The Logic of Action II: Applications and Criticism from the Austrian School (Economists of the Twentieth Century) (v. 2) [Hardcover]

Murray N. Rothbard (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1997 | Series: Economists of the Twentieth Century

The second volume of "The Logic of Action", this text is a selection of Rothbard's scholarly articles. It was his ambition to show the scientific status of the Austrian School and, at the same time, demonstrate the theory's radical, free-market implications for government policy.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 416 pages
• Publisher: Edward Elgar Pub (July 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1858985706
• ISBN-13: 978-1858985701
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.1 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,522,489 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Logic of Rothbard August 20, 2000

By Steve Jackson

Format:Hardcover

Murray Rothbard was one of the most powerful thinkers of the 20th century. Some of his most important work was printed in journals, out-of-print anthologies, presented at scholarly conferences, or available only in pamphlets. Fortunately, many of these essays are now collected in The Logic of Action (2 volumes), one of Edward Elgar's Economists of the Twentieth Century series

Volume 2 of the Logic of Action is subtitled "Applications and Criticism from the Austrian School." The range of these essays is simply incredible, and it's hard for a reviewer to know where to start. So, I might as well start with the first essay, Freedom, Inequality, Primitivism, and the Division of Labor. As usual, Rothbard's reading is immense and he briliantly refutes the claims of primitivists that specialization is somehow the cause of our problems rather than the necessary result of an increasing standard of living. In fact, communists import an almost religious devotion to their communism that Kautsky even said that under communism "[t]he human average will rise to the level of an Aristotle, a Goethe, a Marx. Above these other heights new peaks will arise."

Another brilliant essay is the last, Karl Marx: Communist as Religious Eschatologist. Rothbard gets to the crux of the matter: "The Key to the intricate and massive system of thought created by Karl Marx is at bottom a simple one: Karl Marx was a communist." As against those who would downplay Marx's religious drive to create a utopian society, Rothbard shows that Marx is just one of many "religious eschatologists."

In between these two essays there are 20 more.... Whether it's "value free" economics, free banking in Scotland, marginal productivity theory, or Henry George's fallacies, Rothbard always has something brilliant to say. I really enjoyed The Myth of Tax "Reform", which should be read by every conservative activist. "Every economic activity that escapes taxes and controls is not only a blow for freedom and property rights: it is also one more instance of a free flow of productive energy getting out from under parasitic repression. That is why we should welcome every new loophole, shelter, credit or exemption, and work, not to shut them down but to expand them to include everyone else, including ourselves."

As David Gordon and Hans-Hermann Hoppe state in their introduction: "No introduction can do justice to the vast range and insight of Rothbard's work. Anyone who completes these two volumes will have an indelible impression of Rothbard's greatness." Read more ›

5.0 out of 5 stars THE SECOND VOLUME OF A DIVERSE COLLECTION OF ROTHBARD'S ECONOMIC WRITINGS August 6, 2012

By Steven H. Propp TOP 500 REVIEWER

Format:Hardcover

Murray Newton Rothbard (1926-1995) was an American economist, historian and political theorist. He was a prominent exponent of the Austrian School of economics in this country and a key figure in the American libertarian movement. His major work in economics was Man Economy and State One Complete Volume. This posthumous collection (see also The Logic of Action I: Method, Money, and the Austrian School (Economists of the Twentieth Century) (v. 1)) contains a diverse collection of his writings on economics.

He suggests that "Both the passive and the tribal aspects of New Left culture were embodied in its idea of the 'Woodstock Nation,' in which hundreds of thousands of herd-like, undifferentiated youth wallowed passively in the mud listening to their tribal ritual music." (Pg. 17) He suggests that "It is high time, then, for those who cherish freedom, individuality, the division of labor, and economic prosperity and survival, to stop conceding the supposed nobility of the ideal of equality..." (Pg. 27)

He admits, "Unions... are theoretically compatible with the existence of a purely free market. In actual fact, however, it is evident to any competent observer that unions acquire almost all their power through the wielding of force..." (Pg. 41) He later argues, "civilization itself is a process of all of us 'free-riding' on the achievements of others. We all free-ride, every day, on the achievements of Edison, Beethoven, or Vermeer..." (Pg. 86)

Arguing that "a bureaucrat... is in reality not paying taxes at all. His tax payment is a bookkeeping fiction" (Pg. 100).... He suggests that "The point of a neutral tax is to affect the income 'distribution' and all other aspects of the economy in the same way as if the tax were a free-market price." (Pg. 101) He criticizes the idea of "phony tax shelters," on the grounds that "Who is equipped to look into my heart and mind and find out if these losses are 'genuine' or not?" (Pg. 112)

He insists, "The basic libertarian principle is that everyone should be allowed to do whatever he or she is doing unless committing an overt act of aggression against someone else. But what about situations where it is unclear whether or not a person is committing aggression? In those cases, the only procedure consonant with libertarian principles is to do nothing... it is far better to let an aggressive act slip through than to impose coercion and therefore to commit aggression ourselves." (Pg. 137-138)

He recommends the "abolition, not the privatization, of such operations as... all regulatory commissions, central banks, income tax bureaus, and, of course, all the bureaus administering those functions that are going to be privatized." (Pg. 208) He asserts that "Society cannot own anything. There is not entity called society; there are only interacting individuals." (Pg. 303)

Rothbard's writings are always thought-provoking and controversial; and this is another excellent collection of them. Read more ›