Posted on 09/20/2009 11:11:52 AM PDT by jla
Speaking w/a pal and coworker who actually stated that communism might not be a bad idea for our country. I asked if that I gave him a book if he'd read it - he agreed - and the book I opted for is Human Action by L v Mises. Do you Freepers think this a good choice on my part?
There is an updated Capitalism and Freedom (well, updated in the 80s). And I can’t believe I forgot to mention this but New Ideas from Dead Economists is a very, very good book as well. Each chapter is on a famous economist, even the bad ones like Malthus and Marx. The chapter on Marx is a concise, devastating critique from a purely economic point of view.
I haven't seen Patrick Allitt's new history, The Conservatives, yet but it might be worth a look.
If your friend really likes Communism, introduce him to Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn or Robert Conquest.
That is an excellent one too. I am an academic economist so my first reaction is to recommend economics books. But I try to temper it as not everyone would approach freedom and government from an economic point of view, even if I think they should.
Like I said, you can't reason with a True Believer like that. They are completely detached from the real world.
Speaking personally, I agree that it was the economic analysis that finally proved to me beyond a shadow of a doubt that communism (or any collectivism) could never work. But it has always been the shock of the savagery of communist countries against their own people that compelled me to keep studying until I understood the economics.
That said, I can't deny that for those of a more analytical bent, the economics will be immediately compelling - and also, of course, eventually unavoidable for anyone else who wants to truly understand the subject. And when the economic impossibility of the system is finally understood, it provides an absolute foundation for further political explorations.
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*ugh*
~can’t....breathe~
~too....much....weight....on....me~
*thunk*
No, Human Action can be laborious reading even when you choose the book for yourself.
He's funny, witty and sarcastic.
At the same time, he's makes the serious point that where ever it is tried, socialism and collectivism don't work and hurt the people they are meant to help. He also makes the point over and over that the "feel good" solutions never are (solutions).
There are lots of great books, but they have to be opened and read to do any good. I have lent my PJ books to several people over the years and all enjoyed reading them and everyone said that he challenged their thinking.
If he really said that about communism, the perhaps _Thidwick the Big-Hearted Moose_ would be a good place to start.
Milton Friedman’s Free to Choose is really the best and easiest read for the first couple steps down the road of conservative thought.
Thank you for the ping, I enjoyed the thread a lot. Gifts for the kids..(Instead of clothes)
I hope he’s VERY bright, and doesn’t have ADD!
It certainly starts at the very beginning, and proceeds step-by-step to establish the truths of free-market economics. It leaves no stone unturned, and anyone who reads it with intellectual honesty couldn’t possibly support socialism, communism, or even “dirigisme.”
Just in case he’s just plain INCAPABLE of reading Human Action, I hope you have a backup choice.
You can’t always argue values with somebody, but you can always argue facts and logic and plant a seed in their brain for future doubt.
Yes, a good pick...as are so many on this thread....going to save a review many of these recommendations. Thanks all.
If he is going to try HA then at mises.org you can get
1. Human Action study guide downloadable pdf
2. Mises made easier - encyclopedia of obscure terms and references from HA
for free. The problem is HA does not address the toll in human lives taken by communist govts.
I would recommend One day in the life of Ivan Denisovich http://www.amazon.com/One-Day-Life-Ivan-Denisovich/dp/B000I34AQO/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1253498892&sr=8-2-spell to start and the Black Book after that http://www.amazon.com/Black-Book-Communism-Crimes-Repression/dp/0674076087/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1253499035&sr=8-1
Hayek’s “The Fatal Conceit” is also very good.
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