That got me thinking about force of arms, the Templars and Easter 1192. From CypNet:
Sallying into the streets at dawn, they took the Cypriots unawares and slaughtered great numbers, sparing neither age nor sex. The rebellion was crushed, but the Templars felt unable to hold Cyprus by force and they therefore asked Richard to take back their purchase....- The Military Orders in Cyprus in the Light of Recent Scholarship
This is the same point I tried to make in a series of comments back in 2008 on a MarketBeat post:
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Climateer: You’re incoherent at this point and clearly have too much time on your hands. Ideas are not a game for idle morons to play with; they actually are important, and you’re clearly out of your depth. “Austrian economics” is not the same as “Classical economics”, which latter didn’t exist until the late 18th century, and neither of which advocates the use of force. Try adjusting your meds. And perhaps find another hobby other than blogging more in line with your abilities, such as gardening. Though do avoid the use of any sharp tools.
Thanks for the econ lesson. Here’s one for you.Kind of a grade school v. grad school kind of argument... but might does make right.
The use of force verbiage is short-hand for the evolution of economic thought in just the last 700 years. The economics of the 14th century was the econ of the Condottieri.
Force of arms trumped all.
In response societies developed rules of conduct, laws, to codify what constitutes acceptable (and unacceptable) commercial behavior.
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Over and over again you will find proponents of “Laissez-faire” are the first to appeal to the power of the state to enforce their property rights.
So the question isn’t whether one believes in state intervention, it is to what extent and how duplicitous they are in their public pronouncements.
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Voltaire nailed the concept with “Ils ne se servent de la pensée que pour autoriser leurs injustices, et emploient les paroles que pour déguiser leurs pensées” (Men use thought only to justify their wrong doings, and employ speech only to conceal their thoughts)
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In the instant case, the commodity markets, there are so many shennaigans going on right now that even Enron would blush....
Earlier today:
"Depositor Repression" May Spread To Swizterland, EURCHF Spikes
Cyprus: "Beyond financial repression"
Why only go back to Ricardo or Smith? 14th century Classical econ. says what’s yours that I can take by force of arms is mine.
Now that’s classical, baby.
Human society develops rules of conduct to facilitate the greater good.
The intellectual field was called “Political Economy” for a reason.
Reading your half-baked interpretation I am reminded of the great mot juste for some on the hard left:
“Chomsky is the intellectual for people who aren’t as smart as they think they are”.
I see they same lack of intellectual chops in your argumentum.
Toodles