Political Economy: Freedom, Surveillance, and Entrepreneurship

Abstract

The legacy of the Austrian School relates to the separation of the state from the marketplace so as to ensure maximum individual freedom. Supercapitalism’s ascent coupled with the advent of digital technologies enabled a new level of surveillance in the workplace. The customized surveillance of consumers’ tastes and preferences seems friendly but is in fact controlling. Perhaps the entrepreneurial spirit associated with postcapitalist crowd-funding allows a modicum of personal liberty envisioned by the Austrians.