The Engineers and the Price System

Thorstein Veblen’s The Engineers and the Price System reads like a manifesto for a society caught between technological potential and economic dysfunction. Writing in the aftermath of World War I, Veblen saw a paradox: engineers had proven they could mobilize industry with precision and efficiency, yet in peacetime, they were sidelined by financiers and business leaders who prioritized profit over progress. He begins with the provocative idea of “sabotage”—not in the violent sense, but as the intentional throttling of production to maintain prices and protect vested interests. In Veblen’s view, this kind of economic manipulation was endemic to the capitalist system, where business strategy often meant suppressing output rather than maximizing it. As the book unfolds, Veblen paints a picture of two competing forces: the captains of finance, who control credit and markets, and the engineers, who understand the machinery and systems that actually produce goods. He argues that the latter are better suited to lead industrial society—not because they are morally superior, but because they are guided by functionality and public utility rather than speculation. The climax of his argument is a bold proposal: a “soviet of technicians,” a council of engineers who would manage industry in the public interest. Veblen doesn’t imagine this as a utopia, but as a practical alternative to the inefficiencies and contradictions of the price system. His vision is technocratic, but deeply rooted in a critique of economic power and its detachment from real productivity.