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View Full Version : Blow your mind... A book recommendation




Taco John
01-06-2008, 05:46 AM
I wanted to relay a book reccommendation to all the Paul supporters here. As we know, Dr. Paul is an Austrian Economist. As a libertarian, I've always been open to the Austrian school of thought, as my very rudimentary understanding of it was that it was a libertarian way of looking at the markets.

Well, I've read the first chapter, and already my mind is being blown and getting re-arranged in the proper order. I can practically feel the snyapses firing and the new connections being made as I stop to consider the world in the light of what I just read. That's just the first chapter.

Don't let the title throw you off... It's not as boring as it sounds... The book is called "Economics for Real People: an Introduction to the Austrian School." As an introduction to the Austrian School, it talks about economics in terms of "human action," and works to put this overlooked aspect of economics under the microscope. Basically, it looks at economics from the base position of motivation - and then it spirals out from there. And rather than looking at economics from the perspective of dollars and sense, it looks at it from the subjective terms of value - which vary from person to person.

The reason that this is important to understand is that this is the core of Dr. Paul's politics. And not just monetary politics. What I'm starting to appreciate is just how deeply Dr. Paul considers every move that he makes, particularly in terms of cause and effect. It's given me a completely new perspective on why Dr. Paul and his campaign does things in a particular way.

In any case, here is where you can find the book. I am looking forward to getting in deeper here. Just the initial chapter has me fascinated, as it's given me a lot of food for thought as I re-examine politics and the world around me with a sharper lense.

http://www.mises.org/store/Economics-for-Real-People-An-Introduction-to-the-Austrian-School-2nd-edition-P116C9.aspx

JDeVriese
01-06-2008, 07:23 AM
Yes!!! I'm reading the same book right now too. Highly recommended.

noztnac
01-06-2008, 07:25 AM
Thanks for the recommendation. I'll check it out.

Conza88
01-06-2008, 07:27 AM
Ok, on my list!

liberty_Forever
01-06-2008, 07:37 AM
Yeah, Ludwig Von Mises !

LibertyEagle
01-06-2008, 08:32 AM
Yeah, that's one of Dr. Paul's recommended books. :)

LBT
01-06-2008, 08:57 AM
Economics for Real People is an excellent, entertaining and easy to read introduction to free market economics, which is the focus of the Austrian School.

If you want a free online book which provides a great introduction to economics, google "Economics in One Lesson". It is a book written by Henry Hazlitt who was a supporter of Austrian Economic theory.

kushaze
01-06-2008, 09:06 AM
I really think that we should have a book sub-forum on here. I read all the time and I am always interested in finding new reading material that might be to my liking.

Taco John
01-06-2008, 05:02 PM
Blimpin'

Dave Wood
01-06-2008, 05:03 PM
Thanks Taco

Cunningham
01-06-2008, 05:19 PM
I read Mises's "Human Action" about 5 years ago. It's thick and dense as hell, it's definetly not a beginner book but it's really worth the read. It's the book that lays out that all economics has to be based on actual Human nature.

I'm reading Rothbard's "For a new liberty" right now. It's a more approachable book. It really applies austrian economics to all the different problems in America and lays out changing things.

I'm going to read the book the OP recommended next I think.

amy31416
01-06-2008, 05:21 PM
I'll give it a go, but you know, I started reading "Imperial Hubris" and found it to be almost unreadable due to the writer's style-or lack thereof. I agreed with the points that I could make out of it, but damn, that book sucks.

I'm sure this one is better.

Taco John
01-06-2008, 05:24 PM
I'm reading Rothbard's "For a new liberty" right now. It's a more approachable book. It really applies austrian economics to all the different problems in America and lays out changing things.




I've actually been listening to the Audio Book of that one when I'm working on projects, driving, or on a flight... That's a great crash course in liberty -- though much of it is impractical right now and would never sell until people were more comfortable with the idea of actual liberty...

Here are the free MP3 files for that book:

http://www.mises.org/media.aspx?action=category&ID=87

Taco John
01-06-2008, 05:25 PM
I'll give it a go, but you know, I started reading "Imperial Hubris" and found it to be almost unreadable due to the writer's style-or lack thereof. I agreed with the points that I could make out of it, but damn, that book sucks.

I'm sure this one is better.


This one is very much more tailored to the lay person.

amy31416
01-06-2008, 05:31 PM
This one is very much more tailored to the lay person.

Thanks for the info. It wasn't the ideas in "Imperial Hubris" that tripped me up, it was his terrible writing style and lack of logical conclusions. Have you read it? I've checked out amazon.com and it simply isn't addressed. Scheuer is an analyst, not a writer and probably should have gone with a ghost writer on this.