The Rules of the Game and Economic Recovery

Imprimis/Hillsdale College ^ | September 2010 | Amity Shlaes

[Lorianne]

The Monopoly board game originated during the Great Depression. At first its inventor, Charles Darrow, could not interest manufacturers. Parker Brothers turned the game down, citing “52 design errors.” But Darrow produced his own copies of the game, and Parker Brothers finally bought Monopoly. By 1935, the New York Times was reporting that “leading all other board games … is the season’s craze, ‘Monopoly,’ the game of real estate.” Most of us are familiar with the object of Monopoly: the accumulation of property on which one places houses and hotels, and from which one receives revenue. Many of us have a favorite token. Perennially popular is the top hat, which symbolizes the sort of wealth to which Americans who work hard can aspire. The top hat is a token that has remained in the game, even while others have changed over the decades.

One’s willingness to play Monopoly depends on a few conditions—for instance, a predictable number of “Pay Income Tax” cards. These cards are manageable when you know in advance the amount of money printed on them and how many of them are in the deck. It helps, too, that there are a limited and predictable number of “Go to Jail”

cards. This is what Frank Knight of the University of Chicago would call a knowable risk, as opposed to an uncertainty. Likewise, there must be a limited and predictable number of “Chance” cards. In other words, there has to be some certainty that property rights are secure and that the risks to property are few in number and can be managed.

The bank must be dependable, too. There is a fixed supply of Monopoly money and the bank is supposed to follow the rules of the game, exercising little or no independent discretion. If players sit down at the Monopoly board only to discover a bank that overreaches or is too unpredictable or discretionary, we all know what happens. They will walk away from the board. There is no game.

(excerpted)

[libertarian27]

My favorite Monopoly token piece was the lead pipe.

(We always had Clue and Monopoly smooshed together)

[upchuck]

My problem with Monopoly was that I never got “too big to fail.” :-)

[ProtectOurFreedom]

Good summary by Ms. Shlaes of her book “The Forgotten Man.” I’m reading the book right now. The parallels between FDR and Obama are truly frightening. I hadn’t realized how much of a tyrant FDR was. By the late 30s, people were beginning to turn on him the way people are beginning to turn on Obama. WW II saved FDR’s reputation.