Note the other metaphors for the firm—machine, rent-seeking apparatus, or self-contained system—do nothing to help us understand why the private sector came into existence or the nature of the entrepreneur’s contribution. Capitalist democracy and the private sector firm are intertwined with uncertainty, mutually defining and supporting their value-adding. The planning, design, or machine models belong in a centrally controlled politics. The rent-seeking apparatus belongs in a feudal system. Conversely, an appreciation for the political context of private sector business is germane to effective
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