“In The Short Run” Vol. 2, Issue 1. John Maynard Keynes, perhaps the most famous economist of the 20th century, famously said, “In the long run, we’re all dead.” The purpose of this series is to pose that in the short run, we are all alive, and economics can teach us to live well.
Despite the nifty series name and amusing little introduction, this article actually talks very little of economic theory or application. In fact, beyond this introduction, economics will not come up again in this article. Nonetheless, I decided to open this economics series with this non-economic article.Economics is a collage of technical figures and notes. Curvy graphs and intimidating charts are a part of the science. But at its core, economics is not about the numbers. Economics is about worldviews. It’s about perceived realities and how individuals operate within them. The purpose of this article is to suggest a worldview that all economists – in fact, all upstanding citizens – ought to consider adopting.
Good economists can present both sides of an argument. They can tell you why to raise and not raise taxes. But great economists go beyond the standard duality and offer a third explanation.
Current culture has lost sense of a third option. Consider the current political climate. One is either on the left or the right or perhaps somewhere in the middle, but in no way can one escape the 2-ended spectrum. One is either Caucasian or colored, not a part of a kaleidoscope of heritage.
The political climate is a manifestation of the deep-seated belief in the two-ended spectrum that permeates our culture. One tends towards sciences or arts in education – never both. Amassing capitalistic wealth is either the glorious purpose of life or the deepest sin. Foreigners are enemies or empathy projects, not friends.
Society not only ignores the presence of third options, but also abuses the power of the number three. Good rhetoric tells us that the number three is very important when it comes to discussing ideas. Adjectives in sets of three evoke the most emotion. Across our nation, schools teach kids to write 5-paragraph essays in which theses are supported with three points.
But this good tool of using three supporting proofs is used to support one side and then the other. Only the two ends of a spectrum are promulgated. A third idea is rarely considered, much less often shared. This aversion to third ideas is analogous to chopping off the last column of a tic-tac-toe board. The end result is a clunky perversion of the original purpose.
Society is entrenched in its polar duality, but I suggest that the reader consider where he or she can incorporate this idea of three in life. Living a third way is favorable for many reasons. True to form, I will mention three.
First, intuition grasps that three perspectives are superior to two. Consider a line segment. Each endpoint of the line presents its own argument. But if a third point is introduced outside the line, to connect all the dots requires a triangle. The shape has increased from one dimension to two. And with more dimension, one is able to see more clearly. Likewise, few would argue the black and white is better than color. Color not only is a third alternative but offers in itself a myriad more ways to see the same object.
Second, Aristotle, one of the greatest philosophers of all time, teaches that living in a third option is happiness. In his Ethics, he reasons that the “mean” is best: “Among these three conditions, then, two are vices – one of excess, one of deficiency – and one, the mean, is virtue.” Further defining the mean, he says “the extremes are more contrary to each other than the intermediate.” The mean is the middle of two poor extremes but also something outside the spectrum. Rather than being the middle of waste and misery, generosity is something beyond: “giv[ing] to the right people, the right amounts, at the right time.”
Thirdly and finally, I appeal to faith. Christians do not have a model of a dualistic God, but of a triune God. God is three; man was made in His image; living in duality is not in our purpose. One is called to love God, others and oneself. All considerations ought to have three facets.
How would this worldview look in real life? You’ll have to read my article next week to find a thorough example. But I will leave the reader to chew on this:
“He has shown you, O man, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
And to walk humbly with your God.”
-Micah 6:8 (NIV)
Somehow we are called to uphold justice while demonstrating mercy. That will require a third way of thought.
Only having two ideas tends toward division. In literature across the globe, three is the number of unity. Can you embrace a third worldview today?
Special thanks to Rebecca Hernandez and Rusty St. Cyr.
