Those who are not entirely enthusiastic with the dominance of neoclassical economics might enjoy to vote for the “Dynamite Prize in Economics”, to be awarded to the three economists who contributed most to enabling the Gobal Financial Collapse (GFC). In addition, the “Noble Prize for Economics” is going “to be awarded to the three economists who first and most cogently warned of the coming calamity.”
Here an excerpt from the announcement by the organizers, the Real World Economics Review Blog:
It is accepted fact that the economics profession through its teachings, pronouncements and policy recommendations facilitated the GFC. We also know that danger signs became visible long before the event and that some economists (those with their eyes on the real-world) gave public warnings which if acted upon would have averted the human disaster.
With other learned professions entrusted with public confidence, such as medicine and engineering, it is inconceivable that their professional bodies would not at the very least censure members who had successfully persuaded governments and public opinion to ignore elementary safety measures, so causing epidemics and widespread building collapses.
To date, however, the world’s major economics associations have declined to censure the major facilitators of the GFC or even to publicly identify them. This silence, this indifference to causing human suffering, constitutes grave moral failure. It also gives license to economists to continue to indulge in axiom-happy behaviour. Nor has the economics establishment offered recognition to those economists who were not taken in by fads and fashion and whose competence, if listened to, would have prevented the collapse.
These two silences reveal a continuing moral crisis within the economics profession. The Dynamite and Noble Prizes for Economics are being offered as small first steps towards a cure.
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