Posts in "Rothbard"

By Creighton Harrington at 2:00PM

Aug 5, 2010

Does M.I.A. Read Rothbard?

This a music video from the artist M.I.A. called "Born Free." Anyone who has read Rothbard's For A New Liberty: The Libertarian Manifesto will recognize the video's echoes of Rothbards explanation of the problems with utilitarian philosophy.

Be cautioned, however, that this video contains graphic violence.

Posted in:

1 comment

By Creighton Harrington at 10:40PM

Mar 2, 2010

A Leap of Faith from the Bunning Affair

Yes, bear with me on this one.

First I want to give Bunning some credit. If you don't know what's going on, he is halting the Senate essentially (although they could vote today regardless of his objection) on a 30 day extension for jobless benefits funds. He's getting a lot of heat because he just up and decided that this is what he would raise objection on, yet he supported the Bush tax cuts, war funding, etc. In that aspect suspicion is rightly placed. However, I've been watching alot of news programs twist this into partisan politic, wickedness, etc. This is what he is really doing. He's not trying to halt jobless benefits; he wants to take the money for it from allocated funds, like stimulus funds, instead of increasing the debt. That's it. So, I'll give him a pat on the back for sticking to a principle (even if it just suddenly appeared).

We must be Romantics.

From For A New Liberty: The Libertarian Manifesto (this excerpt is, itself, a quote of H. L. Mencken):

All [that government] can see in an original idea is potential change, and hence an invasion of its prerogatives. The most dangerous man, to any government, is the man who is able to think things out for himself, without regard to the prevailing superstitions and taboos. Almost inevitably he comes to the conclusion that the government he lives under is dishonest, insane and intolerable, and so, if he is romantic, he tries to change it. And even if he is not romantic personally he is very apt to spread discontent among those who are.

Now, obviously, it is well known that the state fears original thinking. Why shouldn't it? As Rothbard states in his essay "The Anatomy of the State" it is the populace's adherance to state rule that allows the state to survive. Even if it is the Third Reich, the people under the rule of said regime must, at least a majority must, believe the state necessary and in their best interest (the Third Reich was even voted for democratically) to exist.

Milton Friedman Unraveled

During the economic crisis, the establishment media has blamed all that has happened thus far on the "free market" and the view of it represented by the thought and writings of Milton Friedman. Having read Capitalism and Freedom and Free to Choose, I find him a very good economist -- but everyone familiar with Friedman should know that he is no free-market economist in the mold of the Austrians. Here's Murray Rothbard's commentary on Friedman and the damage some of his ideas and actions have had.

(Hat-tip to LRC)

Posted in:

3 comments

By Elliot Engstrom at 7:36AM

May 8, 2009

Mises/Rothbard 2012!!

Curious?

Posted in:

4 comments

By Chet Butterworth at 1:36AM

Dec 18, 2008

Learn to Speak Austrian Fluently

We were discussing the intricacies of inflation, gold, the Federal Reserve and the like at my last Campaign for Liberty meet up; several of my colleagues confessed that they regrettably didn’t understand the matters fluently.