PRESTOPUNDIT

Hayek, Stiglitz, and Michael Powell by Arnold Kling. Kling argues that FCC Chairman Michael Powell is Hayekian, while most regulators are Stiglitzian. Quotable:

Hayek would have the government tolerate messy competition. His point is that with the optimal outcome unknown, government resolution of issues shuts off the learning process that market competition provides.

Stiglitz sees the messiness in real-world economies, and he claims to have the right solution in every case. ..Stiglitz's outlook is that markets are imperfect, but he is not. Where Marx offered dictatorship of the proletariat, Stiglitz would give us dictatorship of the Nobel Laureate. Between the two, we might be safer with Marx.

Kling's interactive blog discussion of the matter can be found here.