The Grabbing Hand: Government Pathologies and Their Cures

Product Information

Messrs Shleifer and Vishny agree that ownership matters, that it is no accident that state-owned enterprises are nearly always badly run, and that privatisation is a good thing. But they are interested in details that the invisible-hand people often find too disgusting to contemplate. How did the firm come to be nationalised in the first place? Whose private interests does public ownership serve? How, as a matter of strategy, are these interests to be disenfranchised? Most important, how can privatisation be organised in such a way that, first, it becomes politically possible and, second, the new pattern of private interests supports rather than undermines the public interest? Consider a specific example: privatisation. How do the three approaches differ in their thinking? Helping-hand economists are not much interested. Ownership alone matters little, they say: what counts is choosing the right managers and giving them the appropriate incentives. Also, privatisation is bad if it creates a monopoly. Put these together and the prescription is “be cautious”, or even “don't bother—focus on what matters”. The invisible-hand approach says that, at least in countries where private markets are established, the government has no business owning any enterprise. The government should simply get out: privatise, and let the market do the rest. The flexor retinaculum (the roof of the carpal tunnel) prevents bowstringing of the tendons of the long finger flexors, and the annular and cruciate pulleys of the fingers have a similar function, i.e. to keep the tendons close to bones to enable effective flexion. Wrist extension Having set out this agenda, the authors gather a series of papers published over the past few years to show what kind of results one can expect. The range of material is impressive: the chapters deal with the growth of European cities before the industrial revolution, corruption in post-Soviet Russia, privatisation in Eastern Europe, local government in the United States, and more. The authors keep technical apparatus to a minimum. By any standards, let alone the debased standard of most modern economics, the essays are lucid and literate.

The tip to tip connection of the fingers is caused by flexion of the fingers, with flexion and opposition of the thumb. This grip can be used for manipulation of small objects, e.g. sewing. When an individual is sewing, they hold the needle between the pulp of their index and thumb. The needle is passed through the cloth and is brought through the other side after forming a loop or stitch. The high level of dexterity required for this task is an example of the minute level of control the human hand possesses. The thumb is not involved in this grip. The other fingers are flexed, and usually carrying a weight, e.g. shopping bags. The corresponding metacarpophalangeal joints are flexed, with the proximal and distal interphalangeal joints also flexed to create a hook. Tripod (pen) grip This is a distal radial fracture characterized by a fracture-dislocation of the radiocarpal joint that disrupts the articulating surface of the radius. Patients present with pain at the wrist as well as tenderness around the radius area. Movement is understandably compromised and surgical fixation is indicated. Carpal tunnel syndrome The tendon of FDP also runs in the carpal tunnel, but inserts into the distal phalanx of each finger. It causes flexion of the proximal and distal interphalangeal joints. The lumbrical muscles (which arise from the tendons of the flexor digitorum profundus muscles, and insert into the radial aspect of the extensor hood of each finger), also cause metacarpophalangeal joint flexion, as they pass anterior to the joint.

This kind of grip can be used for holding keys. The key is held between a flexed thumb and the radial surface of the middle phalanx of the index finger. This is a surprisingly powerful grip, and depends on the function of the elongated human thumb. The thumb in our species is highly mobile, strong and long. We are therefore able to do a great deal more with our hands when compared to primates. The muscles that move the thumb are divided into short and long muscles. If we study the muscles of the thenar eminence, we have the abductor pollicis brevis, the flexor pollicis brevis and the opponens pollicis. The adductor pollicis adducts the thumb but is not a muscle of the thenar eminence. The first three of these muscles are innervated by the recurrent motor branch of the median nerve (C5-T1). This is therefore the branch that defines the amazing ability of our hand. Hook grip Why is this? There is (of course) a public-choice explanation: neither producers nor consumers of economics (economists and politicians, respectively) have much interest in seeing such truths exposed. But another reason for the limited influence of public-choice theory is that it has often made itself seem irrelevant. The public-choice literature has taken such a cynical view of politics that it regards the state as beyond redemption. Its prescriptions often boil down to the demand that governments withdraw from almost every aspect of economic life. As a result, the insights of public-choice theory have been too little applied to improving government, as opposed to demanding that it be largely abolished. Devilish details Powerful grip is possible when the wrist is held in some degree of extension. Any muscles that lie in the extensor compartment of the forearm, and cross the wrist, will be able to contribute to wrist extension. These muscles are: The carpus is also designed to increase the tension in the tendons of the fingers (both extensors and flexors) and optimise these movements. The proximal row (lunate, triquetrum, pisiform) are functionally separate from the distal row ( trapezium, trapezoid, capitate, hamate), with the scaphoid bridging the two rows on the radial side. Flexion initially occurs between these two rows, and eventually the scaphoid acts as the bridge between the two rows, so that in the final stage of flexion the whole carpus is flexing. The same occurs in extension, which is the more functionally useful position for grip.

Finger flexion is required to varying degrees in all the types of grip described below. Wrist flexion does not play a role in any form of powerful grip. The proximal interphalangeal joints of fingers 2-5 are flexed by the flexor digitorum superficialis (FDS). This muscle is innervated by the median nerve. The tendon of FDS runs deep to the flexor retinaculum within the carpal tunnel, and divides to attach onto the lateral aspects of the middle phalanges. This creates a space called Camper’s chiasm at the level of the proximal phalanges, through which the single tendon of flexor digitorum profundus (FDP) passes.The abdominal muscles (external oblique and rectus abdominis) are tense, and the legs are poised providing a firm foundation for the upper limbs and trunk to rapidly twist and extend into the swing of the bat. The shoulder joint moves next, with the rotator cuff muscles ( infraspinatus, supraspinatus, teres minor and subscapularis) contracting to keep the head of the humerus within the glenoid fossa. The acromial fibers of deltoid are forcibly contracting, to generate velocity. In carpal tunnel syndrome, the median nerve is compressed beneath the flexor retinaculum by surrounding structures within the carpal tunnel. These patients present with wasting of the thenar eminence and a tingling and burning sensation in the radial 3 and a half fingers (on the palmar surface). Causes include pregnancy, acromegaly and overuse of the long finger flexors (flexor digitorum profundus and superficialis). Treatment options are steroid injection to reduce tendon swelling, splinting of the wrist in extension, and carpal tunnel release, to create more space for the nerve, and hence resolve symptoms. Ulnar nerve palsy