The Steady State Economy and the Mission of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

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The Steady State Revolution
For National Security and International Stability
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The Great Debate Is There a Limit?

• Yes
• Physiocrats
• Classical economists
• Ecological economists
• Ecologists

• No
• Neoclassical economists
• Corporations
• Politicians

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Red Herring Alert!!!

• The Information Economy

• What is the information used for?
• How does one come to afford the information?

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And yet we hear

• Some people just dont get it. There is no
  conflict between economic growth and
  environmental protection!

Why do they persist?
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Iron Triangle
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Iron Triangle
Political Faction
Professional Society
Policy Table
Special Interest
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Iron Triangle
Politicians
Neoclassical Economists
Economic Policy Table
Corporations
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What can we do?
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Steady State Revolution!
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• Goals
• Replace national goal of economic growth with
  national goal of steady state economy.
• Replace bloating economy with steady state
  economy.

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Revolutions

•  
• Magnitude of change
• Pace of change
• When evolution wont cut it
• Evolution combined with revolt

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Steady State Revolution

• Academic, social
• Peaceable, not pacifistic
• Models
• abolition of child labor
• reduction of smoking

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Academic Phase

• Replacement of neoclassical economic growth
  theory
• Refocusing of curricula
• More public outreach

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Social Phase

• Economic growth reconstructed as economic
  bloating
• Dollar spent is dollar burned
• Castigation of the liquidating class

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Class Structure of the Steady State Revolution

•  Liquidating class
• Steady state class
• Amorphic class

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Consumption Classes
Expenditures
Percentile 80 99 100

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Consumption Classes
Liquidating Class
Expenditures
Percentile 80 99 100

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Consumption Classes
Liquidating Class
Expenditures
Steady State Class
Percentile 80 99 100

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Consumption Classes
Liquidating Class
Expenditures
Amorphic Class
Steady State Class
Percentile 80 99 100

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Liquidators
Amorphs
Steady Staters
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Population
Liquidating Class
Amorphic Class
Steady State Class
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Consumption
Liquidating Class
Amorphic Class
Steady State Class
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Economic Rationale

• Trickle-down consumption
• Redistribution of wealth compensates for reduced
  per capita consumption
• Reduction of waste
• Leads toward steady state economy

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Consumption
Liquidators
Ecological Capacity
Amorphs
Most Steady Staters
PovertyLine
Some Steady Staters
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Trickle-down Consumption
Liquidators
Ecological Capacity
Amorphs
Liquidators Amorphs Steady Staters
Most Steady Staters
PovertyLine
Some Steady Staters
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Political Rationale

• No everyone revolt against everybody
• Taps into predisposition
• Readily identifiable classes

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Psychological Rationale

• Darwin, Veblen, Maslow
• Cure for liquidator syndrome
• Ratcheting effect toward sustainable ideology

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Maslows Hierarchy

1. Food
2. Security
3. Love, affection, reproduction
4. Self-esteem
5. Self-actualization

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Sociopolitical Rationale

• Ideological horse before the public policy cart
• Supplementary to policy prescriptions
• Replaces politicians, not system

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Ethics I

• Equity (current, intergenerational)
• Consistent with religions Buddhist, Christian,
  Hindu, Islamic, Judaic
• Devil in the details of castigation
• Tolerance overrated

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Ethics II

• Why do they hate Americans?
• Its the economy, stupid!
• Conspicuous consumption not everything, but
  major thing
• SSR beats violent alternatives
• Speaking truth to power

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K
The End
GDP
Time