Why African American Economists Should Abandon Mainstream Economic Theory ASAP

Abstract

Markets have 14 Achilles heels that reduce the chances of those born into poverty to succeed in today’s complex economy. These intrinsic imperfections, generally overlooked in mainstream Econ 101, include costly information that implies that its acquisition by poor people requires a greater share of their income. Because of inferior schooling opportunities, the poor are more exposed to the myriad of problems associated with bounded rationality. That tastes are assumed to be exogenous is hardly a benign oversight, because people enter the market as children; so the market has a long time to affect their character. This has a harsh effect especially on poor children because they are particularly vulnerable to advertisements and Pavlovian conditioning. Opportunistic behavior means that people with better information can take advantage of others in an immoral, unprincipled, cunning, crafty or deceptive manner. Because of less information at their disposal and because of inferior schooling, minorities are more exposed to the vagaries of predatory advertisements. This often leads to exploitation by people with more power. Mainstream Econ 101 overlooks these Achilles heels. Hence, economists who teach conventional economics provide succor for the maintenance of the status quo which finds minorities in a disadvantageous position in U.S. society.