Other Schools of Thought

Mises Fellow Kristoffer Hansen joins Bob to discuss the controversy surrounding Mises' perspective on fractional reserve banking and free banking.

There are numerous critics of the Austrian School of economics, but when their disparagements are closely examined, the so-called experts themselves are wrong. Austrians can do a better job of setting the record straight.

Sponsored by Gregory and Jane Gandee.

It is understood that Marx's theories stand entirely upon his Labor Theory of Value. If that theory is discredited, so is the scenario that leads to the inevitable triumph of communism. That fact, however, doesn't stop Marx's disciples from employing other fallacies.

Marx built his infamous labor theory of value on the premise that labor itself was a commodity. However, as Mises and other Austrians have noted, Marx failed both at understanding the complexity of labor and subjective value theories.

It is understood that Marx's theories stand entirely upon his Labor Theory of Value. If that theory is discredited, so is the scenario that leads to the inevitable triumph of communism. That fact, however, doesn't stop Marx's disciples from employing other fallacies.

Keynesians are known for using obscure and jumbled jargon to explain their fallacious ideas. The hope being that, the more confusing the language, the greater the perceived scholarship. Good economics can and should be clearly logically explained.

In fact, all great states in the 20th century have been killer states, to a greater or lesser degree.

Bob explains the contributions of Menger and Mises to monetary theory. He then deals with the critique of David Graeber, who argues that the economists' story of the origin of money is bogus.

What we may call the “spending illusion” is perhaps the gravest error in the history of economic thought and has been deeply embedded in economics since the early twentieth century.