Non-maximum Disequilibrium Macrodynamics

In his stimulating Nobel Prize Lecture, Paul Samuelson made the important point that there were interesting macrodynamic systems which could, in no sensible sense, be associated with maximization problems. The paradigmatic example he chose was the multiplier-accelerator system. In this paper I make an attempt to explore the connection between macrodynamics, rationality and computability against the backdrop provided by Samuelson's observation and Richard Goodwin's nonlinear methodological credo. It is shown that non-maximum, disequilibrium macrodynamics is perfectly consistent with standard rationality postulates.