In 1920, Ludwig von Mises dropped a bombshell on the European economic world with his article called "Economic Calculation in the Socialist Commonwealth." It argued that socialism was impossible as an economic system. It set off two decades of debate, so by the time the essays appeared in English, in this very book here, in 1935, the debate was still raging. This volume edited by F.A. Hayek dug the knife into socialism's heart unlike any book to ever appear. It contains essays by Mises along with a foreword and afterword by Hayek. It also contains more commentary by N.G. Pierson, George Halm, and Enrico Barone.
It is exceptionally well edited and beautifully argued, and has not been in print for many years. The contents are nothing short of prophetic.
The so-called "Calculation Argument" has never been answered. It shows that without private property in capital goods, there can be no prices and hence no data available for cost accounting. Production becomes random at best, and completely irrational. Mises had convinced his generation and this book completely devastates the whole socialist apparatus from a theoretical point of view.
No one interested in this debate can afford not to be well-versed in the contents of this book.
300 page, paperback, 2009
Collectivist Economic Planning (LvMI)
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Rational Analysis of Economic Systems,
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This review is from: Collectivist Economic Planning (Paperback)
Collectivist Economic Planning is the foundation for rational analysis of economic systems. Chapter three is its centerpiece: Economic Calculation in the Socialist Commonwealth, by Ludwig von Mises. The Mises essay effectively launched the Socialist Calculation Debate. The fundamental point here is simple. Rational planning of production in a modern economy requires market prices for capital goods and labor. By modern economy I mean an exchange economy with extensive division of labor and highly varied final goods. This is not a problem of simple or primitive economies. The details of this argument. Prices serve as a means of communication in coordinating the production of many goods through complex and lengthy stages.Chapters two and four get less attention because the names of the authors are less known. This is unfortunate, especially for chapter two (by N Pierson). Chapters one and five are the editor's introduction and conclusion. These are not simple end-caps to the book. In chapter one the editor (Hayek) sorts out a number of basic issues. In chapter five the editor makes a forceful case against the proposals of HD Dickinson. The essay by Enrico Barone is where it belongs, as an appendice. Barone's essay is a good example of how to avoid the real problems of economics. Barone focuses mainly on static equilibrium conditions. Since the truly insurmountable problems of socialism are dynamic, Barone could not understand them with his method. Collectivist Economic Planning is important for two reasons. It is a book of historic importance. This book was a critical part of the history of twentieth century economic thought. It is important also because it contains a set of timeless theoretical insights into the workings of socialism (along with the 1922 book Socialism, an Economic and Sociological Analysis). While the average reader might find this book uninteresting, those serious about political economy should read it cover to cover.
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