Re: Weber and rationality

On Tue, 26 Jan 1999, Ricardo Duchesne wrote:

>But serious macro theorists know that structures can only be produced and
>reproduced through the intentional action of groups or individuals. 

Do animals act intentionally? What about the principle of emergence? Given
that reality is stratified, is it not possible that development on one
level operates according to an emergent logic qualitatively different from
the logic of intentional action at another level? What about the
structures that emerge from unintended action? What about the consequences
that result from inattention and inaction? What about history? Which is to
say, what about the consequences of the intentional and unintentional
collective activities of past actors on the intentional choices and
collective development of present and future generations? It seems to me
that saying that "structures can ONLY be produced and reproduced through
the intentional action of groups or individuals" (my emphasis) is refuted
by what is know about the actual behavior of systems, social or otherwise.

Andy