Abstract

Adam Smith postulated an ‘Invisible Hand’ that would lead a market economy to perpetual improvement. Joe Stiglitz (2002), writing in the Guardian said it was dead; it died from lack of transparency.

Transparency is indeed a rare commodity in our markets. Advertisers excel at camouflaging their mandated transparency with appeals to our fundamental desires that muddy the issue, and ‘the small print’ successfully hides it from most of us. As long as the focus of our corporations and our economy is to make a profit for those in charge and the shareholders, transparency is seen as something to be gamed and overwhelmed. We are not likely to win a war with this money and power.

Key words: Transparency, Economy, Adaptation