I’ve long had a fascination with Wilhelm Ropke, outstanding economist, tough-minded anti-Keynesian, political decentralist, advocate of free trade and hard money, author of some outstanding works on political and economic liberty, and also moralist and defender of bourgeois culture. We have a nice collection of his work online and in the store. Today we add online The Social Crisis of Our Time.
So why do people think of him as a proponent of the mixed economy or someone not quite as tough minded as Mises? It seems to have been a matter of politics at the time, it seems to me. If it hadn’t been for the presence of a stalwart like Mises, Ropke would probably have a reputation for intransigence (after all, he too was a victim of the Nazis). Maybe we can just forget all that history and give him a fresh read today?
