

For more information go to my website.

To earn a Masters Degree in Divine Economy Theory go here.

Go here to read about MACRO & MICRO Economics Renewed.

Reply to: Atheism Was Instrumental In Guiding Me To Classical Liberalism.

2009-10-11T08:11:00.000-07:00

The fact that you are searching after truth means that you have chosen an active entrepreneurial spirit over a latent one. I am not saying that science (classical liberalism is an example of science that uses the correct methodology for studying human action) does not lead to truth. On the contrary it is one of the most powerful tools of discovery. Science, if it is erroneous (empiricism in social sciences, for example), can also lead astray.

That is the same problem with religion.

When put on even ground, then, both science and religion have the same potentials - good and bad.

Now, how would you regard an individual who only used religion as the sole tool for the discovery of truth? In your mind you probably would regard that individual as imbalanced, I suspect.

Just because religion is a difficult path to traverse since it is plagued with the errors of ego-driven interpretation does not mean that religion is an invalid tool for the discovery of truth. If someone says, "Look at the ridiculousness of Keynesianism; economics is a bunch of bunk!" and then they fall into a mode of a latent entrepreneurial spirit, does that do any good for anyone?

I merely suggest that we have the choice to use all the tools for discovery that are at our disposal. The easy way probably will not yield the best results.

For more information go to my website.

To earn a Masters Degree in Divine Economy Theory go here.

Go here to read about MACRO & MICRO Economics Renewed.

Divine Economy Theory And Natural Rights.

2009-10-07T18:57:00.000-07:00

Discovery is at the forefront of the advancement of civilization. These early scholastics documented their discoveries and promulgated them enough to activate the consciences of most who learned of their discoveries.

Just like natural rights represent an inseparable essence of the human reality so too does the divine economy represent the essential institution that was created as the means for the flow of the grace of God.

If this statement is a new discovery so be it. It will have the same significance as the discovery of natural rights. It is a corollary of natural rights.

Yet as it is unfolded in the divine economy theory it is like a laser whereas natural rights is like a candle!

For more information go to my website.

To earn a Masters Degree in Divine Economy Theory go here.

Go here to read about MACRO & MICRO Economics Renewed.

Free Market Economics Is Not "Individualism."

2009-07-05T09:35:00.000-07:00

People benefit from the mutually advantageous cooperation that is a part of the market process. Here is what Ludwig von Mises said about it:

"The greater productivity of work under the division of labour is a unifying influence. It leads men to regard each other as comrades in a joint struggle for welfare, rather than as competitors in a struggle for existence. It makes friends out of enemies, peace out of war, society out of individuals." Socialism by Ludwig von Mises, p. 261

For more information go to my website.

To earn a Masters Degree in Divine Economy Theory go here.

Go here to read about MACRO & MICRO Economics Renewed.

It's Time To Learn About The Divine Economy Theory!

2009-07-02T19:00:00.000-07:00

As a logical and scientific and peaceful alternative, consider what was stated in MACRO & MICRO Economics Renewed:

"For centuries we have tried to direct the economy. It is now time to recognize the economy as a divine institution that encourages human development and brings about prosperity. The other way – intervention – is divisive and its failure is all around us and is progressively worsening. This shortcoming is necessarily so because intervention causes a corruption of the divine economy."

For more information go to my website.

To earn a Masters Degree in Divine Economy Theory go here.

Go here to read about MACRO & MICRO Economics Renewed.

A New MACRO Economics Book.

2009-06-29T19:48:00.000-07:00

Now it is possible to get a comprehensive economics book - that is, one that seamlessly combines macro and micro - a book that can also serve as an alternative textbook, and one that strictly adheres to laissez-faire, free market economics.

This is no minor task if you consider the sad state of affairs in education generally, and in economics specifically. No where else will you find as compelling a reason for stopping all ego-driven human intervention into the economy.

The book, that is built upon the foundation laid by the great Austrian economists and the contributors to the philosophy of classical liberalism, is entitled MACRO & MICRO Economics Renewed. No one should be without access to this state-of-the-art economics book!

For more information go to my website.

To earn a Masters Degree in Divine Economy Theory go here.

Go here to read about MACRO & MICRO Economics Renewed.

Capital Is A Vital Element Of The Economy.

2009-06-03T15:33:00.000-07:00

Beyond the narrow definitions of capital, this is what we know:

Capital is the most limiting factor in the economy.
Capital is the key to transformation.

By considering these it becomes evident that understanding capital (so definitions need to be accurate) is an indicator of whether economics is understood.

For more information go to my website.

To earn a Masters Degree in Divine Economy Theory go here.

Go here to read about MACRO & MICRO Economics Renewed.

Solutions To Environmental Problems.

2009-05-23T10:04:00.000-07:00

There are two steps:

1. Defining and refining property rights.

2. Enforcing property rights.

For more information go to my website.

To earn a Masters Degree in Divine Economy Theory go here.

Productive Speculation Is Attacked By Socialism.

2009-04-04T10:27:00.000-07:00

If and when you listen to the half-truths in the media you are constantly being told by the propagandists that capitalism is evil and that speculators are vile. Here is why these are half-truths.

First of all the word ‘capitalism’ is supposed to be describing a free market economy but there is and has not been a free market economy anywhere, anytime. In that regard what is being practiced that is evil is interventionism which is nothing but the political corruption of the economy.

Second, speculation is absolutely necessary for any production to occur. Nobody knows what will be the outcome in the market; some products fail and some succeed, and some products people want more of and some products people want less of. The market conveys that information but only after production is finished and reaches the market. Before production occurs the market response is just a speculation. With no speculation there is no production! In that regard the attack by the socialists on speculation is an attack on production which explains one of the reasons why very few goods and services are available in socialist ‘economies’.

In addition to arousing your curiosity about the greatness of free market economics and about the value of speculation, this information helps you to quickly identify those whose voices are the voices of socialism. If a person attacks the free market or if they attack speculation they are either in need of education or they are socialists trying to spread lies and half-truths.

For more information go to http://www.divineeconomyconsulting.com/.

To earn a Masters Degree in Divine Economy Theory go here.

How Do We Prepare For The Coming Ideological Change?

2009-03-05T09:55:00.000-08:00

What we have to realize is that the equilibrium forces of the economy are infinitely greater than the ephemeral and illusory powers of the ego-driven interventionists.

Our greatest challenge is not to resist the advance of socialism and fascism but to educate people about classical liberalism, about Austrian economics, and about the entrepreneurial spirit inherent in all human beings to seek the truth. This prepares the way for the ideological change that is coming.

The economy is our helper. Its equilibrium forces will wipe away these corrupt ego-driven interventionists with ease. We want to make sure that the free flow of information that occurs in an unhampered market is made easier by an insistent demand for it by the people around the world.

What can we do to stimulate the demand for the freedom to get information about classical liberalism and Austrian economics? Whatever those things are that stimulate the demand, that is what we should be doing!

If so inclined, send me your ideas about what would stimulate the demand for the freedom to learn more about classical liberalism and Austrian economics.

For more information go to http://www.divineeconomyconsulting.com/.

To earn a Masters Degree in Divine Economy Theory go here.

Definitions of Micro and Macro Economics In The Divine Economy Theory.

2009-02-13T15:10:00.001-08:00

One definition of macroeconomics that then emerges from the divine economy theory is as follows: it is a study of those factors and conditions that lead to the long run advancement of the standard of living for everyone on the planet.

One definition of microeconomics that then emerges from the divine economy theory is as follows: it is a study of how individuals discover and react to information in the market as part of their division of labor to produce and then to earn income, so as to meet their personal desires for goods and services.

For more information go to http://www.divineeconomyconsulting.com/.

To earn a Masters Degree in Divine Economy Theory go here.

What exactly is the "spiritual reality of human beings"?

2009-01-04T18:34:00.000-08:00

The spiritual reality of human beings is being created in the image of God.

Humans have the potential to reflect, acquire, and manifest all of the attributes of God (the Names of God, the virtues). The degree is relative whereas God is in all things and in all ways Absolute (in fact God is greater than that since that is an imagination by a finite being about that which is Infinite (in fact God is greater than that since that is an imagination by a finite being about that which is Infinite . . . ad infinitum))

The potential is always towards higher degrees of perfection of reflecting, acquiring, and manifesting all of the attributes of God.

For more information go to http://www.divineeconomyconsulting.com/.

To earn a Masters Degree in Divine Economy Theory go here.

Earn A Masters Degree In Divine Economy Theory!

2008-09-12T15:31:00.000-07:00

How does this new endeavor - offering a Masters Degree program - feel for me?

It feels like a quantum leap; it feels like I am going from words to deeds; it feels like I am finally actively involved in re-educating people around the world (which is what is needed).

As the saying goes 'A picture is worth a thousand words.' Well, I have over 150 diagrams developed so far in pursuit of understanding the divine economy theory. Each of these diagrams constitutes a lesson.

Practically what this means is that after studying and comprehending these lessons you will be a Master of the Divine Economy Theory!

Begin by contacting me at divineeconomyconsulting@msn.com and expressing your interest!

Empirical Economics Is Locked Into ‘Selfishness.’

2008-07-01T20:24:00.000-07:00

As the saying goes: You reap what you sow.

Empirical economics has tried to be ‘scientific’ by removing all non-predictable elements. This is perfectly valid for the natural sciences but it is an illusion and an unfortunate sign of a lack of intelligent perception. There is nothing scientific about removing humans from the human sciences!

To stay true to this erroneous methodology (erroneous for the human sciences but not for the natural sciences) the empiricists collect data and then interpret their data. As part of their explanation of the trends they conclude that humans act selfishly. Humans choose what they perceive to be in their best interests.

Selfishness is one way of describing such a pattern but so is subjectivity. The empirical economists cannot acknowledge subjectivism because that undermines their empiricism. They are entrenched, locked into selfishness.

As a result they pin the label ‘selfishness’ on humans and this leads to all kinds of perverse outcomes. For instance, how can anyone imagine that laissez-faire can be good if, when left alone, people will act selfishly. Empiricists come to the conclusion that the government is necessary to keep people from acting in such a degraded state of mind - selfishness!

These perversities that result from empiricism would simply not exist if the proper methodology was used for economics. It is a human science, a social science, and the appropriate methodology is subjectivism. People make choices subjectively. Everyone does it. A person can only make decisions based on knowledge of one’s own self. How could it be otherwise?

Under subjectivism laissez-faire is obviously an expression of freedom - which is conducive to prosperity. This is the economic methodology that treats humans as humans and acknowledges natural law by recognizing that humans are subjective beings.

Economic empiricists sow seeds of false pretenses and reap economies that are rigid and easily subject to corruption. Ironically those who are the source of the corruption are the ego-driven interventionists who are indeed ‘selfish!!!!!’

For more information go to http://www.divineeconomyconsulting.com/ .

Foreword to "MORE THAN LAISSEZ-FAIRE"

2008-05-16T20:00:00.000-07:00

by Bettina Bien Greaves

Most high school and college textbooks describe the nation’s economy as a huge agglomeration of goods and services, vast piles of food, clothing, coal mines, factories, computers, agricultural products, kitchen appliances, TVs, automobiles, computers, planes, and so on ad infinitum. But these physical things are not the market economy as such. They are what people produce while working and trading on the market economy.

Bruce Koerber explains that the market economy is not a physical thing; rather it is a process, a human institution. It is at the same time the consequence of human actions and a shaper of human actors, transforming them into cooperative social human beings. The economy is the outgrowth of the purposive actions and choices of men. As such, it is manmade, but it is not purposively planned. As men meet, cooperate and have dealings with one another, markets evolve, as do societies and civilizations.

Koerber shows how the market economy develops. It is a dynamic process. Market participants are ego-driven; they act on the basis of their subjective values. Their subjective values are expressed in prices. Prices furnish knowledge about the wants and needs of other market participants. As traders turned from barter to using a medium of exchange, money, trading became easier. Moreover, money prices furnish market participants with information, knowledge, and the tools for calculation. Thus the market disseminates and coordinates the activities of market participants.

As Koerber explains, all men are driven by the human spirit to try to improve their situation. Individuals can best improve their respective situations when they are free to act. Therefore, the human spirit should be free. The right of individuals to private property must be protected so that individuals will save, accumulate capital and invest. If entrepreneurs are free to look for and to discover opportunities they tend to improve economic productivity. In the process, the free market economy develops economic principles and fosters law, order, justice and harmonious relations among all participants. Thus, the path to economic progress, peace, prosperity and a more advanced civilization is through the free market economy. On the other hand, when outside interventions interfere with the voluntary activities of individuals in the market economy, especially by wars and inflation, they violate property rights, disrupt the market’s harmonious operations, distort prices and production, cause the boom/bust business cycles, and hamper economic progress.

For those who appreciate visual presentations of economic relationships, Koerber’s book is sprinkled throughout with diagrams illustrating the influence on economic production of property rights, capital structure, prices, entrepreneurship, competition, profit and loss, etc.

Koerber’s book explains that the free market economy is guided by voluntary actions. It is “in accord with the will of God.” It leads to greater social cooperation, peace, increased prosperity and a more advanced civilization. It awakens the human spirit to its full potentiality. Koerber calls it the “divine economy.”

Bettina Bien Greaves *
Hickory, North Carolina
February 2008

* Formerly with the Foundation for Economic Education, Irvington-on-Hudson, NY; attended Ludwig von Mises’ NYU graduate seminar in economic theory (1951-1969); compiled a 2-volume annotated bibliography of Mises’ works, published by FEE in 1993 and 1995; and now editing the new editions of Mises’ several works being published by Liberty Fund, Indianapolis, IN. The latest volume in their series is Human Action (2007).

For more information go to http://www.divineeconomyconsulting.com .

Food Scarcity or Food Shortage?

2008-04-24T20:05:00.000-07:00

Knowing the difference helps us to know what can be done to solve this problem. Everyone who is concerned about what is going on around the world recognizes that there is a problem. Although these two words appear to be synonyms they are not. Economic insight into the difference between these two is very valuable.

Scarcity is the unavoidable condition in this world. We can never have all of our needs and wants satisfied. At the same time it is possible to address scarcity by directing means of production towards satisfying our highest needs and wants. Scarcity is alleviated by production.

A shortage has a different origin. A shortage is the outcome of intervention in the market. Somewhere prices in the market are being interfered with (manipulated). It is the signal that we call prices that is like words in a language. The words are necessary for communication. Without market prices the signals are muddled and the consequence is either a shortage or a surplus.

In a centrally-planned economy the prices are arbitrary and ‘controlled’ rather than market prices. As a result you have a complete breakdown of the economy like what happened in the Soviet Union where there may have been a national toothbrush shortage yet there was a handle surplus in Minsk and a bristle surplus in Pinsk with no means of coordinating. Intervention, price manipulation, is like speaking Russian to someone who understands only Spanish. In the vast complexity of the economy such miscommunication leads to tremendous errors. Everyone suffers when the market economy is rendered ineffective by intervention.

Now we can get to the crisis at hand. The economies around the world are functionally ‘controlled’ economies and so we have a mess on our hands.

The food shortage is caused by interventionism. When prices are set by the central planners and are set below what the market price would be there is less production. Also at that ‘below market price’ the demand for the commodity is greater. Excessive demand combined with constrained production leads to a shortage. The cause is clearly interventionism. The solution is not to then to heed the call for increased control by the central planners! The solution is to recognize that the interventionists are the problem in the first place.

The immediate solution is to stop all intervention in the market so that the language of the market can re-establish communication and coordination.

If there is truly scarcity then production will be channeled towards that end. Indirectly there may exist the appearance of scarcity of foodstuffs since grain supplies are being depleted to produce biofuels. This is not scarcity but a part of the shortage caused by intervention into the market economy by short-sighted and ignorant politicians and those whose privilege they seek. Their intervention, subsidizing ethanol production as an example, is obviously interfering with market prices.

As soon as this intervention stops the resources in the free market will quickly flow towards production to alleviate scarcity. And market prices will assure that there are no shortages or surpluses.

For more information go to http://www.divineeconomyconsulting.com .

Divine Economy Theory - The Power of Deduction.

2008-03-24T11:22:00.000-07:00

Empirical economists are blinded by and bogged down in minutiae. They are in a state of powerlessness whether they know it or not.

A holistic approach is absolutely necessary since humans all belong to the same species and there are natural laws that describe what they do. They behave subjectively within the spectrum of possibilities, constrained by the natural laws of the human operating system.

A holistic approach cannot start at the physical level nor can it choose the human intellect as its ultimate starting point. Holistically the human being is also a spiritual being. This means that the spiritual reality plus the intellect plus the physical qualities define the human being.

Deduction from only the physical nature of humans yields a different outcome than if one that starts more broadly from the intellect. Likewise, deduction from the higher level of perception, the spiritual, leads to a different discovery.

Backing up to the farthest point known takes us to the source of our creation - our Creator. We cannot go beyond that. Deduction proceeding from that point leads us to certain discoveries but there are no more stones to uncover that make it possible for us to broaden our point of origin.

What is extremely exciting about this origin of deduction for the human sciences is that it becomes fixed like a 'standard.’ Henceforth, the way one proceeds with deduction may vary but the ultimate starting point, the standard, is always the same.

This is why it is a truism to say that science and religion are in harmony.

A Quote About Divine Economy Theory - Free Will.

2008-03-13T14:54:00.000-07:00

“Only the subjective methodology can accommodate free will. Free will is another foundational piece of the divine economy since all of the actors in the economy have free will. Free will is also a foundation of the creation of humankind; it is part of human nature. It manifests itself in the independence of each decision made within the mind of each person — which is subjective valuation. Each decision is unique to the circumstances deemed important by each individual, who are themselves unique and therefore subjective.”

A Quote About Divine Economy Theory - Capital Consumption.

2008-03-10T11:39:00.001-07:00

"If consumer credit is extended in the market artificially - which means that it is unmatched by existing savings - capital is consumed. What is happening is that consumption is in excess of the productive capacity. Productive capacity in the economy is supported by the level of savings and the subsequent capital. The only way to now consume more is to use current savings, which was to serve as the loanable funds for ‘new’ capital and economic growth. This is the equivalent of consuming capital which consequently will cause the economy to regress, the typical consequence of intervention."

A Quote About Divine Economy Theory - Poles of Unity and Justice in the Model.

2008-03-06T12:37:00.000-08:00

"Similarly the divine economy can be more fully understood when the model includes the poles of unity and justice. It is around these two poles that the divine economy revolves. The axis of these poles represents the ‘nature and role of knowledge.’ The implication here — with this axis being centrally located within the model — is that knowledge flows throughout and that it is this free-flowing knowledge that best serves all of the divine economy processes.

This is a key concept in the divine economy theory. It is the nature and role of knowledge that enables the equilibrium forces to maintain balance and harmony. Intervention by those with finite human understanding strikes at the ‘nature and role of knowledge’ axis — with the consequences being a condition of imbalance and disharmony and a corruption of the divine economy."

A Quote About Divine Economy Theory - Capital is the Most Limiting Factor.

2008-03-05T12:41:00.000-08:00

"Most significantly, of all factors in the economy capital is the most limiting. See if you understand why. Ponder: in the here and now — in the present — we cannot live in the future! That is our limitation. The reason capital is the most limiting is because it is what connects the present and the future in the economy within our limitation. It is constrained by uncertainty yet its variation or structure determines the transformation that takes place in the economy.

Since capital is the most limiting factor, the movement or advancement of civilization depends heavily upon the structure of capital. This necessitates, optimally, that the capital structure needs to be a harmonious expression of the market so that it truthfully reflects the will of the people. In the divine economy fully vested human beings find and share knowledge in the market. Part of that knowledge reflects the importance of time which becomes manifest in capital and its relevant structure."

A Quote About Divine Economy Theory - Order Emerges From Market.

2008-03-04T10:22:00.000-08:00

"The market is where individual human action undergoes reconfiguration into a more social entity. This is part of the dynamics between the ‘act’ and the ‘transformation.’ The market is where knowledge flows to and from in a civilization. And it is from this proverbial fountain of knowledge that order emerges."

A Quote About Divine Economy Theory - The Property Rights Interface.

2008-03-02T17:20:00.000-08:00

"Property rights interface closely with human action, the market and the capital structure. Property rights are truly foundational and have a strong connection to law in the divine economy since they anchor the economy to the human being.

In its most basic and primary expression, property rights are human rights. The existence of a human being grants dominion, and its peaceful expansion toward food, clothing and higher attainments all fall within the domain of property rights."

A Quote About Divine Economy Theory - Overcoming Inefficiencies.

2008-02-19T18:50:00.000-08:00

"If the market is in an inefficient condition the solution is to educate people about entrepreneurship not to corrupt the divine economy by imposing arbitrary restrictions through intervention."