Rollback: Repealing Big Government Before the Coming Fiscal Collapse [Hardcover]

Thomas E. Woods (Author)

Book Description

Release date: February 7, 2011

Thought the last financial crisis was scary? Just wait…it’s going to get worse

America is on the brink of financial collapse. Decades of political overpromising and underfunding have created a wave of debt that could swamp our already feeble economy. And the politicians’ favorite tricks—raising taxes, borrowing from foreign governments, and printing more money—will only make it worse. Only one thing might save us: Roll back the government.

In Rollback: Repealing Big Government Before the Coming Fiscal Collapse, Thomas E. Woods, Jr. explains that we may still have a chance to avert total economic disaster—but only by completely changing our understanding of government. With bracing candor, he dissects just how the political class has nearly destroyed America’s economy. In Rollback, you’ll learn:

Why practically everything you’ve been taught about government and the economy is wrong—the product of liberal pro–government propaganda
How the Federal Reserve helps create crises and slows recovery
Why big business is no ally in rolling back government and actually wants and needs big government intervention in the marketplace
How current policies, if unchecked, will lead to the collapse of the dollar
How government policies have driven the skyrocketing costs of health care
Why retirement will be a pipe dream for the next generation
How the coming collapse can be turned to your advantage—and the advantage of all who believe in liberty and limited government

Thanks to decades of politicians playing kick the can down the road, we and our children are facing economic Armageddon. But this crisis could help us see government for what it really is—an institution that has seized our wealth and taught our children to honor it as the source of all progress. The good news is it’s not too late to roll back government—and the opportunity to do so is now.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

“If Congress and the Administration really wanted to learn how to eliminate the deficit, limit government, and protect liberty they would stop wasting taxpayers’ money on ‘debt commissions’ and instead read Rollback.”
—The Honorable Ron Paul, Member of Congress

“In Rollback,, Tom Woods provides a provocative assessment of President Obama’s first two years of economic policy–making, challenging virtually every aspect of the administration’s narrative. While some readers may not be persuaded, all will find Woods’ analysis both interesting and worthy of serious debate.”
—Dr. Jeffrey Miron, Economist, Harvard University, and Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute

“Tom Woods takes an honest (and methodically cited) look at the record of big government: skyrocketing health–care costs, an out-of-control military, moral hazard in the markets, and a collapsing dollar. Even better, he offers clever, turn–key solutions that could restore the United States to being the breeding ground of wealth and ingenuity that our immigrant ancestors sought and cherished. Rollback debunks the popular rhetoric of politicians, the media, and academia. Without a hint of partisanship—taking on Republicans and Democrats alike—Woods has shown how misguided policies have set us up to be the first generation in memory to pass along lower standards of health, wealth, and opportunity to our children. If you are confused about how our once-mighty country has fallen so far, so fast, then Rollback is a good place to find your answer.”
—Peter Schiff, president of Euro Pacific Capital and host of The Peter Schiff Show

“In Rollback, economic historian Tom Woods proves that the true culprit for our financial woes is a government that thinks it can right any wrong, regulate any activity, and tax any event; and a public that continues to accept the assault on its natural liberties in the name of safety. Woods demonstrates with brutal clarity the critical and immediate need to reject the myth that the government can protect us and to repeal the institutions it has created to do so.”
—Judge Andrew P. Napolitano, Senior Judicial Analyst, FOX News

About the Author

THOMAS E. WOODS, JR. holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Harvard, and his M.A., M.Phil., and Ph.D. from Columbia University. A senior fellow at the Ludwig von Mises Institute, he is the author of eleven books, including the New York Times bestsellers Meltdown and The Politically Incorrect Guide to American History. Woods won the $50,000 first prize in the 2006 Templeton Enterprise Awards for his book The Church and the Market. He lives with his wife and four daughters in Topeka, Kansas.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Regnery Publishing; First Edition edition (February 7, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1596981415
• ISBN-13: 978-1596981416
• Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 1 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (44 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #113,326 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #29 in Books > Business & Investing > Economics > Public Finance

More About the Author

I hold my master's, M.Phil., and Ph.D. in history from Columbia University and my bachelor's from Harvard. I've written numerous books, including The Church Confronts Modernity (Columbia University Press) and two New York Times bestsellers -- Meltdown: A Free-Market Look at Why the Stock Market Collapsed, the Economy Tanked, and Government Bailouts Will Make Things Worse, and The Politically Incorrect Guide to American History. My two latest books are Rollback: Repealing Big Government Before the Coming Fiscal Collapse and Nullification: How to Resist Federal Tyranny in the 21st Century.

My wife and I have four young daughters and live in Topeka, Kansas.

My full biography can be found at www.TomWoods.com/about. My upcoming appearances, in addition to plenty of free audio, video, and articles, are also available at my website.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

78 of 85 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A theoretical case against the government economy February 7, 2011

By Ryan Freed

Format:Hardcover

Thomas Woods Jr. has a knack for simplicity. His book, Meltdown, was one of the best at concisely explaining the causes and consequences of the 2007-08 financial crisis, and his more recent Nullification, explains the history behind and the legitimacy of the act of state nullification of federal laws.

In Rollback, Woods takes another clear and concise look at our complex modern times with one simple underlying theme: government is not the answer to our problems. This theme has resonated throughout the American conscience since the country's founding and has only grown more compelling in the late 20th century when the overwhelming cry has been for more government intervention and state regulation. Drawing from years of scholarship in the free-market, Austrian School of economics, Woods lays out the case that the kind of government intervention we have slowly inched toward is based in a "suicidal business model" and will inevitably come crashing down in a calamity far worse than the crisis of 2007-08.

The book is short and to-the-point. It focuses on theory and the "big picture," which is reasonable considering Woods' belief that the first step in solving the problems is simply revealing the flaws of the pro-government mentality and dispelling the myth of "good government."

In short, Woods makes an excellent case for rolling back the size of government. The only concern I would have is whether this book will speak to those who consider themselves liberal or centrist. It certainly speaks to those who consider themselves conservative or pro-free-market. But, because of its conciseness, it cannot take into full consideration the motives of those who believe government is the answer. And so pro-government readers--the ones who Woods is trying to convert--might not even consider the argument. Anyone interested in a fuller theory of political economy might also try Sowell's Basic Economics, Friedman's Free to Choose, or Morse's more recent Juggernaut: Why the System Crushes the Only People Who Can Save It.

Meanwhile, Rollback can serve as a primer for the argument, and something that everyone should read and discuss in these tumultuous times.

58 of 64 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Time for a change of narrative! February 7, 2011

By Daniel Krawisz

Format:Hardcover

This book is about US history, both recent and early. It is not a single narrative, but an anthology of topics. The unifying theme is that all topics discussed in the book have been used as pro-government propaganda, but Woods interprets them all very differently from the view most have heard. The robber barons, the George Bush bubble, the military industrial complex all have a place here.

Some interesting things I learned from this book:

Certainly the most eye-opening thing for me was the analysis of the military-industrial complex and how it diverts American engineers from working on useful projects. Even a "small" military budget of 4% of GDP can have a huge effect on the price of engineers. The "mere" 4% figure actually hides an enormous cost to the economy because of the number of engineers drawn away from useful work. The argument that so much innovation in industry comes ultimately out of the military seems a lot less convincing when you realize that American industry might have twice the number of engineers available if it were not for the military in the first place!

Woods argues persuasively that repealing the Glass-Stegal act was such a minor change that it had nothing to do with the 2008 crash. I had previously accepted the argument that this change worsened the crash because it "deregulated" banks while still guaranteeing them under FDIC. However, the US was the only country ever to separate investment and commercial banking as Glass-Stegal did, so there is no particular reason to think that this change could be the cause of the housing bubble.

Although the book is clearly marketed towards conservatives, you certainly aren't going to become more conservative when you read it. Rather, you will become more radically anti government. At the end of the book, Woods advocates not only nullification, but also secession, agorism, and the Free State Project! This would be a great book to give to some of your tea party friends, but I would recommend it to anyone who still believes government action rescued America from its social and economic problems in the past.

42 of 50 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Fleeced by the Fallacy of False Comparisons February 7, 2011

By D. W. MacKenzie

Format:Hardcover

Rollback is an excellent, and timely, book. The strong points of this book are first, the main thesis of Rollback is on target: we have set ourselves on a course to national bankruptcy simply through defective thinking. Many people simply assume that private markets and enterprises are the source of most economic/financial problems, and that only the government can fix things. In reality, government caused problems dwarf private sector problems.

Second, Woods does a good job of conveying the idea that many of the costs of government are hidden. This is important to his thesis, as hidden costs are important to understanding why people are fooled into thinking that government is the answer to market failures.

Third, there are many good examples in this book. Personally, I have used the Swedish example for years. Wood's discussion of The Industrial Revolution and Global Poverty are important too. I think the most important examples are the recent one's: Fannie/Freddie, Fiscal stimulus... However, I would have liked to have seen even greater discussion of the Subprime Boom and Bust. There is new mythology emerging that free market Capitalism caused our recent debacle. Conventional thinking on this issue, especially in the media, is simply wrong and needs to be debunked.

Generally speaking, 240 pages is too little room to really flesh out all of these issues. This is a minor criticism, as greater length and sophistication would make Rollback less readable and less timely. You should buy and read Rollback, even if you are predisposed against its thesis.