Economic analysis underpins and informs economic decision-making, even if there is a lengthy lag between economic analysis and its gradual absorption into economic debate. Once established as common sense, a text of economic analysis becomes incredibly powerful, because it delineates not only what is the object of knowledge but also what it is sensible to talk about or suggest. If one thinks and acts outside the framework of the dominant text of economic analysis, he risks more than simply the judgment that his recommendations are wrong; his entire moral attitude may be ridiculed or seen as dangerous just because his theoretical assumptions are deemed unrealistic. Therefore, defining common sense and, in essence, what is "reality"’ and "‘realistic"’ is the ultimate act of political power. Economic analysis does not simply explain or predict, it tells us what possibilities exist for human action and intervention; it defines both our explanatory possibilities and our moral and practical...