The "Minister of Production in the collectivist state" as a third way of the market: China between ethics and growth

This paper proposes a comparison between the Chinese social-economic system of today and the economic planning system theorized by Enrico Barone in 1908 and described in his famous paper: "The Minister of Production in the Collectivist State." The work stems from a critical reflection on the premises of the capitalist market system. From Adam Smith to J.M. Keynes (included), economists have identified in traditional capitalist models (search for maximum profit, economic efficiency, free competition system) the best economic system, universally implementable, feasible and infallible in democratic capitalist contexts. In the history of economic ideas has always been clear gap between the "capitalist system" and the "collectivist system." The choice of a government had to fall back on one or on the other system. The first considered "good", the second considered "bad" for economic growth. Times since September 11th 2001, however, seem to have debunked the myth of capitalism as the only model of democratic growth: Asia and China has given the world a lesson in humility.