Gordon on Fuller's No Free Lunch

David Gordon reviews No Free Lunch, the new book by my colleague Caleb Fuller. In his assessment, he praises Fuller noting that, in his analysis of economic falacies, he "follows Frédéric Bastiat and Henry Hazlitt, and he is a worthy successor of them." Gordon says the work itself is "an ideal book for introductory economics classes and for anyone who wants to understand how the free market works." High praise. 

Ritenour on Holcombe's ADVANCED INTRODUCTION TO AUSTRIAN ECONOMICS

My review of Randall Holcombe's new Advanced Introduction to Austrian Economics has just been published by Libertarian Papers. Holcombe's concise work makes for an excellent way to introduce any friends (or enemies for that matter) who are schooled in the neoclassical economic framework to the more rich, realistic, and therefore relevant economic analysis in the Austrian tradition.

Stamm Review of Foundations of Economics Now Online

K. Brad Stamm's review of Foundations of Economics that appeared in the Fall 2010 issue of Faith and Economics is now online. You can access it by clicking here.

As I noted when the review was published in hard copy:

Right off the bat, Stamm's review made me glad by describing my book as "both a text and a treatise combining various scriptures with the philosophical contributions of free market advocates such as Ludwig von Mises [and] Murray Rothbard. . ." That shows me that Stamm understands the nature of the book. It is not meant to be merely a text in the conventional sense, but it also is not meant to be a work of theology. It is meant to be an introduction to the foundations of economics and economic principles within a Christian theological and ethical framework.

Stamm concludes his review by putting me in some rather distinguished company:

As we move further away from a market-oriented economy, the likelihood of Friedrich A von Hayek, Peter J. Boettke of George Mason University, or Shawn Ritenour, being vindicated, seems to be ever increasing. Finally, Foundations of Economics adds to the literature important concepts and applications that could assist Christian economists in developing a Christian economics taxonomy. . . .

I did note is that there is an error when Stamm quotes me on the issue of poverty on page 151 of the review. He quotes me as saying "God does not make it clear that we are to help the poor" p. 441). My text actually reads as follows:

God does make it clear that we are to help the poor. We are to be imitators of God and he tells us that he cares for the poor (Ps. 35:10). God tells us that the poor and orphaned are to be defended from would-be oppressors (Ps. 82:3). We definitely should not turn a deaf ear to the cry of the poor. In fact, God tells us that whoever ignores the plight of the poor himself shall not be heard when he calls for help (Prov. 21:13). God tells us that in times of trouble, he will deliver the one who has consideration on the poor (Ps. 41:1). Whoever is charitable to the poor lends to the Lord and God will repay him for his generosity (Prov. 19:17). The mandate to minister to the poor even includes our poor enemies (Prov. 25:21).

When a Money Stock Independent of the State Was at Least Discussable

Two days ago I came across an item that makes an interesting followup to John Cochran's response to Krugman and DeLong. As Cochran notes, DeLong's post is a long meandering post that ostensibly tries to explain what Mises was getting out in his monetary theory. It turns out that not everyone who has read Mises' monetary theory has had difficulties in understanding.

Upon the publication of the English translation of Mises' The Theory of Money and Credit, a reviewer in the January 21, 1935 Manchester Guardian had this to say:

Austrian ideas are increasingly affecting economic thought at London and elsewhere; and many of the conceptions round which controversy rages to-day (and will rage tomorrow) derive from Mises. Both in the treatise itself and in the introduction written for this English edition that author sets down his views boldly. He holds that one of the worst fates that can befall a community is that its money should become the plaything of politics. Hence he is for gold against paper, for the currency school against the banking school, for the restrictionists against the expansionists. And he sees in the extension of fiduciary media by the banks a danger only less menacing than the inflationary tendencies of Governments.

Note that the reviewer tosses out phrases like "gold against paper," "the currency school," and "the banking school" as if his readers know of which he was speaking. The review "gets it." The reason Mises argued for gold and currency school theories is that he understood the dangers and destructive consequences of state control of money. That makes Mises' work as timely as today's headlines. The reviewer even picked up on Mises' conviction that fiduciary money issued by private banks is only marginally less dangerous that state controlled inflation.

There is absolutely no indication that Mises' arguments are obtuse, hard to follow, or otherwise in need of special gnostic gifts to divine their meaning.There was once a time, it seems, when economists and indeed intelligent citizens could understand basic monetary theory instead of wallowing in willful ignorance.

Those interested can read a host of reviews of The Theory of Money and Credit and all of Mises' other works in the Annotated Bibliography compiled by Bettina Bien Greaves, a long-time participant in Mises' New York seminar.

My student John Dellape's review of Foss and Klein's Organizing Entrepreneurial Judgement continues at Mises.org. Today's offering examine Foss and Klein's explanation of the real nature of capital goods and the connection between the theory of the entrepreneur and that of the firm.  As Dellape concludes:

[T]ying together entrepreneurship and the firm allows for a dynamic and realistic understanding of how the internal organization of the firm is established and the effects it has on performance. The internal organization determines how derived entrepreneurial judgment will be exercised by employees as circumstances change. The owner-entrepreneur exercises original judgment in determining the amount of discretion his employees will have. Thus, entrepreneurship is exercised in some way at every level of the firm. The owners should not be mistaken as passive bystanders to the actions of the firm, for they are the ones who ultimately establish and adjust over time the structure for how entrepreneurship is to be exercised by firm employees.

Dellape on Klein and Foss on Entrepreneurship

My former student and Grove City College Economics alum, John Dellape has written an excellent chapter by chapter review of Peter Klein and Nicolai Foss' new book, Organizing Entrepreneurial Judgement: A New Approach to the Firm. Dellape is currently a fellow with the Pittsburgh Fellows Program and employed at Net Health Systems, Inc. He also writes for HansEconomics.com.

The book and Dellape's review are as timely as today's headlines. As Dellape says in the introduction of his review:

The book's aim is to integrate the study of entrepreneurship with the theory of the firm under economic analysis. Nationally and globally we are at a pivotal moment in which people need to understand how businesses function and the entrepreneurial abilities necessary for continued economic progress.