Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics 19, no. 2 (Summer 2016)

Henry Hazlitt Memorial Lecture

This Interview was originally published in French by Institut Coppet as part of a series of interviews with economists conducted by Grégoire Canlorbe.

Ludwig von Mises’s majestic magnum opus, Human Action: A Treatise on Economics, was published on September 14, 1949. In the nearly seven decades since its appearance, Human Action has come to be recognized as one of the truly great classics of modern economics.

THE AUSTRIAN: How did you first become acquainted with Austrian economics and the Mises Institute?

ROBERT LUDDY: I was first introduced to Austrian economics by Dr. Bill Peterson, a student of Ludwig von Mises. We met when he was the Lundy Chair of the Philosophy of Business at Campbell University. Dr. Bill and I became lifelong friends and I was honored to learn under his mentorship until his death in 2012. Over the years, we attended Mises University with my two children as well as many Mises conferences.

Ten years ago, South America was witnessing the rise of what came to be known as the “pink tide.” Characterized by an allegedly kinder and softer version of socialism than the “red” communism of Castro’s Cuba, the pink tide had begun with the election of Hugo Chavez in Venezuela in 1998, followed by the election of Lula da Silva in Brazil in 2002, and followed by the rise of the Kirchners in Argentina in 2003.