Most interpretations of American free banking experiences in the nineteenth century focus on the failure of what is commonly believed to have been an experiment in unregulated banking. In this dissertation completed in 1988, economist Karen Y. Palasek advances the thesis that not only was free banking a strictly regulated system, but the reasons for its failure stem directly from the regulations themselves and from the regulatory ties between bond collateral requirements for competitively issued redeemable banknotes and a large volume of government debt which was essentially used as a reserve by free banks.
To illustrate the impediments presented by free banking laws, Palasek compares free banking experiences in New York to bank experiences in New England under the Suffolk System. She argues that the New England regional banking system that developed under the Suffolk was essentially a laissez-faire banking system, producing stability and safety for noteholders and depositors through market-driven behavioral constraints on the banks. New York, arguably the best example of American free banking, compares unfavorably on both stability and safety to the more laissez-faire system. The implications of this reexamination of free banking and the recent debates over the causes of instability in the free banking era have a bearing on modern reconsideration of deregulation and the self-regulating properties of a laissez-faire monetary system in the areas of stability, safety, and adequacy of banking facilities.
Benedict XVI: A Life
Peter Seewald has published an extensive biography of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, which will be of special interest to all supporters of the Austrian school and lovers of liberty who, whether believers or not, persistently condemn the “fatal conceit” of statism.
Intellectuals and Socialism
In every country that has moved toward socialism, the phase of the development in which socialism becomes a determining influence on politics has been preceded by a period during which socialist ideals governed the thinking of the more active intellectuals.
Intellectuals and Socialism
In every country that has moved toward socialism, the phase of the development in which socialism becomes a determining influence on politics has been preceded by a period during which socialist ideals governed the thinking of the more active intellectuals.
Not Yours to Give
"The power of collecting and disbursing money at pleasure is the most dangerous power that can be intrusted to man. You will very easily perceive what a wide door this would open for fraud and corruption and favoritism, on the one hand, and for robbing the people on the other."
Not Yours to Give
"The power of collecting and disbursing money at pleasure is the most dangerous power that can be intrusted to man. You will very easily perceive what a wide door this would open for fraud and corruption and favoritism, on the one hand, and for robbing the people on the other."
The Economics of War
In this article from 1950, Murray Rothbard suggests some of the less bad ways of financing military operations. Hint: monetary inflation and taxing savings and investment are among the worst.
The Economics of War
In this article from 1950, Murray Rothbard suggests some of the less bad ways of financing military operations. Hint: monetary inflation and taxing savings and investment are among the worst.
How Do We Calculate Value?
Judgments of value do not measure: they arrange, they grade. If he relies only on subjective valuation, even isolated man cannot arrive at an economic decision based on more or less exact computations in cases where the solution is not immediately evident. To aid his calculations he must assume substitution relations between commodities. That's where exchange value and prices come in.
How Do We Calculate Value?
Judgments of value do not measure: they arrange, they grade. If he relies only on subjective valuation, even isolated man cannot arrive at an economic decision based on more or less exact computations in cases where the solution is not immediately evident. To aid his calculations he must assume substitution relations between commodities. That's where exchange value and prices come in.
Menger’s Anti-Historical Method Versus the Neoclassical Anti-Historical Method
The Austrian-school approach, with its realist, real-world approach, is actually more inclined toward empiricism than the neo-classical economists who tend toward very abstract theories and models.
Menger’s Anti-Historical Method Versus the Neoclassical Anti-Historical Method
The Austrian-school approach, with its realist, real-world approach, is actually more inclined toward empiricism than the neo-classical economists who tend toward very abstract theories and models.
Word, Action, and Entrepreneurship
An essential aspect of the Mengerian-Misesian tradition — the emphasis that it puts on the entrepreneurial character of all human action, that is, its inherent entanglement with the problems of scarcity and uncertainty.
Word, Action, and Entrepreneurship
An essential aspect of the Mengerian-Misesian tradition — the emphasis that it puts on the entrepreneurial character of all human action, that is, its inherent entanglement with the problems of scarcity and uncertainty.
Legacy of Menger’s Theory of Social Institutions
Menger’s insights about the origin of social structures inspired later contributions in three main areas: spontaneous order, money, and law.
Legacy of Menger’s Theory of Social Institutions
Menger’s insights about the origin of social structures inspired later contributions in three main areas: spontaneous order, money, and law.
A Biography of Henry Hazlitt
"The art of economics consists of looking not merely at the immediate but at the longer effects of any act or policy; it consists in tracing the consequences of that policy not merely for one group but for all groups."
A Biography of Henry Hazlitt
"The art of economics consists of looking not merely at the immediate but at the longer effects of any act or policy; it consists in tracing the consequences of that policy not merely for one group but for all groups."
Can We Still Avoid Inflation?
Inflation can always give only a temporary fillip to the economy, and will leave us with a legacy of postponed adjustments and new maladjustments which make our problem more difficult.
Can We Still Avoid Inflation?
Inflation can always give only a temporary fillip to the economy, and will leave us with a legacy of postponed adjustments and new maladjustments which make our problem more difficult.
The Right Not To Testify
Whoever wishes to do so, freely and voluntarily. Conscription of witnesses is no more justified than conscription into the armed forces or into any other service or occupation.
Dr. Palasek is Assistant Professor of Business at Barton College, and serves as the Director of Educational and Academic Programs at the John Locke Foundation.
The amazing fact is that the great majority of British people are not yet consciously aware that they are living in a very severe economic crisis.
