Brandt's Notes

As part of my new series on Humanist economics, which we can broadly define as the study of the economic impact of threats/opportunities to human needs, a good place to start is a broad review of what has been written to date. Wikipedia defines 'Humanistic economics' as a 'persons-first' set of adjustments to economic theory and practice, prioritizing people over profits.  It is also specifically concerned with how the economic discipline defines people, which they see as more complex.   E.F. Schumacher Beyond definitions, there appears to be a few suggestions regarding the history of these ideas.  One suggestion is Small is Beautiful by E.F. Schumacher (1973) as an appropriate starting point.  The available summary of this book appears highly practical, with less focus on theoretical arguments and more emphasis on his perceived threats to humanity and suggestions on what various societies should prioritize.   Schumacher the person is an interesting t...

A special interest of mine in graduate school was an attempt to merge my concern for humanity in general with my concern for the economy.  Or, in other words, to think of economic needs as one of many important human needs; that human needs in general are greater than and inclusive of our material needs. Maslow A simple example can be drawn from Maslow's hierarchy of needs.  A psychiatrist, Abraham Maslow created a model to show universal needs at the bottom and more 'acquired' emotions toward the top.  Although Maslow never organized these needs into a pyramid, they are now popularly arranged to look something like this - Looking at the arrangement of needs, the question is, which of these layers are provided within the economy?  Well, it depends.  The methods of production, distribution, buying, selling, and use of goods and services varies substantially between countries and time periods.   Let's consider me, today, now.   Looking at the b...