Is the Treadmill a Dialectical or a Linear Change Theory?

Some Critics of Treadmill Theory argue that it appears to be a theory of linear change. There is some irony in this because most of the “standard” economic theories (especially neoliberalism and free trade) are almost exclusively linear in their presentations. Indeed, they are treated as axioms (to be believed in), not theories (to be tested). Much of contemporary economic theory is, in fact, a kind of morality tale (Krugman 2002). The arguments supporting it are rarely subjected to empirical scrutiny.