“This axiom, the proposition that humans act, fulfills the requirements precisely for a true synthetic a priori proposition. It cannot be denied that this proposition is true, since the denial would have to be categorized as an action – and so the truth of the statement literally cannot be undone”
(Hoppe, Economic Science and the Austrian Method, p. 22)
Clearly, the action axiom is a platitude. Hoppe could just as well have said, "This axiom, the proposition that economists use word processors, fulfills the requirements precisely for a true synthetic a priori proposition. It cannot be denied that this proposition is true, since the denial would have to be written on a word processor – and so the truth of the statement literally cannot be undone."
Click here to learn what the term 'synthetic a priori' really means.
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1) One's value scale is totally (linearly) ordered:
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i) |
Transitive;
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p  q and q r imply p r |
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ii) |
Reflexive;
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p p |
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iii) |
Anti-Symmetric;
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p q and q p imply p = q |
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iv) |
Total;
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p q or q p |
2) Marginal (diminishing) utility, u(s), is such that:
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i) |
It is independent of first-unit demand.
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ii) |
It is negative monotonic; that is, u'(s) < 0.
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iii) |
The integral of u(s) from zero to infinity is finite.
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3) First-unit demand conforms to proportionate effect:
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i) |
Value changes each day by a proportion (called 1+ j, with j denoting the day), of the previous day's value.
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ii) |
In the long run, the j's may be considered random as they are not directly related to each other nor are they uniquely a function of value.
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iii) |
The j's are taken from an unspecified distribution with a finite mean and a non-zero, finite variance.
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(Aguilar, Axiomatic Theory of Economics, pp. xxiii-xxiv) |
