Market prices in the Anthropocene age

Economics is the science of scarcity. According to the standard market model of neoclassical theory, market prices tend to reflect real scarcity under capitalism. Competition leads to that result. Is this claim true under the Anthropocene age, in which natural resources are degrading through depletion and pollution? In order to answer this question, this essay presents a market model of the unified theory of capitalism. The two market models are compared on assumptions and empirical predictions. Facts tend to be consistent with the predictions of the unified theory model and refute those of the neoclassical model. On epistemological grounds, unified theory explanation is superior. Therefore, market prices do not provide society with the correct signals about real scarcity. The results are used to clarify some usual misconceptions about the role of the market system in the functioning of capitalism.