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Terence Corcoran: Biting the Invisible Hand once again

Peter Foster’s insightful book on the intellectual and political conflict over Adam Smith’s ideas goes international with Italian translation

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In 2014 Canadian journalist and author Peter Foster produced his ninth book, Why We Bite the Invisible Hand: The Psychology of Anti-Capitalism, a revealing examination of the history of the ideas of Scottish economist Adam Smith as described in his seminal economic text, The Wealth of Nations, published 250 years ago this year.

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Smith’s ideas, including the creation of one of the defining metaphors of capitalism, the Invisible Hand, shaped the history of the world economy. The Invisible Hand, writes Foster, “became synonymous with free individuals interacting commercially and having their actions informed and guided by the astonishing cybernetic feedback mechanism of the price system.”

The depth of insight Foster brought to the intellectual and political conflict over Smith’s economic ideas over time........

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