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The Logic of Action Two: Applications and Criticism from the Austrian School
Murray N. Rothbard was the leading voice of the Austrian School of Economics during its post-war American revival. His research in economic theory, history, method and policy, was the major impetus for today's burgeoning interest in the Austrian School and the broader realm of free-market thought. The Logic of Action Two is a careful selection of Rothbard's most important scholarly articles. Some have appeared in mainstream journals, others have been long out of circulation, and still others are published here for the first time. It was Rothbard's major ambition to shore up the scientific status of the Austrian School and, at the same time, demonstrate the theory s radical, free-market implications for government policy. The book confirms Rothbard as an intellectual giant, and presents his many contributions to the Austrian School, a systematic alternative to mainstream thought that reaches radical, free-market policy conclusions.
- GenresPhilosophyEconomics
432 pages, Hardcover
First published July 1, 1997
About the author
Murray N. Rothbard
287 books1,133 followersMurray Newton Rothbard was an influential American historian, natural law theorist and economist of the Austrian School who helped define modern libertarianism. Rothbard took the Austrian School's emphasis on spontaneous order and condemnation of central planning to an individualist anarchist conclusion, which he termed "anarcho-capitalism".
In the 1970s, he assisted Charles Koch and Ed Crane to found the Cato Institute as libertarian think tank.
In the 1970s, he assisted Charles Koch and Ed Crane to found the Cato Institute as libertarian think tank.
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July 25, 2024
THE SECOND VOLUME OF A DIVERSE COLLECTION OF ROTHBARD'S ECONOMIC WRITINGS,
Murray Newton Rothbard (1926-1995) was an American economist, historian and political theorist. He was a prominent exponent of the Austrian School of economics in this country and a key figure in the American libertarian movement. His major work in economics was 'Man, Economy and State. This posthumous collection (see also 'The Logic of Action I: Method, Money, and the Austrian School') contains a diverse collection of his writings on economics.
He suggests that "Both the passive and the tribal aspects of New Left culture were embodied in its idea of the 'Woodstock Nation,' in which hundreds of thousands of herd-like, undifferentiated youth wallowed passively in the mud listening to their tribal ritual music." (Pg. 17) He suggests that "It is high time, then, for those who cherish freedom, individuality, the division of labor, and economic prosperity and survival, to stop conceding the supposed nobility of the ideal of equality..." (Pg. 27)
He admits, "Unions... are theoretically compatible with the existence of a purely free market. In actual fact, however, it is evident to any competent observer that unions acquire almost all their power through the wielding of force..." (Pg. 41) He later argues, "civilization itself is a process of all of us 'free-riding' on the achievements of others. We all free-ride, every day, on the achievements of Edison, Beethoven, or Vermeer..." (Pg. 86)
Arguing that "a bureaucrat... is in reality not paying taxes at all. His tax payment is a bookkeeping fiction" (Pg. 100). He suggests that "The point of a neutral tax is to affect the income 'distribution' and all other aspects of the economy in the same way as if the tax were a free-market price." (Pg. 101) He criticizes the idea of "phony tax shelters," on the grounds that "Who is equipped to look into my heart and mind and find out if these losses are 'genuine' or not?" (Pg. 112)
He insists, "The basic libertarian principle is that everyone should be allowed to do whatever he or she is doing unless committing an overt act of aggression against someone else. But what about situations where it is unclear whether or not a person is committing aggression? In those cases, the only procedure consonant with libertarian principles is to do nothing... it is far better to let an aggressive act slip through than to impose coercion and therefore to commit aggression ourselves." (Pg. 137-138)
He recommends the "abolition, not the privatization, of such operations as... all regulatory commissions, central banks, income tax bureaus, and, of course, all the bureaus administering those functions that are going to be privatized." (Pg. 208) He asserts that "Society cannot own anything. There is not entity called society; there are only interacting individuals." (Pg. 303)
Rothbard's writings are always thought-provoking and controversial; and this is another excellent collection of them.
Murray Newton Rothbard (1926-1995) was an American economist, historian and political theorist. He was a prominent exponent of the Austrian School of economics in this country and a key figure in the American libertarian movement. His major work in economics was 'Man, Economy and State. This posthumous collection (see also 'The Logic of Action I: Method, Money, and the Austrian School') contains a diverse collection of his writings on economics.
He suggests that "Both the passive and the tribal aspects of New Left culture were embodied in its idea of the 'Woodstock Nation,' in which hundreds of thousands of herd-like, undifferentiated youth wallowed passively in the mud listening to their tribal ritual music." (Pg. 17) He suggests that "It is high time, then, for those who cherish freedom, individuality, the division of labor, and economic prosperity and survival, to stop conceding the supposed nobility of the ideal of equality..." (Pg. 27)
He admits, "Unions... are theoretically compatible with the existence of a purely free market. In actual fact, however, it is evident to any competent observer that unions acquire almost all their power through the wielding of force..." (Pg. 41) He later argues, "civilization itself is a process of all of us 'free-riding' on the achievements of others. We all free-ride, every day, on the achievements of Edison, Beethoven, or Vermeer..." (Pg. 86)
Arguing that "a bureaucrat... is in reality not paying taxes at all. His tax payment is a bookkeeping fiction" (Pg. 100). He suggests that "The point of a neutral tax is to affect the income 'distribution' and all other aspects of the economy in the same way as if the tax were a free-market price." (Pg. 101) He criticizes the idea of "phony tax shelters," on the grounds that "Who is equipped to look into my heart and mind and find out if these losses are 'genuine' or not?" (Pg. 112)
He insists, "The basic libertarian principle is that everyone should be allowed to do whatever he or she is doing unless committing an overt act of aggression against someone else. But what about situations where it is unclear whether or not a person is committing aggression? In those cases, the only procedure consonant with libertarian principles is to do nothing... it is far better to let an aggressive act slip through than to impose coercion and therefore to commit aggression ourselves." (Pg. 137-138)
He recommends the "abolition, not the privatization, of such operations as... all regulatory commissions, central banks, income tax bureaus, and, of course, all the bureaus administering those functions that are going to be privatized." (Pg. 208) He asserts that "Society cannot own anything. There is not entity called society; there are only interacting individuals." (Pg. 303)
Rothbard's writings are always thought-provoking and controversial; and this is another excellent collection of them.
Displaying 1 of 1 review