Mises Search

There are some continuously reappearing economic myths that can lead to serious social unrest and governmental policy errors unless they are recognized and refuted rather forcefully. The Ricardo effect is one of these. Coined over 200 years ago based on the observations of English economist David Ricardo (1772–1823), this term describes the

On June 1, 2011, John C. Williams, president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, delivered an address to the American Economic Association’s National Conference on Teaching Economics and Research in Education. He titled his address “Economics Instruction and the Brave New World of Economic Policy.” One wonders if Mr. Williams

In his second great book, Socialism , Ludwig von Mises explained why socialism is not an alternative to capitalism and is, in fact, not an alternative economic system at all. The elimination of private property by the socialist state makes economic calculation impossible; thus, socialism in its pure form could not solve the ever-present problem of

      Kevin D. Williamson doesn’t quite know what to make of Dr. Ron Paul. Mr. Williamson is deputy managing editor of National Review magazine and noted columnist therewith. In addition, he is the author of The Politically Incorrect Guide to Socialism , which did point by point to socialism what the Romans did to Carthage. In his recent NR cover

     The euro is in trouble. That is not news. What is news is that people with deep pockets are willing to pay for economists to provide a solution. Lord Wolfson has offered a £250,000 prize for the best way a country can exit the European Monetary Union (EMU). Five finalists for the prize were announced in March. The winner will be announced in

The Only International Economic Policy That a Country Needs: “Mind Your Own Business and Set a Good Example.”     The international economic scene is dominated by state interventions at all levels. Daily we read of disputes over exchange-rate manipulation, protectionist tariffs followed by retaliatory tariffs, highly regulated free-trade blocs

       This summer Roger Bootle won Lord Wolfson’s £250,000 prize for the best advice for a country leaving the European Monetary Union (one may assume that this advice is aimed at Greece). A more statist, anti-liberal policy than his could hardly be envisioned, which is a sad commentary on the mindset of the judges chosen by Lord Wolfson. His

The euro debt crisis in Europe has presented Germany with a unique opportunity to lead the world away from monetary destruction and its consequences of economic chaos, social unrest, and unfathomable human suffering. The cause of the euro debt crisis is the misconstruction of the euro that allows all members of the European Monetary Union (EMU),

Understanding today’s convoluted domestic and international fiat monetary system frankly requires a great deal of time and study. One must understand fractional reserve banking, and the way this system affects the money supply. One must understand the multi-step process by which banks create money out of thin air. One must understand central bank

We who advocate the free market as the sure path to peace and prosperity often hear that the US economy has to get much, much worse before any real reforms will be allowed. Why must we continue to wait before taking serious action to throttle back parasitic government? A common response is that we need to wait until things are so bad that no one