I love the twaddle of modern economics. Inflation for example is often explained as being the result of…

I love the twaddle of modern economics. Inflation for example is often explained as being the result of insufficient supply to meet high demand. Like that magically puts prices up. Of course the seller in that situation can say, 'sorry this is the last one I have.' /1 https://t.co/Qw8J5jGSl1

And sell it for the same price as all the others. But instead they force all the people who want it to bid against each other, and then sell it to the highest bidder. They could have just drawn lots. But easier to use extortion instead, and call it 'supply and demand'. /2

That's what modern economics is, techno-twaddle rationalising the basest human behaviour. I had somebody tell me this morning that our current inflation is due to lockdowns. (Is there anything lockdowns can't do?) /3

The theory goes all that pent up demand of people locked up at home, with no supply because everything was closed, forced prices up. It's true we saved a lot of money during 'lockdowns' (we weren't locked down most of the time). But let's ditch the econo-twaddle to explain. /4 https://t.co/4F3jkFqkl7

Maybe, just maybe, business saw all of that accumulated savings, and put prices up to tap into the increased spending power. It did what it always does, charged people the maximum it thinks it can get away with. It maximised profits. /5 https://t.co/evshSP1o1U

Not the miracle of 'price equilibration', as econo-twaddle would say. There's an enormous demand for teachers and nurses right now, for example, but no supply, and so using the twaddle argument the price (salaries) of teacher and nurses should skyrocket, right? /6 https://t.co/H2mvqO9dPs

Yes, we know that's not happening. Society isn't a market that equilibrates as some magical balance of supply and demand for things. That equilibrium is the econo-twaddle way of rationalising the status quo as an automatic balance. /end