Public legitimacy of economics rests on its predictive and prescriptive authority

Evidence

To be fair, economists can’t be expected to predict the future with any kind of exactitude. The world is simply too complicated for that. But collectively, they should be able to warn of dangers ahead. And when disaster strikes, they ought to know what to do. Indeed, people pay attention to economists at times like this precisely because of their bold claim that they know how to prevent the economy from sliding into a repeat of the Great Depression. But seven decades after the Depression, economists still haven’t reached consensus on its lessons. — Philip Mirowski, Never Let a Serious Crisis Go to Waste, 679

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Economics serves power more effectively when it operates in innocence of serving it — Clara E. Mattei, Escape from Capitalism, 241; 1960s conservative economists cultivated an aura of impartial oracular authority. — Quinn Slobodian, Globalists: The End of Empire and the…, 539; Economic theory gives austerity legitimacy that complements raw state coercion — Clara E. Mattei, The Capital Order: How Economists…, 861 (+5 more)

Broader Connections

• Economic theory gives austerity legitimacy that complements raw state coercion #exemplifies (0.85) — Clara E. Mattei, The Capital Order, 861
• Economics’ legitimating power depends on the surrounding political and cultural context. #qualifies (0.85) — Donald MacKenzie, An Engine, Not a Camera, 1194
• Economics is lateral to governing, not its internal rationality #complicates (0.80) — Michel Foucault, The Birth of Biopolitics, 1467
• Friedman’s positive-normative economics boundary cannot be trusted at face value #qualifies (0.80) — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 1620
• Modern austerity requires managing public opinion through consensus and coercion combined #expands (0.75) — Clara E. Mattei, The Capital Order, 818