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Title: The Anti-Capitalistic Mentality by Ludwig Von Mises ISBN: 0-910884-29-3 Publisher: Libertarian Press Pub. Date: June, 1994 Format: Paperback List Price(USD): $7.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.77 (13 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Brilliant
Comment: THE ANTI-CAPITALISTIC MENTALITY is an outstanding little book by Ludwig von Mises which explains why Capitalism - which has raised the standard of living of so many people - is hated by so many.
We often think of von Mises as a great economist (which he certainly was), but Mises considered his work to be "sociology" as well. However, his writings are full of brilliant sociological commentary on any number of subjects. Take the chapter "The Non-Economic Objections to Capitalism." How often people criticize Capitalism for its alleged "materialism." But listen to Mises: "The preeminent art of this age of . . . 'materialism' was music. Wagner and Verdi, Berlioz and Bizet, Brahms and Bruckner, Hugo Wolf and Mahler . . . ." [p. 61.] And this music was written before the record permitted the great masters to be enjoyed by the common man, who could never hob-nob with aristocracy at the great music halls of the world.
In addition to this type of sociology, sprinkled throughout the book are concise economic lessons about how the increase in capital is the cause of higher wages, not unions and socialist schemes. So this book is a useful introduction to Mises' thought.
Although this book is important, if you want to understand the greatness of Mises, read: HUMAN ACTION, SOCIALISM, and THEORY OF MONEY AND CREDIT. Also, Prof. Kirzner's book on Mises is an outstanding introduction.
Rating: 4
Summary: A Great Work
Comment: Ludwig Von Mises is considered one of the giant figures in economic thought. He is an acolyte of the Austrian school of economics, which began as a response to Marxist economic thought. The Austrian school advocated the idea of marginal utility and the importance of the consumer in the production process. This book, which is a fairly short read, is Von Mises's look at the people who advocate the imposition of a planned, or socialistic, economic system. Needless to say, Von Mises launches massive attacks against these people.
As some of the other reviews stated, Von Mises believes that the reason some people in a capitalist society hate free markets and advocate socialism is due to their own shortcomings. As everyone with an ounce of sense knows, reality does not make everyone equal. Everyone has flaws and shortcomings. These shortcomings, according to Von Mises, manifest themselves in inner turmoil that finds release through attacking the system in which others succeed where these people fail. These people look at the successful entrepreneurs and resent them deeply. Since they can't attack them directly without exposing their own deep flaws, they attack the capitalist system which they think "created" these successful businessmen. Von Mises goes on to show several ways how this hostility expresses itself. One way is through literature. Von Mises makes a very perceptive observation while examining literature. He shows how the genre of detective stories is actually an expression of hatred for the capitalist system. The detective in most of these stories is usually a down and out type (one of the downtrodden workers of Marxian fame) who shows up the police (who represent the ineffective ruling system) by proving the guilt of a successful, rich person who nobody would ever suspect (the triumph of the worker over the rich). Very insightful stuff.
Von Mises destroys the socialist worldview in this book. It reads quick, and it's my first Von Mises book, so I'm not sure I picked up on every point he was trying to make. It's well worth the time and I highly recommend it. The only downfall is that some of the sentences are a bit awkward, which makes since if Von Mises wrote this in English. You see, he didn't even come to the U.S. until he was 60. He fled Hitler when the Nazis took Austria in 1940. Von Mises's primary language was German.
Rating: 5
Summary: The Basics with an attitude
Comment: As you read this book, the ideas will seem somewhat familiar and convincing - they are all intuitive, all common sense. Von Mises has a way of re-wrapping these ideas in a brash, cogent package that will entertain you, and maybe even shock you if you find his sarcastic delivery abrasive. This is as much fun as economics gets!
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Title: Socialism: An Economic and Sociological Analysis by Ludwig von Mises, J. Kahane, Friedrich A. Hayek, Ludwig von Mises ISBN: 0913966630 Publisher: Liberty Fund, Inc. Pub. Date: September, 1981 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
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Title: The Road to Serfdom by F. A. Hayek ISBN: 0226320618 Publisher: University of Chicago Press (Trd) Pub. Date: September, 1994 List Price(USD): $9.48 |
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Title: Human Action: A Treatise on Economics by Ludwig von Mises, Ludwig von Mises ISBN: 0930073185 Publisher: Fox & Wilkes Pub. Date: January, 1997 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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Title: What Has Government Done to Our Money by Murray N. Rothbard, Murray N. Rothbard ISBN: 0945466102 Publisher: Laissez Faire Books Pub. Date: December, 1990 List Price(USD): $6.95 |
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Title: Economics for Real People: An Introduction to the Austrian School by Gene Callahan ISBN: 0945466358 Publisher: Ludwig Von Mises Inst Pub. Date: June, 2002 List Price(USD): $11.00 |
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