4 ms·

Reactionaries are trying to keep a grip on their beloved institutions. Institutions failed, as they are wont. If any course of action can lead to a crises of '

Reactionaries are trying to keep a grip on their beloved institutions. Institutions failed, as they are wont. If any course of action can lead to a crises of 'legitimacy', it was already time to break out.

sliverstorm 10y ago
To be clear, are you talking about institutions as the article defines them? Institutions are organisations or patterns of behaviour built by societies to help solve social or economic problems which the law or private markets cannot fully address. If I'm on the right track, an example of institutional legitimacy might be, "Banks can be trusted to hold your money" (vs stuffing it under your mattress), and FDIC insurance might be an example of an action to support or create that legitimacy. Banks, at least as depositories for money, seem worth having...
- jsprogrammer 10y ago
  The article says "it just isn't done" is an institution. A good example would be, "MSNBC utterly failed to fact check 2016".
  - pjc50 10y ago
    The article says "it just isn't done" is a principle. Or a maxim. Institution in this context refers to organizations.
    - jsprogrammer 10y ago
      The article (on economist.com) claims that [e]conomists "would call" it an institution.
anigbrowl 10y ago
Your post exemplifies our problems: instead of addressing what you see as wrong with said institutions (many of which actually work rather well) you literally launch an ad hominem attack from your very first word, characterizing your opponents without bothering to build an argument. Incoherent and inchoate nonsense like that which you've posted here just adds to the existing political noise and is itself an obstacle to any progress (which I define as a sustained increase in the median household's real income for short).
- jsprogrammer 10y ago
  "Your" vs "reactionaries" and I'm the one engaging in ad hominem? Hilarious. I addressed exactly what is wrong.
  - CountSessine 10y ago
    "Your" vs "reactionaries" and I'm the one engaging in ad hominem? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ad_hominem https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ad_hominem

sliverstorm 10y ago

To be clear, are you talking about institutions as the article defines them? Institutions are organisations or patterns of behaviour built by societies to help solve social or economic problems which the law or private markets cannot fully address. If I'm on the right track, an example of institutional legitimacy might be, "Banks can be trusted to hold your money" (vs stuffing it under your mattress), and FDIC insurance might be an example of an action to support or create that legitimacy. Banks, at least as depositories for money, seem worth having...

jsprogrammer 10y ago
The article says "it just isn't done" is an institution. A good example would be, "MSNBC utterly failed to fact check 2016".
- pjc50 10y ago
  The article says "it just isn't done" is a principle. Or a maxim. Institution in this context refers to organizations.
  - jsprogrammer 10y ago
    The article (on economist.com) claims that [e]conomists "would call" it an institution.

anigbrowl 10y ago

Your post exemplifies our problems: instead of addressing what you see as wrong with said institutions (many of which actually work rather well) you literally launch an ad hominem attack from your very first word, characterizing your opponents without bothering to build an argument. Incoherent and inchoate nonsense like that which you've posted here just adds to the existing political noise and is itself an obstacle to any progress (which I define as a sustained increase in the median household's real income for short).

jsprogrammer 10y ago
"Your" vs "reactionaries" and I'm the one engaging in ad hominem? Hilarious. I addressed exactly what is wrong.
- CountSessine 10y ago
  "Your" vs "reactionaries" and I'm the one engaging in ad hominem? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ad_hominem https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ad_hominem