Ernesto Rossi, economist of Justice and Liberty

Abstract

Ernesto Rossi’s realistic utopia is based on his belief that a reformed capitalism could bring socially acceptable levels of both justice and freedom. According to Rossi, history shows that capitalism is socio-political flexible. From Wicksteed, Rossi derives that the market, even if of perfect competition, that does not discriminate individual desires according to their moral canons and whose results depend on the initial distribution of resources; it is not able to direct free individual choices towards acceptable levels of social justice. Uncertainty and the dynamic nature of capitalism produce “predatory” forms of competition, while, by means of bequests, property rights generate inefficiency and heighten the initial disparity in life. Rossi’s proposals in favour of an active presence of the state in the economy and for the adoption of structural reforms, not just in the economic sphere.

JEL codes: B31, D4, D6, H5