Einstein's name is synonymous with brilliance, yet his great intelligence did not translate to logical economic thinking. Instead, Einstein embraced socialism, thinking that one could guide an economy like one guides a mathematical equation.
While F.A. Hayek contributed much to the Austrian School of Economics, he also supported the establishment of the welfare state, believing that it was compatible with the rule of law. Ludwig von Mises, however, knew that the welfare state is the ubiquitous slippery slope.
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.
When discussing the homeless situation in the US, Star Trek does not usually come to mind. However, one episode from about three decades ago was both insightful and prophetic in presenting what would be homelessness in San Francisco.
While Henri Bergson did not point his intellectual abilities toward politics, lesser men who were unscrupulous commandeered his ideas to promote their own collectivist ideologies.
Many proponents of free markets have tried to cast aside the name “capitalism” as a descriptor of the market system. They should take caution before doing so.
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.
Socialist regimes tend to follow the same playbook: promise much, deliver little, and, in the end, blame capitalism. Venezuela is the latest socialist entity to enter the Failed State Hall of Fame.
The Mises Institute is creating lessons for young economists to better help them evaluate and interpret economic events. Of course, these lessons also apply to anyone else wanting to be better educated on economics.
