One year before the Nazi takeover of Austria, and after Mises had already accepted a research position in Geneva, a remarkable book began to circulate in what remained of Vienna’s intellectual circles. It was Die Lehre von der Wirtschaft , The Economics of the Free Society by Wilhelm Röpke. If the Austrian economists had a textbook on economic
Human Action: The Scholar’s Edition Fifty years ago, Ludwig von Mises shocked the economics profession and elite opinion with a massive, revolutionary treatise on economics, the culmination of his life’s work. It was (and remains) the most comprehensive, systematic, forthright, and powerful defense of the economics of liberty ever written. It
In 1990, Murray N. Rothbard was interviewed by the Austrian Economics Newsletter . He discusses economic method, contemporary theoretical trends, the intersection between economic theory and policy, and the prospects for the Austrian School. To read the interview, click here . Under “periodicals,” you will find many more outstanding interviews in
Neoclassical economists in recent years have cited holiday gift giving as an example of inefficiency resulting in social loss. Why? Because the giver cannot know the preferences of the receiver, and is likely to buy something he does not really want. Instead of giving gifts, say these theorists, we should exchange cash, or, better yet, just keep
In the current antitrust hysteria, American Airlines is being “accused” by the Justice Department of cutting fares and increasing service to consumers, and thereby outcompeting smaller airlines. Why this is an accusation as versus a simple description of the competitive process is explained in Dominick Armentano’s outstanding new book: Antitrust:
The Free Market 16, no. 1 (January 1998) When the IMF declares a country an “economic miracle,” look out. A financial crisis cannot be far behind. First it was Japan, the juggernaut that was said to be on the verge of supplanting the U.S. as an economic superpower. Then it was Mexico, the model of how former banana republics can be transformed
The Free Market 16, no. 1 (January 1998) History books and the popular culture are full of stories about how “the white man” brutally mistreated the American Indians during the latter half of the nineteenth century. Greedy capitalists are usually portrayed as the villains, killing Indians by the thousands to make way for the railroads in
The Free Market 16, no. 1 (January 1998) China is undergoing one of the great economic transformations in human history. It has moved from communism toward what it calls “market socialism” at breakneck pace, and enjoyed double-digit economic growth as a result. As an inevitable consequence, the grip of central state power has begun to relax.
The Free Market 16, no. 1 (January 1998) Everyone knows about the class-action lawsuit against Hooters, the restaurant featuring waitresses in shorts and tight t-shirts. In the settlement, Hooters paid $2 million to the men who were denied the opportunity to serve as Hooter Girls, another $1.75 million in lawyer’s fees, and created three new
The Free Market 16, no. 1 (January 1998) Competition is a process, the Austrian economists have long said, not a moment frozen in time. Today’s dominant company could be tomorrow’s rubble. Whether the winner can stay on top is dependent on its management, its ability to innovate, and, above all, the will of the consuming public. But since the
What is the Mises Institute?
The Mises Institute is a non-profit organization that exists to promote teaching and research in the Austrian School of economics, individual freedom, honest history, and international peace, in the tradition of Ludwig von Mises and Murray N. Rothbard.
Non-political, non-partisan, and non-PC, we advocate a radical shift in the intellectual climate, away from statism and toward a private property order. We believe that our foundational ideas are of permanent value, and oppose all efforts at compromise, sellout, and amalgamation of these ideas with fashionable political, cultural, and social doctrines inimical to their spirit.