World History

The first self-conscious school of economic thought developed in France shortly after the publication of Cantillon’s Essai.

The first self-conscious school of economic thought developed in France shortly after the publication of Cantillon's <i>Essai</i>. They called themselves "the economists" but later came to be called the "physiocrats," after their prime politico-economical principle: physiocracy (the rule of nature).

As with most regulations, the CFC ban hit the poor with a vengeance. Millions of perfectly functioning refrigerators could no longer be recharged with Freon, so everyone was forced to purchase new CFC-free appliances. This, of course, was especially difficult for those with low incomes.

The history of the 19th and 20th centuries has discredited the hopes and the prognostications of the philosophers of the Enlightenment. The peoples did not proceed on the road toward freedom, constitutional government, civil rights, free trade, peace, and good will among nations.

Julian Assange cracked the government's veil of benignity and brought into question the state's tactics. So the state must destroy him.

If Scott can excoriate most of his fellow historians for confounding "civilization" with "state-making," he himself can be excoriated for confounding statelessness with lack of government.

Raico's historical essays are not for the faint of heart nor for those whose loyalty to the US or British state outweighs their devotion to truth and humanity. Yet Ralph did not invent the ugly facts he recounts here, as his ample documentation attests.

As Hans-Hermann Hoppe has <a href="http://store.mises.org/Democracy-The-God-That-Failed-P240.aspx">noted</a>, democracy is owned by no one. But neither is representative government. Both are marked by infantilized societies: time preference shortens, current consumption trumps wealth-producing capital formation, tax burdens increase, and government debt swells.

Charles, the third Viscount Townshend (1700–1764), has been shamefully neglected by virtually all historians of economic thought. He is virtually unknown and is often confused with his son of the same name.