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Prophet Yusuf's (عليه السلام) policy options

Haji 2003

Entry posted by Haji 2003 in Economics

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[amended 19 August 2023 to include references to the Irish potato famine and two Bengal famines]

 

IMG_6580 (2).jpeg

IMG_6580 (1).jpeg

 

Images taken at the Egyptian Museum, Tahrir Sq, Cairo. June 2024

Surah Yusuf

Prophet Yusuf (عليه السلام) advised Pharoah to hoard grains during the years of plenty. I think this episode is a noteworthy one because it shows how a State can intervene in the marketplace in order to improve the welfare of the wider population.

But as we shall see below, the government intervention that Prophet Yusuf (عليه السلام) instigated favoured some sections of the population over others - it was not neutral in terms of how it spread gains and losses across the population.

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al-Qummi reports that Yu−suf (عليه السلام) ordered that grain silos be erected from stone and clay and plastered with lime. He cultivated lands throughout Egypt, distributing food and storing the excess in its husks. This was done for seven years. During the drought, it was his duty to sell the wheat (or corn) as he saw fit.

https://www.al-islam.org/sites/default/files/singles/633-yusuf.pdf

While there is other material in the Qur'an that deals with transactions within the marketplace between individual participants - this story stands out in terms of its focus on state intervention. 

I'll be coming back to this issue later - but I think it informs the discussions we have about Islam and contemporary socio-economic theories. In particular, I think it illustrates that Islam does see the State as an active market participant and that in an Islamic state, the role of government is not one that is hands-off or laissez-faire.

 

What policy options did Prophet Yusuf (عليه السلام) have?

We should not take the story as presented 'for granted'. In reality, the Prophet (عليه السلام). had a range of choices open to him, and thinking those through helps us better understand the reasons for the policy he undertook and the reason why. 

No government interference

Let's start with the simplest and easiest option that Pharoah's government could have pursued once they knew that there would be seven years of plenty followed by seven years of famine (as predicted by the Pharoah's dream which was interpreted by Prophet Yusuf (عليه السلام).) .

Pharoah could have left the entire issue to the 'market'. During the years of plenty, the price of food would have fallen and people would have enjoyed a higher standard of living. For example, the lower grain prices could have led to people rearing more cattle and their diets would have improved with more meat.

However, during the years of famine, grain prices would have risen and those people who had accumulated assets in the years of plenty would be able to pay the higher prices in the famine years. Those who had not had such assets would have starved.

This assumes a fairly high level of self-discipline on the part of the population, but as Milton Friedman would say, the people would have been 'free to choose'. This is not a hypothetical option. The British lack of action to the Irish potato famine has been attributed to the British government's ideological adherence to a laissez-faire approach to macro-economics:

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Laissez-faire, the reigning economic orthodoxy of the day, held that there should be as little government interference with the economy as possible. Under this doctrine, stopping the export of Irish grain was an unacceptable policy alternative, and it was therefore firmly rejected in London, though there were some British relief officials in Ireland who gave contrary advice.

https://kenanfellows.org/kfp-cp-sites/cp01/cp01/sites/kfp-cp-sites.localhost.com.cp01/files/LP3_BBC Irish Famine Article for Lab.pdf

 

The Bengal famine is another one where government policy was different to the one Prophet Yusuf ((عليه السلام).) prescribed to Pharoah. In this instance, it was lack of government restriction over the action of privateers:

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But the Nobel prize-winning economist Amartya Sen argued in 1981 that there should still have been enough supplies to feed the region, and that the mass deaths came about as a combination of wartime inflation, speculative buying and panic hoarding, which together pushed the price of food out of the reach of poor Bengalis.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/mar/29/winston-churchill-policies-contributed-to-1943-bengal-famine-study

 

Going back still further, the Great Bengal Famine of 1770 has been directly attributed to British government laissez-faire economic policy.

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The British government abandoned pre-colonial policies to combat natural calamities and food scarcity in India. They were more interested in the implementation of non-interference in the market. Adam Smith’s laissez-faire approach, i.e. the principle of non-intervention, was firmly laid down as a part of state policy (Siddiqui, 2015a), and therefore was strictly implemented in all subsequent famines. It was said that in the past during the natural calamities, the previous rulers undertook harsh measures to persecute traders and fixed maximum selling prices for foodgrains, which were seen by the colonial government as unhelpful and as interfering in the operations of the markets. As (Bhatia, 1991: 106-107) noted, “The Government of India persistently refused to control or interfere with prices. And it went to the other extreme of giving an absolutely free hand to the trader and discouraged local administration and its officers from interferences in his activities. 

https://worldfinancialreview.com/the-political-economy-of-famines-during-the-british-rule-in-india-a-critical-analysis/

 

Light interference - provision of information

A common policy option nowadays, where people do not want direct government intervention is to recommend improving the provision of information to the population who will then be better able to make the correct decisions for themselves. The government could have mounted an information campaign during the years of plenty and told people to hoard food themselves, hoarding when there is no shortage is allowed in Islam.

However such attempts to influence awareness about the famine to come and changing peoples' attitudes so that they saved more than they were used to, would likely have run against increased social pressures on people to do the opposite. For example typically in societies as wealth increases there is social pressure to spend more, in this case, for example, have more lavish weddings.

Also providing information would have been a practical benefit for the better off e.g. those with storage capacity, but not so good for the poor (who would not have room to store grain, for example).

The government (using a bit more intervention) could have given tax breaks to people who owned granaries, to help the poor who needed such facilities. Again this solution would be to focus on market-based interventions and simply alter the working of the market using incentives. Current economic theory holds that people discount future risks very heavily i.e. they don't perceive them as much of a threat as they should. So, for example, just telling people they should save for a pension does not work. 

So we can likely predict that the solutions described above would not have worked had they tried them.

Heavy interference

This is what they actually did.

In times of plenty, Pharoah's government did not let prices fall as would have happened under free market conditions. They kept prices higher than they otherwise would have been because the government intervened and took excess stocks of grain out of circulation.

All people (rich and poor alike) had no option but to pay the usual higher prices - effectively, the government was taxing everyone, but this was not seen as a loss by anyone because the prices were no higher than usual.

The government stored the grain centrally and then they decided to release the grain according to their own policies.

Assumptions made by Prophet Yusuf's government

  1. If you leave people to their own devices they may not make the best decisions (whether they are rich or poor), this could be due to:
    1. People do not have the resources to cater for future shocks (mainly the poor)
    2. People do not have the discipline to address future shocks (applies to both the rich and the poor)
  2. The government can make better decisions than individuals acting in their own self-interest because:
    1. The government can have access to more and better information than individuals do
    2. The government may not be as susceptible to a lack of self-discipline

 

Conclusion

Of all the policy options open to Prophet Yusuf (عليه السلام) he advised Pharoah to pursue the most interventionist one. Some people may be tempted to call this socialist or communist, but I think those terms carry a lot of excess baggage, so I won't bring them into the discussion.

What I think can be safely inferred from his choice of policy is a fundamental principle that could inform economic policy in any Islamic state.

Facing an external shock to the Egyptian economy, he went for the option that would cause the least pain to the worst off in society. Other policy options would have caused more pain for the poorest but somewhat less for the better off.

 

 

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Haji 2003

Haji 2003 15,582

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Just checking ... (!)

Q. Could Joseph's approach to dealing with the famine's in Egypt be considered a use of free market economics?

chatgpt:

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No, Joseph's approach to dealing with the famines in Egypt cannot be considered a use of free market economics, as it involved centralized planning and control of the grain supply.

In a free market system, the allocation of resources (including food) is determined by the interactions of buyers and sellers in a competitive marketplace, without the need for centralized planning or control. Prices are determined by supply and demand, and individuals and businesses make their own decisions about what to produce, sell, and consume.

Joseph's approach, on the other hand, involved centralized planning and control of the grain supply. He recommended that the government store surplus grain during the years of plenty and distribute it during the years of famine. This involved government control over the supply of grain, as well as the establishment of a system for storage, distribution, and pricing.

While Joseph's approach was effective in mitigating the effects of the famines, it was not a free market approach. In a free market system, the price of grain would be determined by supply and demand, and individuals and businesses would make their own decisions about how much grain to produce, sell, and consume.

 

 

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Haji 2003

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Economics 101

In modern day economic terms how can we analyse Joseph's approach to the famine's in Egypt.

chatgpt

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In macroeconomics, Joseph's actions can be seen as an example of countercyclical fiscal policy. During a recession or economic downturn, countercyclical fiscal policy involves increasing government spending and reducing taxes to stimulate economic growth and reduce unemployment. In Joseph's case, he recommended that Egypt store surplus grain during the years of plenty and distribute it during the years of famine, which helped to stabilize food prices and prevent mass starvation. This can be seen as a countercyclical approach, where resources are stored during times of abundance to be used during times of scarcity.

In development economics, Joseph's approach can be seen as an example of food security policy. Food security refers to the ability of a population to access sufficient, safe, and nutritious food. Joseph's recommendation to store surplus grain and distribute it during the years of famine can be seen as a way to promote food security and reduce vulnerability to food shortages. This approach also helped to reduce price volatility, which can lead to food insecurity and social unrest.

Additionally, Joseph's approach involved building infrastructure to support food storage and distribution. This can be seen as an example of investment in physical capital, which is an important factor in economic development. By investing in infrastructure to support food security, Joseph helped to create a more stable and resilient economy that was better able to weather economic shocks.

Overall, Joseph's approach to managing the famine in Egypt can be seen as a combination of countercyclical fiscal policy, food security policy, and investment in physical capital. These approaches can be applied in modern economic contexts to promote economic stability, reduce vulnerability to shocks, and support long-term development.

 

 

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Haji 2003

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Not the same line of thought as mine but picks up the broad issue

Tazkia Islamic Finance and Business Review | Volume 7.2.170

An Analysis of Yusuf (AS)'s Counter-Cyclical Principle and its Implementation in the Modern World

Jameel Ahmeda, Ahamed Kameel Mydin Meerab, Patrick CollinscaUniversity of Balochistan, Quetta 87300, Pakistan, jamil_ims@yahoo.combIIUM Institute of Islamic Banking and Finance, Kuala Lumpur 50480, MalaysiacAzabu University, Sagamihara Kanagawa 252-0206,
(2) (PDF) An Analysis of Yusuf (AS)'s Counter-Cyclical Principle and its Implementation in the Modern World. Available from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/330578320_An_Analysis_of_Yusuf_AS's_Counter-Cyclical_Principle_and_its_Implementation_in_the_Modern_World [accessed Sep 27 2023].

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/330578320_An_Analysis_of_Yusuf_AS's_Counter-Cyclical_Principle_and_its_Implementation_in_the_Modern_World

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Haji 2003

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How Prophet Yusuf (عليه السلام). (Joseph) Saved a Nation from Famine: Insights for Food Preservation and Supply Chain Management 

a post made on LinkedIn

 

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In conclusion, The story of Prophet Yusuf ((عليه السلام).) offers timeless lessons about food security and how to manage resources wisely. Its lessons transcend time, offering us critical insights into the complexities of today's global food challenges—be they complex supply chains, climate change, or the need for equitable distribution. 

Prophet Yusuf ((عليه السلام).) exemplified the spirit of innovation, offering creative solutions to pressing issues of his time—a principle that remains indispensable for modern challenges. 

The narrative underscores that food security is not merely a matter of surplus but requires keen attention to distribution and preservation. In a world surrounded by an array of food security threats, the wisdom embedded in this ancient tale prompts us to not only adapt and innovate but also to revisit enduring principles for sustainable solutions. 

As we collectively strive to forge a food-secure future for all, the story of Prophet Yusuf ((عليه السلام).) reminds us that the answers we seek may often lie in the wealth of knowledge that precedes us. It is a universal call to action, emphasizing that the responsibility for food security is a collective one, shared across time, space, and communities.

 

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-prophet-yusuf-joseph-saved-nation-from-famine-insights-dunya-zaib/

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Ashvazdanghe

Ashvazdanghe 13,994

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Pharoah could have left the entire issue to the 'market'. During the years of plenty, the price of food would have fallen and people would have enjoyed a higher standard of living. For example, the lower grain prices could have led to people rearing more cattle and their diets would have improved with more meat.

However, during the years of famine, grain prices would have risen and those people who had accumulated assets in the years of plenty would be able to pay the higher prices in the famine years. Those who had not had such assets would have starved.

Salam it comes to think of "DOOMSDAY’ VAULT" which in control of modern Pharoah which certainly they have mixed prophet Yususf (عليه السلام) silos with their evil free market which after artificial disasters & increasing price of grains & rarity of safe grains due spreading pollution by  GMO seeds so then they can rule over world  through total controlling food source of people of world.

 https://time.com/doomsday-vault/

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  1. Bill Gates, Rockefeller, GMO funded the "Doomsday" Seed Bank in case of global catastrophe.

  2. Bill Gates and some other investors have secured a 'doomsday seed vault' to preserve a wide variety of plant seeds in the remote Arctic Svalbard archipelago.

 

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Syria was the first country ever to withdraw seeds from the arctic "Doomsday Vault" in 2015 so scientists can continue their agricultural research

https://www.interestingfactsworld.com/doomsday-seed-facts.html

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Gene banks send duplicates of their seeds to the Seed Vault, a massive facility built into the side of a sandstone mountain on Spitsbergen. Then, if something were to happen to the gene bank — it’s destroyed during a war or natural disaster, for example — humanity will still have copies of the seeds.

 

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The Seed Vault has already served its intended purpose, too. In 2015, scientists from an Aleppo-based seed bank withdrew 38,073 seed samples from the Svalbard vault to replace ones lost during the Syrian war.

 

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By 2017, however, it was clear that even the “Doomsday” Vault was not impervious to the effects of global warming — rising temperatures in the region caused permafrost to melt, sending water flooding into the vault’s entryway.

 

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 Hege Njaa Aschim, a spokesperson for the Norwegian government, told The Guardian at the time. “A lot of water went into the start of the tunnel and then it froze to ice, so it was like a glacier when you went in.”

 

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Hopefully, that upgrade will sufficiently “future-proof” the vault against climate change — ensuring that the seeds within the “Doomsday” Vault remain preserved no matter what goes on outside its walls.

https://www.freethink.com/science/seed-vault

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Haji 2003

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United States' upside-down approach

Where government backed support extends to the rich, while the poor have to rely on the market! This is from a story about luxury property owners being bailed out.

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Money to protect properties in California from the onslaught of the climate crisis – stronger storms, higher seas, and landslides – will eventually come from the state. The cost of publicly funded disaster relief programs and state-subsidized insurance payouts will be assumed by everyone, including those who have no part in luxury homes with a view. The majority of Latino and Black households in California don’t own their homes.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/mar/05/california-luxury-homes-climate-change

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Haji 2003

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Bengal famine revisited

First off we have the BBC's usual propaganda tactics:

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"I feel enormous shame about what happened," Susannah Herbert tells me.

Her grandfather was the governor of Bengal, in British India, during the run-up and height of the 1943 famine which killed at least three million people.

She is only just learning about his significant role in the catastrophe, and confronting a complex family legacy.

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c1vv9r4012xo

How can the role of the person under whose watch a famine took place be considered 'complex'. He was in charge, the buck stops with him.

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One of the policies he executed during World War Two was known as "denial", where boats and rice – the staple food – were confiscated or destroyed in thousands of villages. It was done because of the fear of a Japanese invasion and the aim was to deny the enemy local resources to fuel their advance into India.

So defence of the colony took precedence over the lives of the people who lived in it. Nothing complex here, it's just a matter of priorities.

The comparison with the policies of Prophet Yusuf ((عليه السلام).) is an interesting one. Like the British he was also a member of a minority community in Egypt, but his actions were in favour of the majority and did not favour his own priorities.

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Ashvazdanghe

Ashvazdanghe 13,994

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On 6/16/2024 at 3:58 PM, Haji 2003 said:

So defence of the colony took precedence over the lives of the people who lived in it. Nothing complex here, it's just a matter of priorities.

Salam it's not just a matter of priorities but on the other hand trying to commit genocide & fighting against humanity & getting rid of future enemies which Britain has done it in India , Bengal & Iran which both of  Britain & Russia have been cooperated about it in Iran ; while  there was no fear of  Japanese invasion which also presence of Germany as their enemy has been too weak  in Iran , which it's presence has no danger for India because it has not any plan for advancing toward India while Russia always has had a plan for advancing to warm waters of Iran & India which Russia always has been rival of Britain in India while Iran has became two times victim of artificial famine  by cooperation of  Britain & Russia during two times of world war I at end of Qajar era &  WWII during Pahlavi era .

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      Here's some more justification from the British Library:
      http://www.bl.uk/learning/timeline/item107671.html
      To help immigration into the UK, the British Nationality Act of 1948 gave rights to all people from the commonwealth to settle in the country. West Indian immigration to the UK from the 1940's to the 1960s was about 170,000. In Britain, there was an increase of about 80,000 people originating from the Indian sub-continent from 1951 to 1961.
      So if there was such a shortage of labour in postwar Britain, surely the British government would have been aghast at the prospect of Britons leaving the UK? And trying to put a stop to it?
      Apparently not.
      The Assisted Passage Scheme from Britain to Australia
      Australia's 'Assisted Passage Migration Scheme' started in 1945 and involved 1 million people migrating from Britain to Australia.
      http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/7217889.stm
      The following paper adds some nuance to this:
      Yet despite the 'reluctance' we still get:
      Stephen Constantine (2003) British emigration to the empire- commonwealth since 1880: From overseas settlement to Diaspora?, The Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History, 31:2, 16-35, DOI: 10.1080/03086530310001705586
      From the same paper the following motivation, which refers to policies in the nineteenth century could perhaps explain the flow of people observed at the top of this post:
       
      Conclusion
      In sum, Britain was allowed to go a bit brown, because it was essential that Australia, Canada and other dominions remain essentially white. And this racist policy was maintained until the facts on the ground had been established. This point is one counter-arguments to the 'Great Replacement Theory' that has been espoused in some far-right circles in the West.
       
      https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jun/08/a-deadly-ideology-how-the-great-replacement-theory-went-mainstream
       
      So we have two migration stories. And the funny thing is that the first story is covered in the press, and you'll also find the second story given a lot of attention.
       
      But the two are never mentioned together.
       
      It's when you put, what are otherwise very positive stories together, that something far nastier emerges. Something which is within plain sight but unacknowledged.
       
      https://contemporaniablog.wordpress.com/2016/10/24/poms-and-windrush/
    • Haji 2003
      Religion and cultural resilience
      By Haji 2003 in Contemporania
         0 comments
      I gave ChatGPT the following prompt:
       
      The text below is provided by ChatGPT.
       

      The proposition that Islamic societies have been particularly successful in maintaining their cultural heritage since the 16th-century expansion of European power is complex and nuanced. While many Islamic societies have indeed preserved significant aspects of their cultural, religious, and linguistic traditions, the extent of this preservation varies across regions and historical contexts. To explore this proposition, consider the following key factors:
      1. Cultural Resilience in the Face of European Expansion
      Islamic societies, particularly those in the Ottoman Empire, Safavid Persia, and Mughal India, exhibited remarkable cultural resilience during and after the period of European imperial expansion. Unlike many indigenous cultures in the Americas, Africa, and parts of Asia, Islamic societies often retained their religious, legal, and linguistic frameworks despite external pressures.
      Key Examples:
      Ottoman Empire: The Ottomans maintained their Islamic legal and educational systems alongside modernizing reforms (e.g., the Tanzimat reforms) while resisting cultural assimilation. Safavid Persia (Iran): The Safavid dynasty entrenched Twelver Shi’ism, reinforcing a distinct cultural and religious identity that endures today. Mughal India: Mughal rulers preserved and promoted Islamic art and architecture, influencing the Indian subcontinent despite British colonial rule. Theoretical Support:
      Marshall Hodgson in The Venture of Islam (1974) argues that Islamic societies developed robust institutional and intellectual traditions that enabled them to integrate external influences while maintaining core cultural elements.
      2. The Role of Religion as a Cultural Anchor
      Islamic societies have often placed significant emphasis on religious education and practice, which provided a unifying cultural framework that resisted external cultural influences. The centrality of Islam in daily life—through Quranic education, mosques, and religious practices—contributed to this cultural persistence.
      Key Insight:
      Clifford Geertz’s study of Morocco and Indonesia in Islam Observed (1968) demonstrates how Islamic societies adapted to modernity while retaining religious and cultural traditions.
      3. Linguistic and Educational Continuity
      Unlike many indigenous languages that declined under European rule, Arabic, Persian, and Ottoman Turkish remained central to intellectual and cultural life in their respective regions. Islamic scholars preserved classical texts and continued producing scholarly works even during colonial rule.
      Contrast with Other Societies:
      In Latin America, many indigenous languages and cultural practices were systematically suppressed by European colonizers. In Africa, missionary-led education often replaced local languages with European ones. 4. Selective Adaptation and Cultural Synthesis
      Islamic societies did not resist external influences entirely; instead, they often selectively adopted technological, administrative, and intellectual practices from European powers while preserving core cultural and religious principles.
      Example:
      The Ottoman Empire modernized its military and bureaucracy but retained its Islamic legal structure (Sharia) alongside secular reforms. 5. Regional Variations and Exceptions
      The degree of cultural preservation varies significantly across the Islamic world. For instance:
      North Africa and the Middle East: Maintained strong Islamic and linguistic traditions despite French and British colonization. Central Asia: Soviet policies suppressed religious practices, weakening Islamic cultural heritage for much of the 20th century. Southeast Asia: Indonesian and Malaysian societies retained Islamic practices while integrating elements of European education systems. 6. Comparative Perspective
      When comparing Islamic societies with other non-European societies, such as Native American, Aboriginal Australian, or sub-Saharan African communities, the relative success in preserving cultural heritage becomes more apparent. Many of these societies experienced significant cultural loss due to direct European intervention, religious conversion, and the imposition of foreign educational systems.
      Scholarly Insight:
      Edward Said’s Orientalism (1978) highlights how Islamic societies were often misrepresented in Western discourse, yet this external pressure also galvanized internal cultural reaffirmation.
      Conclusion
      While Islamic societies have indeed shown notable success in preserving their cultural heritage, this success is not uniform across all regions. The resilience largely stems from the centrality of religion, the adaptability of cultural practices, and the selective adoption of external influences. However, regions like Central Asia illustrate how external forces can disrupt this continuity. Ultimately, the proposition holds considerable validity when compared to many other societies that experienced cultural erosion under European expansion.
    • Haji 2003
      Music in Islam
      By Haji 2003 in Contemporania
         0 comments
      In 2010 we did a little project that involved analysing the content of Shiachat posts over the preceding few years to capture what people were saying about Music on Shiachat.
      The final report is attached.
      Music in Islam v.1.pdf
    • Haji 2003
      Prophet Yusuf's (عليه السلام) policy options
      By Haji 2003 in Contemporania
         10 comments
      [amended 19 August 2023 to include references to the Irish potato famine and two Bengal famines]
       


       
      Images taken at the Egyptian Museum, Tahrir Sq, Cairo. June 2024
      Surah Yusuf
      Prophet Yusuf (عليه السلام) advised Pharoah to hoard grains during the years of plenty. I think this episode is a noteworthy one because it shows how a State can intervene in the marketplace in order to improve the welfare of the wider population.
      But as we shall see below, the government intervention that Prophet Yusuf (عليه السلام) instigated favoured some sections of the population over others - it was not neutral in terms of how it spread gains and losses across the population.
      https://www.al-islam.org/sites/default/files/singles/633-yusuf.pdf
      While there is other material in the Qur'an that deals with transactions within the marketplace between individual participants - this story stands out in terms of its focus on state intervention. 
      I'll be coming back to this issue later - but I think it informs the discussions we have about Islam and contemporary socio-economic theories. In particular, I think it illustrates that Islam does see the State as an active market participant and that in an Islamic state, the role of government is not one that is hands-off or laissez-faire.
       
      What policy options did Prophet Yusuf (عليه السلام) have?
      We should not take the story as presented 'for granted'. In reality, the Prophet (عليه السلام). had a range of choices open to him, and thinking those through helps us better understand the reasons for the policy he undertook and the reason why. 
      No government interference
      Let's start with the simplest and easiest option that Pharoah's government could have pursued once they knew that there would be seven years of plenty followed by seven years of famine (as predicted by the Pharoah's dream which was interpreted by Prophet Yusuf (عليه السلام).) .
      Pharoah could have left the entire issue to the 'market'. During the years of plenty, the price of food would have fallen and people would have enjoyed a higher standard of living. For example, the lower grain prices could have led to people rearing more cattle and their diets would have improved with more meat.
      However, during the years of famine, grain prices would have risen and those people who had accumulated assets in the years of plenty would be able to pay the higher prices in the famine years. Those who had not had such assets would have starved.
      This assumes a fairly high level of self-discipline on the part of the population, but as Milton Friedman would say, the people would have been 'free to choose'. This is not a hypothetical option. The British lack of action to the Irish potato famine has been attributed to the British government's ideological adherence to a laissez-faire approach to macro-economics:
      https://kenanfellows.org/kfp-cp-sites/cp01/cp01/sites/kfp-cp-sites.localhost.com.cp01/files/LP3_BBC Irish Famine Article for Lab.pdf
       
      The Bengal famine is another one where government policy was different to the one Prophet Yusuf ((عليه السلام).) prescribed to Pharoah. In this instance, it was lack of government restriction over the action of privateers:
      https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/mar/29/winston-churchill-policies-contributed-to-1943-bengal-famine-study
       
      Going back still further, the Great Bengal Famine of 1770 has been directly attributed to British government laissez-faire economic policy.
      https://worldfinancialreview.com/the-political-economy-of-famines-during-the-british-rule-in-india-a-critical-analysis/
       
      Light interference - provision of information
      A common policy option nowadays, where people do not want direct government intervention is to recommend improving the provision of information to the population who will then be better able to make the correct decisions for themselves. The government could have mounted an information campaign during the years of plenty and told people to hoard food themselves, hoarding when there is no shortage is allowed in Islam.
      However such attempts to influence awareness about the famine to come and changing peoples' attitudes so that they saved more than they were used to, would likely have run against increased social pressures on people to do the opposite. For example typically in societies as wealth increases there is social pressure to spend more, in this case, for example, have more lavish weddings.
      Also providing information would have been a practical benefit for the better off e.g. those with storage capacity, but not so good for the poor (who would not have room to store grain, for example).
      The government (using a bit more intervention) could have given tax breaks to people who owned granaries, to help the poor who needed such facilities. Again this solution would be to focus on market-based interventions and simply alter the working of the market using incentives. Current economic theory holds that people discount future risks very heavily i.e. they don't perceive them as much of a threat as they should. So, for example, just telling people they should save for a pension does not work. 
      So we can likely predict that the solutions described above would not have worked had they tried them.
      Heavy interference
      This is what they actually did.
      In times of plenty, Pharoah's government did not let prices fall as would have happened under free market conditions. They kept prices higher than they otherwise would have been because the government intervened and took excess stocks of grain out of circulation.
      All people (rich and poor alike) had no option but to pay the usual higher prices - effectively, the government was taxing everyone, but this was not seen as a loss by anyone because the prices were no higher than usual.
      The government stored the grain centrally and then they decided to release the grain according to their own policies.
      Assumptions made by Prophet Yusuf's government
      If you leave people to their own devices they may not make the best decisions (whether they are rich or poor), this could be due to: People do not have the resources to cater for future shocks (mainly the poor) People do not have the discipline to address future shocks (applies to both the rich and the poor) The government can make better decisions than individuals acting in their own self-interest because: The government can have access to more and better information than individuals do The government may not be as susceptible to a lack of self-discipline  
      Conclusion
      Of all the policy options open to Prophet Yusuf (عليه السلام) he advised Pharoah to pursue the most interventionist one. Some people may be tempted to call this socialist or communist, but I think those terms carry a lot of excess baggage, so I won't bring them into the discussion.
      What I think can be safely inferred from his choice of policy is a fundamental principle that could inform economic policy in any Islamic state.
      Facing an external shock to the Egyptian economy, he went for the option that would cause the least pain to the worst off in society. Other policy options would have caused more pain for the poorest but somewhat less for the better off.
       
       
    • shadow_of_light
      From Earth to Heaven
      By shadow_of_light in From Earth to Heaven
         0 comments
      Final part of my book, narrated by my dear friend, Mrs. Solmaz Rezayi
      Music: Below the Horizon by Guy Sweens
      Images created by ai bing image generator
    • Haji 2003
      Surfacing Satan
      By Haji 2003 in Contemporania
         3 comments
      Gains and losses
      It's tempting to think of human experiences, in terms of gains or losses, especially those which involve dealing with other people and groups. Some exchanges lend themselves to this calculus e.g. trade or war. However, a focus on the material element of the equation can often ignore the intangible aspects of the encounter or the trade. The latter can often have longer-term and more profound consequences.
      For believers faced with what can seem to be a loss in the material world, it's worth reflecting on what has been gained in the spiritual world. At the moment, in the Middle East there is a dynamic movement of politics and people being played out. Certain groups are gaining power, others are losing. Some people are dying and others are killing them. It's easy to construct the balance sheet in terms of human casualties, square kilometres of land and who holds power.
      But this ignores the bigger picture.
      Spiritual vs. material
      What is also happening is the surfacing of opinions, standpoints and, most importantly, behaviours. In a world at equilibrium, peoples' discourse can often hide their true beliefs and they can avoid engaging in behaviours which make explicit where they stand. 
      However, standing as we are in a world where there is disequilibrium, where the stakes are high for a reconfiguration of the Middle East as the tectonic plates shift, so people become more willing to disclose who they really are. 
      This is a win for the believers. Tempted by the greed for gain, this is where Satan's mask drops, and reality becomes evident. People motivated primarily by gains in this world no longer hide where they really stand - they believe they can achieve far more by grabbing as much as they can possibly have.
      The speed with which events take place makes it impossible for aggressors to hide their tracks. More importantly they believe that they no longer need to do so because the victory is so overwhelming that they will never be brought to account.
      Understanding reality
      Knowing the objective reality of this world can often be quite difficult; it's usually shrouded by our limitations and weaknesses. Often, believers are tempted to ask God for 'signs' to substantiate their belief. We think how easy it must have been for the ancients who lived in a world of miracles to have belief.
      But the miracles are all around us.
      As Satan's mask drops, we can see the people who would typically protest about human rights as part of their overall 'belief system' but are utterly silent about genocide. We can see that people who were horrified by the death of a single Iranian woman are now completely silent about the deaths of thousands.
      And indeed, it's not just silence - there's active subterfuge on their part to protect the aggressor. We see evidence of social media algorithms being changed. We see evidence of the identify of the aggressor being hidden where typically it would not be. Journalists who held themselves to be paragons of integrity have been seen to be weak and supine. Newspapers that used to criticise other countries for censorship have been found to be self-censoring with abandon.
      It's now been left to ordinary people often those with no interest in that part of the world taking note of journalists who have been summarily removed simply for asking Israeli representatives the wrong questions. And just as technology has enabled aggressors to have superior weapons so we are able to better measure and compare the published narrative and have no doubt about what is happening.
      And that's just the media.
      As for political leaders, we can see the people who claim leadership of Muslims but who show none when world events demand it. We can see the leaders who not only fail to protect the oppressed but who take an active part in the oppression. Their followers are left having to make excuses or alternatively make up new ideologies to replace those found to be wanting.
      Crumbling in front of us is the whole edifice of human rights, feminism, democracy, freedom of the press, international system of crime and justice and all those other things that have been used to beat up Muslims for decades. Of course, there is nothing wrong with them per se - but it's now obvious that there was never any principle underpinning their use. They were only a weaponised tool whose promoters were kept on a tight leash and allowed to attack some countries while we now see them willingly held back from applying the same rules to others.
      Claims of a 'superior civilisation' (whose superiority above Islam we were told we should accept) are now an embarrassment except to those with no reason or shame. Its promoters have traded them for gains in this world and have given up whatever echoes they wished to leave for eternity. And even those gains will prove to be short lived. The moral high ground needs legitimacy which has now disappeared.
      Implications for us
      It's at times like this that we might be saddened by the loss of people and places. But at the same time, our faith should be reinvigorated by the knowledge that what others believe is false, whose hypocrisy is made manifest and most importantly, whose ethical and moral position is so weak that it requires extreme violence to uphold.
      Shias more than anyone know that gains and losses on the battlefield are not the end of the story.

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