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What is pragmatic? What is utilitarian?

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liberty student posted on Fri, Dec 3 2010 1:01 PM

What is pragmatism?  What is a utilitarian choice?

How do either of these terms fit into praxeology and the Misesian conception of human action?

"When you're young you worry about people stealing your ideas, when you're old you worry that they won't." - David Friedman
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No takers?

"When you're young you worry about people stealing your ideas, when you're old you worry that they won't." - David Friedman
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All the answers that come to my mind are simple and tautological... makes me think I must be missing something deeper.

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If you hear it nowadays, after 8000 years of evolution that has decimated those with the wrong ideas, than it is pragmatical. If your grand-grandchildren will still think it, it is pragmatical. 

The Regression theorem is a memetic equivalent of the Theory of Evolution. To say that the former precludes the free emergence of fiat currencies makes no more sense that to hold that the latter precludes the natural emergence of multicellular organisms.
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these terms are used in too many different ways for anyone to give a single answer to these questions. either someone will answer with misesian utilitarianism/pragmatism, or they will answer with a different variety of these. in the latter case, it likely will not be compatible with prax. so i suppose you are looking for an answer of the former type.

if so, though, you might get more takers if you just say what problems you find with mises's utilitarianism, if any.

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Suggested by G8R HED

Pragmatism is personal constraint based on common and generally accepted norms.

A utilitarian choice serves self interest with positive externalities accruing to others. 

Both fit into praxeology and the Miseian conception of human action because they are subjectively determined and non-coerced.

 

"Oh, I wish I could pray the way this dog looks at the meat" - Martin Luther

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