Epilogue

This is only the first installment to my reviews of Dr. Murray N. Rothbard's works. I didn't get too far! Well, this has been a particularly busy winter season and, of course, the older you get the faster time goes.

I discussed For a New Liberty, The Ethics of Liberty, and Man, Economy and State, which were probably his three most important works in the libertarian philosophy and truly free market economic theory. I was really hoping to add Power and Market, which a follow-up to Man, Economy and State and, in the newest edition, is part of the same book. I have to wonder if Dr. Rothbard didn't share my motto: Keep it simple/smart! He teaches his material in such a way as to lay it out in front of you very logically and simply. He teaches everything that way, especially economics. The way the establishment teaches economics, with all its mathematical formulas, models, and graphs, most people find it very challenging at best; in fact most people are inclined to give up and leave it to "experts" and policy-makers. This is deliberate since, as we have seen, wealth and power gravitate to establishment interests. Rothbard tried to change this and, in so doing, he gave the rest of us the tools to carry on.

Next fall, I intend to start out with Power and Market. After that, the tentative plan is to go through the Conceived in Liberty volumes. We'll see. I think we are, and have been, in a major recession (as this is posted in May), so perhaps I should go to Rothbard's America's Great Depression in which he explains the cause of that depression. One thing is absolutely sure. It was not caused by underspending. You don't spend yourself rich!

The main cause of today's recession is the past and present increases in the money supply, which is what it is when the Federal Reserve lowers interest rates. Another cause is the outrageous spending on the part of the federal government. Yet another factor is the indebtedness of individuals. This hurts more than the individuals themselves, especially when the government spends millions, even billions to help them out. High taxes are probably the number one reason people find themselves in debt, but reason number two is certainly fiscal irresponsibility on the part of so many individuals.

If you have any feedback as to which Rothbard works should be reviewed, please post a comment. Meanwhile, have a great summer. We are not living in a free country now, so, especially if you are a dissident, for all we know this might be the last summer we can really take pleasure in. So, to whatever extent you can, enjoy every minute of it. I will.