Economics and Equilibrium

Most, if not all, fundamental constituents of an Economy are binary--sow-reap, produce-consume, supply-demand, sell-buy, etc.  Thus, the evaluation of an Economy must accord equal value to each term in such a pair.  So, insofar as a highest Moral or Political Good is unitary, e. g. Freedom, Happiness, etc., it is inadequate as a criterion for that evaluative function. Now, Equilibrium is widely accepted as descriptive of some Economic relations, e. g. Price as determined by Supply vs. Demand, but not as normative for others, e. g. the relation between Supply and Demand themselves.  The desirability of Equilibrium is clearer in some cases, e. g. in comparison with Demand exceeding Supply, i. e. Scarcity, than in others, e. g. in comparison with a surplus of Supply, which can entail waste, of both the good and the labor by which it has been produced.  In other words, Equilibrium signifies maximum efficiency, but not to the disadvantage of vitality, i. e. in the context of a society of animate beings, it signifies neither mechanical rigidity nor stagnation.  So, for example, with Equilibrium as the standard, an Economy which, at the same time, produces an excess of food for some, and leaves others underfed, is woefully inadequate, regardless of how well it measures up in terms of GNP, employment rate, etc.