The Road to Serfdom
We are on it. I saw on Instapundit that today is F.A. Hayek's birthday. I am in the middle of reading his book, The Road to Serfdom 
and I wish so very much I had read this earlier in life. I took several economics classes in college but didn't read this book, I think they told us to read Karl Marx's The Communist Manifesto. 
Pity.
and I wish so very much I had read this earlier in life. I took several economics classes in college but didn't read this book, I think they told us to read Karl Marx's The Communist Manifesto. Pity.Labels: interesting books, politics
posted by Helen at 4:52 PM
11 Comments:
You know, when a scientific theory proves false, they generally stop teaching it.
It would be great if they did this with communism / socialism as economic theory.
Instead, it belongs in history class, so that we can giggle about it like we do the geocentric uninverse.
Tell the Dutch that Socialism is dead or does not work or is false. Tell the people who lost homes, retirement funds, jobs that the free market works. In fact Marx taught because he is historically of interest and because of the focus he offered upon economics. Hayek ought to be taught but his opposite is john maynard keynes, and he is very much central today.
tell them that the democratic congress did it to them fred.
Trey
Excellent choice, Helen. Hayek's book lays clear the necessity of capitalism, and shows how socialism inevitably leads to dictatorship. Hayek uses the example of how the socialist policies of the Weimar republic in Germany (1918 - 1933) made it possible for the Nazis to come to power.
Hayek does a great service by exploding two of the biggest myths of the 20th century. (1) The myth that you can have a democracy with a socialist economy, and (2) The myth that the Nazis were pro-capitalist.
You read The Communist Manifesto? Wow. It was a required reading in my college. But it was in Poland under communist rule. I never made it trough. It was too boring and just too difficult. I had to pretend I did read it. Now, I am anti-socialist because I don't want anybody to waste any part of their life living in it. As 49yr old man I try to help other men by promoting Yoga.
Tell the people who lost homes, retirement funds, jobs that the free market works.We have a free market? Interesting.
I can't wait till you get to the chapter on "Why The Worst Get On Top." If that doesn't have you chanting "yes, yes, yes!" I'll eat my mortgage.
Obviously, I have another book to buy.
Me too. I think when I last looked, it was ascending Amazon rankings. That's good. A sign of hope during this time of national insanity.
Delightful take. How horrifying that his insight has sunken once more beneath the waves.
I read the "lesson: given in the link provided by Sissy...alas, it totally ignores what the Puritans did also do:
set a large parcel of land aside for common use in grazing. Such parcles are still to be found in many New England cities, such as Boston, New Haven etc...what the Puritans did know was that we share things as well as being independent and on our own. This lesson went next to Ben Franklin, who developed street cleaning and post offices and gave some inventions free to by of use to the general public, at the same time making sure he took care of his own financial needs...see: combination of Public and Private. Do we want to do away with insured bank accounts? Social Security etc?
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