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Why do Austrians like bow-ties so much?

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Why do Austrians like bow-ties so much?

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Scott Jefferies posted on Sat, Nov 15 2008 4:34 PM

I have a great deal of respect for economists in this tradition and their ideas have had a huge impact on my philosophical and political views. So with all due respect, i have to ask... why do they like bow-ties so much?

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Answered (Not Verified) scineram replied on Sat, Nov 15 2008 4:36 PM
Suggested by Libertyandlife

They have class?

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Twirlcan replied on Sat, Nov 15 2008 5:02 PM

Bow ties look nice on some people and really bad on others (like me).  I am taking a guess that Libertarians like bow-ties partly out of admiration for people like Rothbard and partly because they like the way they look while wearing them. 

The sereotypical "nerd" wearing a short sleeved shirt and a bow tie  was actually started by IBM in the 1950s.  IBM had a dress code of white shirt, sensible pants and shoes and a tie.  But the computer's in those days often had dangerous moving parts and a regular tie could prove fatal so the nerds at IBM wore bow ties and short sleeved shirts to protect themselves and their clothes from spinning 5mb hard drives the size of walk in freezers.  Since that was the best place for computer scientists to work, others adopted the "look".

Followers of Che Guevara who wear berets don't say "I look silly in this thing but I am going to wear it because Che wore it".  They wear it because they think it looks cool.  

When I was in Colombia a few years ago the leftists would wear them in Bogota...which was not bad since Bogota never got above 80 degrees and could get pretty cold at night but the ones at the foot of Seira Nevada de Santa Marta would be sweltering idiots with smelly wool on their heads.  But they were armed so I never said anything.  Up higher on the mountain was cooler and controlled by the AUC...who also wore berets for some reason.  Probably not out of admiration for Guevara but because they looked cool.  Still farther up the mountain the Arahuaco indians wore giant felt hats that symbolised a phallus.  They wore those hats for religious and traditional reasons as no one wants to go around with a felt wang on their head.

My monograph, Hats of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta: Why people bother wearing them, should be out in early 2010 shortly after the release of "Bow-Ties: Head Turning Fashion That Won't Snap Your Neck: is out in 2009.

 

 

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10Brandonr replied on Sat, Nov 15 2008 7:48 PM

I love bowties! I wore one to prom and everyone loved it!

-All in favor of bowties being the official clothing "symbol" of libertarianism say "Aye"!

Thank You - Brandon

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Steve replied on Sat, Nov 15 2008 8:03 PM

Perhaps Mr. J Tucker could shed some light on this question. He dons the bowtie proudly on the Mises YouTube channel.

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Twirlcan replied on Sat, Nov 15 2008 8:04 PM

10Brandonr:

I love bowties! I wore one to prom and everyone loved it!

-All in favor of bowties being the official clothing "symbol" of libertarianism say "Aye"!

My nomination is for Lederhosen,  wooden clogs, Wool tartan cape, three point hat...and a bow tie.

I model this idea after President Karzai of Afghanistan and how he took Uzbek, Pashtun and Tajik dress and combined it into a smart ensemble that says "Central Asia".   My idea would scream...literally..."Western European Ideas".

 

 

 

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MacFall replied on Sat, Nov 15 2008 9:35 PM

When Rothbard did it, it was a lot more popular than it is today. And since Rothbard was the dean of the Austrian School, I guess people tend to imitate him.

Personally, despite being an ardent Austrian, I only wear ties when I absolutely have to. Generally my garb is a sort of half-assed metal/grunge thing. Meaning I wear a lot of black in no particular style. >_>

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MacFall replied on Sat, Nov 15 2008 9:36 PM

Twirlcan:

My nomination is for Lederhosen,  wooden clogs, Wool tartan cape, three point hat...and a bow tie.

The bow tie must be comically large with a pattern of some sort.

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Donny with an A replied on Sat, Nov 15 2008 9:39 PM

Scott Jefferies:

I have a great deal of respect for economists in this tradition and their ideas have had a huge impact on my philosophical and political views. So with all due respect, i have to ask... why do they like bow-ties so much?

Because Murray Rothbard is a sexy beast.

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Answered (Not Verified) nameless replied on Sat, Nov 15 2008 9:41 PM
Suggested by MacFall
To its devotees the bow tie suggests iconoclasm of an Old World sort, a fusty adherence to a contrarian point of view. The bow tie hints at intellectualism, real or feigned, and sometimes suggests technical acumen, perhaps because it is so hard to tie. Bow ties are worn by magicians, country doctors, lawyers and professors and by people hoping to look like the above. But perhaps most of all, wearing a bow tie is a way of broadcasting an aggressive lack of concern for what other people think.

—Warren St John, The New York Times
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MacFall replied on Sat, Nov 15 2008 9:46 PM

nameless:
. . .But perhaps most of all, wearing a bow tie is a way of broadcasting an aggressive lack of concern for what other people think.

...Suddenly I find I don't dislike bowties so much.

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liberty student replied on Sat, Nov 15 2008 9:47 PM

MacFall:

nameless:

. . .But perhaps most of all, wearing a bow tie is a way of broadcasting an aggressive lack of concern for what other people think.

...Suddenly I find I don't dislike bowties so much.

Indeed.  Well put nameless.

 

"When you're young you worry about people stealing your ideas, when you're old you worry that they won't." - David Friedman
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Twirlcan replied on Sat, Nov 15 2008 9:51 PM

MacFall:

The bow tie must be comically large with a pattern of some sort.

 

No.

That would make it look tacky.

 

 

 

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MacFall replied on Sat, Nov 15 2008 10:03 PM

Twirlcan:

MacFall:

The bow tie must be comically large with a pattern of some sort.

No.

That would make it look tacky.

Powdered wigs, then?

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Donny with an A replied on Sat, Nov 15 2008 10:13 PM

I feel like a powdered wig would go better with one of those ruffly puff things that come out of the front of your shirt than with a bow tie...

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