Free State of Jones.

Newton Knight (1837–1922). [A]

It's October, 1862. CSA Army medic Newton ("Newt") Knight, already sceptical about the real motivation behind the secession and appalled by the carnage he witnessed in the battlefield, deserted. Upon returning to his farm in Jones County, Mississippi, Knight witnesses the abuses visited by the Confederate authorities upon the white farm women left behind. Knight intervenes and is forced to join a band of runaway slaves, hiding in the swamps. Welcomed by the former slaves, Knight befriends and leads them, after finding they share a common cause.

Friedman as Logician (i)

"Few persons care to study logic, because everybody conceives himself to be proficient enough in the art of reasoning already. But I observe that this satisfaction is limited to one's own ratiocination, and does not extend to that of other men". Charles S. Peirce.

"You seem a little confused. You [sic] first statement ‘all dogs are mammals' is indeed circular". Phil Stein.

If the proposition "good reasoning is unimportant" were a human being, it would surely be an extremely unpopular and sad character: few would like to be seen in her company. In particular, economists and econo-aficionados of all stripes glory themselves in their assumed, but frequently unproven, logical thinking.

Bits and Pieces: Aliens Edition.

Capitalism is a mess.

After a year's worth of news involving 7-Eleven Australia franchisees scamming their staff (Google News informs us: "About 562,000 results"), another new week brings us … another new 7-Eleven pay scandal! Surprise!

Friedman's Methodology: Maximally Questionable.

The expression below shall prove useful, even if we avoid the maths. So, be brave:

        Max p*q(K, L) – w*L – r*K
       K, L
(1)     K >= 0
        L >= 0

Firms and households/consumers are the two fundamental economic agents: microeconomics begins with their study. Expression (1) is the firm's most basic representation: it shows its profit maximisation problem in the long run and embodies a number of different assumptions (see Appendix 1, for details). Even if readers find that expression otherwise cryptic, at least the "Max" should indicate "maximisation", while p*q - w*L - r*K is profits: revenue (price times quantity) minus costs (wage bill: wages times manhours; and capital costs: percent return times capital).