My friend is a socialist. I want to give him a libertarian book this Christmas. It must explain the basics of economics (including the fiat monetary system) and show how libertarianism is better than socialism.
Economics In One Lesson.
That's a tall order, not sure that a single book will do it. When you say he's a "socialist" what do you mean precisely? Is he a european style social democrat? Is he an American uber-Liberal Democrat? Is he LibSoc? Communist? Etc.
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David Z
"The issue is always the same, the government or the market. There is no third solution."
European style social democrat.
Marko: Economics In One Lesson.
Seconded.
Powerful, but short and concise enough that he'll probably read it.
My 15-year-old little brother has taken an interest in Austrian economics, and has recently begun visiting Mises.org. His birthday is coming up and he asked for Economics In One Lesson.
alimentarius:European style social democrat.
"It has always been the prerogative of children and half-wits to point out that the emperor has no clothes. But the half-wit remains a half-wit and the emperor remains an emperor." ~Dream
The Voluntary City is always good, although I'm not sure it touches on the econ /fiat money as much as you might like...
Please help us on this thread.
And here to.
We want to make some outlines to answer these questions specifically for people.
Statism is a religion.
Economics for Real People by Gene Callahan. It's great.
Mises Community Natural Rights Discussion Group
Requiem for Marx
'It is difficult to imagine any normal person wishing to meet Marx for a third time.' - Alexander Gray, The Socialist Tradition
Requiem for Marx (free pdf) is an excellent book, IMO, though I do not think it is a good book to convert a social democrat. Requiem is too specific to Marxism, pure socialism, and communism. Economics for Real People (free pdf) is a better book for converting practically anyone, though it is only for those who have a greater interest in economics. Economics in One Lesson (free html version) is a good introduction for anyone, but it lacks in depth (which is where Requiem and Econ for Real People shine).
Requiem for Marx with David Gordon's "The Rise of Social Democracy" lecture.
Give him one of those books that aren't really books. that they sell at nick-nack stores. You know, the ones that have a secret storage area in the middle. To put keys or pictures or weed or whatever in.
Send him one of those. Put a turd in it. Don't put a nice sleave on it... put something European and particularly tiresome like Margaret Thatcher's autobiography.
This is also good for children's birthday parties.
-this post is not responsible if sending turds through the mail in your jurisdiction is not legal. Please check nearest turd czar for details. Some side effects may include cause for (the recipient) vomiting, mild discomfort, a sense of humour, or limited loss of appetite. If recipient experiences an erection lasting longer than four hours, please tell everyone you know and post about it on the mises.org.
The Road to Serfdom would be my pick. Hayek wrote it specifically for European socialists.
"I cannot prove, but am prepared to affirm, that if you take care of clarity in reasoning, most good causes will take care of themselves, while some bad ones are taken care of as a matter of course." -Anthony de Jasay
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