

Krugman, Stross and Martian hive-mind kleptocracy - panarky
http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/12/10/hive-minds-and-kleptocrats?pagemode=print

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j_baker
The thing is, Krugman is still pointing out one of the major criticisms
against corporations. Their top executives make bad decisions and put their
own goals ahead of the company's based on the fact that they're playing with
other peoples' money. How many of these types would be willing to do this with
their own money?

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iwwr
If left to their own devices (read: without bailouts, artificially cheap
credit or legal favoritism), corporations would function like any other agents
of the free market, subjected to profit and loss.

Corporations are not hive minds in the same sense that any other organization
is not. A mind is an attribute of the individual; a corporation is nothing but
an organizational framework.

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j_baker
What other agents of the free market? Corporations _are_ the free market.

And I think most group psychologists would dispute the idea that groups don't
take on hive-mind-like qualities.

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Symmetry
Individual households, small business, and the government are all actors in
the free market that are within the same ballpark as corporations. And any of
these is quite capable of forming hiveminds too - as do individual government
departments, charitable organizations, political parties, labor unions,
professional associations, and internet discussion forums.

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panarky
Krugman has a long history of linking economics and science fiction:

[http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/05/04/economic-
science...](http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/05/04/economic-science-
fiction?pagemode=print)

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stretchwithme
Psychohistory never made sense either.

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T_S_
The key feature of a corporation besides limited liability is the nearly
unmanageable principal-agent relationship between shareholders and managers.
It's kind of amazing to me that a structure where shareholders lose to
managers so consistently is the structure of choice.

Most corporations should be distinguished from banks, since the banks actually
managed to acquire a put option for the bank itself, doubling the leverage of
management. The really striking thing is witnessing the monetization of that
put although it really shouldn't be too surprising, since virtually the same
thing happened in the 80's with the S&L industry.

All the hive mind/group think stuff can and does happen in any organization
where leaders need to persuade followers. Not as "new" as you might think.

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ent_
Heh, 'bout time someone pointed out the other key feature of a (public)
corporation. Plus I like the idea of banks having a 'put option' on
themselves. Glad to see at least some people manage a level-headed assessment
of the economic situation now -- e.g. as opposed to others who in light of
corporations' success in the arena immediately start a religion around
worshipping the idea of a corporation, Y combinator included.

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RiderOfGiraffes
Submitted two days ago, and gained no comments and no upvotes:
<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1993348>

Timing of submissions and luck are critical in getting noticed. I find that
frustrating.

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kokoito
Inventing new words, like "kleptocracy" to bitch about The Man is for d-bags,
UNLESS you're Paul Erdös. Erdös Krugman is not. I rest my case.

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Qz
Can we please nix this print version linking?

