Is the "Invisible Hand" of Capitalism actually the Hand of a Designer?
Today I found myself marveling at the clean efficiency of free markets. Isn't it amazing that a completely unregulated economy, left to function freely, will always produce the goods and the markets necessary to sustain itself? When supplies of a good fall short, prices increase, thereby stimulating production or causing people to find or develop alternatives. When you really think about it, it's a lot like magic, or (if you're religiously inclined) like a religious miracle. I'm beginning to wonder if perhaps it IS a religious miracle. In the context of the way such things are discussed on this site, I'm wondering the following: could the efficient function of markets be the result of the continuous involvement of a Designer, one far more intelligent than any human? Consider:
1. Capitalist markets function efficiently in all cultures and in all time periods, so long as they are left alone by a government.
2. When a government interferes with a market (particularly when an atheistic communist government interferes with a market), that market underperforms free capitalist markets. It's as if the "invisible hand" is punishing the economy for its lack of faith.
3. The religious right in the United States tends to be more supportive of free market capitalism than is the secular left. Could this be a manifestation of the trust placed in Him by religious people vs. the lack of belief in Him (and even His invisible hand) by the secular left?
I'd like to know if there are any economists associated with the Intelligent Design movement, and whether or not any papers have been published advancing the notion that the efficient behavior of free markets is evidence of the continuous intercession of a Designer.


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