Most "economic indicators" are politically manufactured bullshit designed to mislead and control. GDP is among the worst.
this post was submitted on 18 Nov 2025
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Source? The article you linked is quite nice, but your claim here sounds like conspiracy theory bullshit.
There is nothing wrong with gdp as a measure when it is used appropriately in an appropriate context. And gdp has a lot going for it - namely, it is already an agreed upon standard; because it is the standard, a lot of modelling for other things and scientific research is based on it; it is easy to compare across different times and contexts; it is reasonably objective; it is relatively easy data to collect. It's a great example of how sometimes getting the job done right is less important than getting the job done right now.
The article is correct that we need a better measure for how well a nation or region is doing generally. Using gdp for this task is a bit like using vice grips to tighten and loosen bolts - it more or less gets the job done in a pinch, but it shouldn't be a long term strategy.
But I feel like the article misses the mark when it fails to mention that gdp is a favored metric for other reasons. Eg, policymakers may like to use the metric publicly to tout the public good. But a better use for it is comparing geopolitical economic power - something policymakers care about a lot. As stated in the article, it has been difficult to dethrone gdp. I think if that is the goal, a reasonable starting point is to acknowledge the actual reasons gdp is popular, and address those.
Any metric will become the goal itself. It always has. In academia, citations became the metric and now we use them to determine good science, without having to actually think. I think it's a flaw built into the neurotypical (and lots of neurodivergent types too).
Edit: in fact, metrics are the cancer that eats democracies. Anything can be justified by "line go up".
I actually had kind of a shower tought today which relates to GDP as a metric and your comment. It started with a contractor at my work, who had met someone at another company who used to sell guns, drugs and whatever illegal. The guy basically said that he felt no remorse and needed to this at the time, because otherwise he wasn't able to afford the expensive brand clothes and other status symbol stuff. The tought hit me later that this is what we have become as a society, a place where having lots of stuff is more important than having morals. And because of metrics like GDP but also stuff like wealth hoarding, this mindset sets us on a path which can only lead to destruction. Throw in social media and it's influencers as a catalyst, and it only gets worse.