History of the Austrian School of Economics

It's a bit odd for the economics profession right now to be celebrating two scientists for their work in helping policymakers steer the macroeconomy.

Ludwig von Mises has safeguarded the foundations of a rational economic science.

Just as the interventions of the Hoover administration in the early 1930s led to a massive increase in government under the New Deal and the abandonment of the gold standard, so too have the "stimulus" packages gotten us to the point where raw money printing is a policy option.

Mises and Hayek are widely considered the most eminent liberal thinkers of the twentieth century. But, there are differences in their two legacies.

Mises missed no opportunity, in private as well as in public, to proclaim his abhorrence of all forms of state intervention.

What is the problem we wish to solve when we try to construct a rational economic order?

Resolved: Government Spending Can Play an Important Role in Boosting Economic Growth. 

David Graeber's new book allegedly destroys the standard account of the origin of money. If correct, Graeber's views would prove embarrassing to the Austrian School, because it was Carl Menger who developed the first systematic explanation for how people went from barter to a full-blown monetary economy.

An old Polish soldier who had settled in London after World War II exposed me to the teachings of Hayek when I was sixteen years old.

Adam Smith was able to sweep the field, while Cantillon and Turgot, who were far superior as technical economists and freedom champions, languished.