EH.Net Mailing List Archive: HES

HES: Re: QUERY--Local Knowledge and The Incredible Bread Machine in the history of economic thought

John Womack (jwomack at fas.harvard.edu)

Wed Sep 27 12:13:16 EDT 2006

Maybe I don't understand the project. But I do   
not see how the ingredients or raw materials or   
intermediate parts of bread or pencils or   
computers or anything "made" go spontaneously   
together, how any process or order of production   
can be spontaneous--changeable, yes, of course,   
but spontaneous, no. I do not see how just the   
fact that "local knowledge" may go into the   
process would imply "spontaneous order" in it.   
Try building a 747 spontaneously, or making a   
pencil, or composing an e-mail. I can see a   
meaning for "spontaneous" in markets." But in production?  
  
John Womack