Papers by Edward J Dodson
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Academia Letters, 2021
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Academia Letters, 2021
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American Journal of Economics and Sociology
Civilizations rise and fall based on the effectiveness of their socio‐political arrangements and ... more Civilizations rise and fall based on the effectiveness of their socio‐political arrangements and institutions. The institutions that matter most are the laws and customs that govern 1) production and exchange of goods (trade), 2) land tenure and the distribution of the surplus associated with it, 3) the levying of taxes to provide public goods and services, and 4) the monetary systems adopted to facilitate such activities. If those institutions distribute the benefits of civilization equitably to all members of society, the result is likely to be peace and prosperity. However, if the rules of a society are designed to protect the interests of an elite, conflict is likely to ensue. Unrestricted trade across national borders (“free trade”) has the potential to produce socially beneficial outcomes, but it is not sufficient to overcome systemic injustices associated with flawed systems of land tenure, taxation, and monetary management. This article makes use of historical examples to examine trade in relation to the other institutions to show why just social arrangements must be considered an essential part of trade policy.
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International Journal of Environmental Studies
I was managing the residential mortgage lending programme for a commercial US bank and representi... more I was managing the residential mortgage lending programme for a commercial US bank and representing it with community groups committed to revitalising their neighbourhoods when I discovered Mason Gaffney’s writings. His goal was to bring Henry George’s nineteenth century analysis into the mainstream of twentieth century policy analysis. In 1989, I had the opportunity to hear Prof. Gaffney speak at a conference at the University of Pennsylvania. I came to admire his intellectual courage and analytical objectivity within a discipline dominated by ideological bias and mathematical presentation. As do many excellent teachers, Mason Gaffney served over a long career as mentor to other like-minded individuals, within and without the economics discipline. Several have contributed essays to this volume. The editor, Fred Harrison, has collaborated with Mason Gaffney on many projects over the decades. His opening essay, ‘Conflict Resolution and Ethical Economics’, succinctly describes the general problem:
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Academia Letters, 2021
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GroundSwell, 2017
A transcript of a PowerPoint-based video lecture on Dr. King's principles of political economy pr... more A transcript of a PowerPoint-based video lecture on Dr. King's principles of political economy prepared in 2013.
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Land & Liberty, 2018
Critics of the existing systems of banking and monetary issuance are for a number of specific ref... more Critics of the existing systems of banking and monetary issuance are for a number of specific reforms, including the establishment of public banks, the direct issuance of money by the national government, and the elimination of the central banks. This article argues that none of the proposed reforms will deal with the systemic issues causing cycles of boom and bust.
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School of Cooperative Individualism website, 2016
Comments on a lecture by Professor Shaikh of the New School of Social Research regarding the reli... more Comments on a lecture by Professor Shaikh of the New School of Social Research regarding the reliance on neo-classical theory in the teaching of economics
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Land & Liberty, 2016
A brief history of changing land uses in response to population increases and the introduction of... more A brief history of changing land uses in response to population increases and the introduction of new technologies. The question is raised over whether increases in the potential annual rental value of land are rightfully due to the community or to the holder of the deed.
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Land & Liberty, 2019
This paper draws on the analysis by British historian Cecil Woodham-Smith in her book "The Reason... more This paper draws on the analysis by British historian Cecil Woodham-Smith in her book "The Reason Why," revealing the evils of rentier privilege that destined the majority of people in 19th century Ireland to lives of destitute and misery. A British military system based on aristocratic privilege and funded by "rack-rents" imposed on a peasant population combined to result in social, political, economic and military disaster in the Crimea.
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An analysis of how tax policies influence development investment decisions and could be changed t... more An analysis of how tax policies influence development investment decisions and could be changed to stem sprawl of metropolitan regions.
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International Journal of Social Economics, 2009
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Other by Edward J Dodson
Part 1 of a 4-part PowerPoint presentation (with lecture notes provided), prepared in January 201... more Part 1 of a 4-part PowerPoint presentation (with lecture notes provided), prepared in January 2016. The remainder of the PowerPoint will be provided upon request (edod08034@comcast.net)
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Drafts by Edward J Dodson
What too few of us remember or ever knew, economics as a discipline did not exist until near the ... more What too few of us remember or ever knew, economics as a discipline did not exist until near the end of the nineteenth century. Writing about the economic systems of countries fell within the broader investigations of moral philosophers and political economists. These individuals not only described how they believed the world worked but also how the world ought to work. Some defended existing socio-political arrangements and institutions. Others called for reforms or entirely new societal structures. In part because of their influence over public opinion, entrenched privilege was mitigated in some societies by changes in law and the removal of those who held political power. In other cases, entrenched privilege was strengthened by changes in law and by the use of coercive measures against those who spoke out and called for reform. The profession of economist arose because governments and a growing number of huge corporate entities required information in order to achieve specific objectives. In order to build a powerful state, the governing regime needed to know what resources were available-domestically and elsewhere. Maintaining a modern military required enormous supplies of land, labor, capital goods and financial assets. Government planners needed to know where these resources could be obtained. Increasing industrial sophistication required individuals skilled in management, engineering, mathematics, chemistry, physics, machine tools, transportation and communication. Universities and technical schools were essential to the creation of populations possessed of these and other skills. Governments needed to know what natural resources were available to exploit and at what cost. In Germany, the universities responded by training graduate students to gather data and report on their findings. An early analytical breakthrough was creation of the so-called " Production Possibilities Curve " to evaluate the allocation of scarce resources based on stated objectives. Neither the objectives of government nor those of corporate entities were considered to be a consideration in the work performed by the new generation of economists. Their discipline was to be based on "value-free" analysis. Political economy did not disappear, but the interdisciplinary methods of Turgot, Smith, Ricardo, Mill, Marx, George and their colleagues were relegated to a small group of dissenters. This group included individuals such as Scott Nearing, John R. Commons, and Harry Gunnison Brown. These professors might have succumbed to the new orthodoxy except for the fact that they had studied and embraced the principles of political economy as developed by Henry George. Scott Nearing was driven from the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania because he refused to remain quiet about the injustices he saw all around him. Harry Gunnison Brown was a severe critic of the economics being taught. In the 1955 edition of Basic Principles of Economics, he wrote: " Economics is concerned with the problem of 'getting a living'. It deals, therefore, with an important phase of the 'struggle for existence'. Unfortunately, this fact operates to prevent unprejudiced investigation of its laws and of the effects of various economic policies. As examination that would show the effects of various policies from which a part of the public was benefiting, to be injurious to the remainder, might not be an examination which those who were
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Papers by Edward J Dodson
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Drafts by Edward J Dodson