Imagine if our understanding of geography was still based on a belief that the world is flat, or if the study of astronomy placed the Earth at the center of the universe. Now imagine the consequences if similarly antiquated and mistaken notions were guiding our understanding of the way the economy works.
In fact, that is precisely where we find ourselves, because we still look at the economy in the industrial terms of the 19th century . Consider the word “regulation,” which describes how we manage the economy. It has its origins in mechanics and has negative connotations, as in to limit or impede. Yet it is this concept that frames our ideas of how to organize our economy and society.
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