Introduction: An Austro-Libertarian Reconstruction
The following studies try to explain three of the most momentous events in the history of mankind.
First, I explain the origin of private property, and in particular of ground land, and of the family and the family household as the institutional foundations of agriculture and agrarian life that began some 11,000 years ago, with the Neolithic Revolution in the Fertile Crescent of the Near-East, and that has since—until well through the late nineteenth century—come to shape and leave an imprint on human life everywhere.
1. On the Origin of Private Property and the Family
I. The Setting: History
It is reasonable to begin human history five million years ago, when the human line of evolutionary descent separated from that of our closest nonhuman relative, the chimpanzee. It is also reasonable to begin it 2.5 million years ago, with the first appearance of homo habilis; or 200,000 years ago, when the first representative of “anatomically modern man” made its appearance; or 100,000 years ago, when the anatomically modern man had become the standard human form.
A Short History of Man: Progress and Decline
Foreword by Llewellyn H. Rockwell, Jr.
Hans-Hermann Hoppe is one of the most remarkable libertarian scholars of our time. He began as a prize student of Jürgen Habermas, the famous German philosopher and social theorist. Habermas was, and remains to this day, a committed Marxist. He is the leader of the notorious Frankfurt school.
Mises the Applied Economist
Over at EconLog Alberto Mingardi has an excellent post on “Ebeling on Mises, the Applied Economist.” Ebeling is one of the top Mises scholars. Mingardi’s introduction:
Mises Daily Wednesday: Five Steps to Fixing Greece’s Debt Problem
Mises Daily Wednesday by Frank Hollenbeck:
The Europeans have decided to limit funding and credit extended to the Greeks. This puts the Greek financial system under pressure, but there are free-market solutions that could set the Greeks on the path to a sound economy.
Five Steps to Fixing Greece’s Debt Problem
The ECB decision to limit liquidity to Greek banks was another nail in the euro-coffin, and rumors of a “Grexit” caused bank withdrawals to accelerate. Over 25 billion euros have been withdrawn from Greek banks since the end of November 2014. But there’s a problem. Fractional-reserve Greek banks do not have the funds to cover all the withdrawals if trends continue.
Against Apoplithorismosphobia
It is good to see Martin Feldstein, Professor of Economics at Harvard, President Emeritus of the National Bureau of Economic Research, and chair of Ronald Reagan’s Council of Economic Advisers from 1982 to 1984, join Joe Salerno (here, here, ), Mark Thornton who has revived the term, apoplithorismo