Difference between revisions of "Act"
From Critiques Of Libertarianism
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[[Category:Libertarian Propaganda Terms]] | [[Category:Libertarian Propaganda Terms]] | ||
| − | {{DES | des = A dog-whistle term that pretends to give a formal, axiomatic basis for Austrian Economics. This redefinition excludes much actual human economic behavior. Also "Action".}} | + | [[Category:Praxeology]] |
| + | [[Category:Philosophical Individualism]] | ||
| + | [[Category:Austrian Economics]] | ||
| + | {{DES | des = A [[dog-whistle]] term that pretends to give a formal, axiomatic basis for Austrian Economics. This redefinition excludes much actual human economic behavior. Also "Action". | show=}} | ||
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A Rothbardian redefinition, also for the term ACTION. | A Rothbardian redefinition, also for the term ACTION. | ||
| − | "Praxeology rests on the fundamental axiom that individual human beings act, that is, on the primordial fact that individuals engage in conscious actions toward chosen goals. This concept of action contrasts to purely reflexive, or knee-jerk, behavior, which is not directed toward goals." | + | "[[Praxeology]] rests on the fundamental axiom that individual human beings act, that is, on the primordial fact that individuals engage in conscious actions toward chosen goals. This concept of action contrasts to purely reflexive, or knee-jerk, behavior, which is not directed toward goals."<br/> |
[http://www.lewrockwell.com/rothbard/rothbard38.html Praxeology: The Methodology of Austrian Economics] | [http://www.lewrockwell.com/rothbard/rothbard38.html Praxeology: The Methodology of Austrian Economics] | ||
| − | This dog-whistle term from Austrian Economics differs from standard English usage by: | + | This [[dog-whistle]] term from Austrian Economics differs from standard English usage by: |
* the requirement for the actor to be an individual | * the requirement for the actor to be an individual | ||
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* excluding group decision making | * excluding group decision making | ||
| − | + | Because this is a codeword, conversations with Austrians are difficult. | |
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| + | This redefinition is one of the ways Austrians systematically exclude numerous real-world factors and much modern psychological science. It also has the ideological benefit of excluding most other economic thought, which contributes to maintaining the isolation of the believers. | ||
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| + | When criticized for such redefinitions, a common defense is to provide caveats that allow indefinitely extended (and thus inconclusive) argument. Here is an example from Mises' ''Human Action'': | ||
| + | "The fact that an action is in the regular course of affairs performed spontaneously, as it were, does not mean that it is not due to a conscious volition and to a deliberate choice. Indulgence in a routine which possibly could be changed is action." | ||
| + | These caveats remove all the logical strength of the original definition, and make any particular case a matter of authority about whether or not the term applies. | ||
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| + | <!-- DPL has problems with categories that have a single quote in them. Use these explicit workarounds. --> | ||
| + | <!-- otherwise, we would use {{Links}} and {{Quotes}} --> | ||
| + | {{List|title=Act|links=true}} | ||
| + | {{Quotations|title=Act|quotes=true}} | ||
