EH.Net Mailing List Archive: HES

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

Doug Mackenzie (dmackenz_2000 at yahoo.com)

Wed Sep 27 16:05:52 EDT 2006

Rod Hay said:  
> I think the objection to the word "spontaneous" is  
> that it is very difficult to  
> find any system in which there is no planning (even  
> if not central).   
  
  
Yes, spontaneous order refers to the reconciliation of  
individual plans, not to planlessness. Hayek was clear  
about this. The term 'spontaneous order' is misleading  
to those who do not know the full Hayekian story.  
  
Doug Mackenzie