Austrian Economics Overview

The so-called free rider problem is touted as a reason for government economic intervention. Like other excuses for intervention, it doesn’t stand up to scrutiny.

Robert Hall and Michael Woodford certainly deserve the Nobel memorial prize. Their work has had a substantial impact, yet significance is not soundness.

Robert Hall and Michael Woodford certainly deserve the Nobel memorial prize. Their work has had a substantial impact, yet significance is not soundness.

Austrian economics is reality based. The current economic policies coming from Washington are based on economic fantasies.

Mainstream economists believe that a market economy is by definition internally unstable. Austrians argue that the instability comes from outside intervention. Thus, Austrians can explain what is happening while others simply describe the events.

While not as effective an economist as Ludwig von Mises or Murray N. Rothbard, Ludwig Lachmann played an important role in the revitalization of Austrian economics after 1974.

Since 1986, Mises University has been the world’s leading academic program advancing Austrian economics. This July, we celebrated the 40th anniversary of our flagship event with students attending from around the world.

In 1871, Carl Menger gave what still is the best explanation of diminishing marginal utility. What was true in 1871 is true today.

The beauty of Austrian economics is that it springs from real human action and does not depend upon the construction of abstract mathematical models meant to parallel reality.

In 1962, despite professional and institutional obstacles, Man, Economy, and State was finally published. With it, Rothbard greatly advanced the Austrian tradition and firmly positioned himself as Mises’s heir.