Newbies

Re: Hello Everyone

The Rev — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 00:21:50 GMT

Thanks for all the responses and welcomes. I'm very glad to have a place like this to discuss my thoughts. I try to talk to my wife about it and her eyes glaze over. I don't blame her for not being excited about rediscount rates, malinvestment, and the like, but it's frustrating when your mind is just busting with ideas and questions about these topics.

I will pick up a copy of Rothbard's Man, Economy and State. I like his work, and from what I read about this book, it's a must read. Thanks for pointing me to it.

The Rev

Re: Hello Everyone

wombatron — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 07:22:54 GMT

Welcome aboard. If you haven't already, check out the Praxeology reading list. It has links to a lot of good info about Austrian theory.

Re: Hello Everyone

bbnet — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 06:53:31 GMT

Hi Rev! I'm new here too but have been a long time admirer of austrian economics and libertarian thought.

For a good read on the fundementals, I second phrizek's recomendation of Rothbard's Man, Economy, and State, I have a pdf copy somewhere that may have come from here or http://www.fee.org/ ?

About a year and a half ago, I pegged the peak gasoline price at $4.20/gal which is about where it topped based strictly on a simple inflationary analysis .Although I haven't recrunched any numbers yet, I'd expect to see gas going over $8.00/gal in the not so distant future.

We may now be experiencing the final bull rally of the US dollar, making it a good time to divest of assets dependant on it? Hyperinflation is most likely a sure thing, perhaps by the end of obama's first term?

Re: Hello Everyone

James Greene — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 05:26:19 GMT

Hey man. I began posting here a couple of weeks ago and have also recently and slowly worked my way into Austrian economics. It just kind of naturally happened. I'm also reading The Mystery of Banking right now and have really come to the immense realization over the past few months that economics is in many ways the key to everything happening in the world. It is the really the underpinning to political ideologies and is more fascinating than I ever thought it could be. I just began F.A. Hayek's The Road to Serfdom and I think I'm hooked on the studying of freedom in general, whether it be economics, political theory, philosophy and so forth. To someone who has been here for a while - have the numbers been growing on the board a lot of of lately?

If I had to recommend three books to potentially interested people, I would point out Economics in One Lesson, What Has Government Done To Our Money, and Meltdown: A Free-Market Look at Why the Stock Market Collapsed, the Economy Tanked, and Government Bailouts Will Make Things Worse

Re: Hello Everyone

phrizek — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 01:55:00 GMT

Welcome! If you want to learn about AE theory, the best place I can point to for the clearest exposition of everything is Man, Economy, and State by Murray Rothbard. The Mises Institute just released a new edition of the book with a nice cover. It's available in the store. I think they're offering a discount if you buy it with the study guide.

Good to have you on board!

Hello Everyone

The Rev — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 00:59:38 GMT

I am new to Austrian Economics, and have only read a few books. I suppose I am like many who have taken a sudden interest in economics since the collapse of the housing market and subsequent economic downturn. I was also motivated by a short movie, "Money As Debt" which I saw on google video. I had no idea how fractional reserve banking worked and I was shocked when I found out.

I have read a few books by Rothbard ("America's Great Depression, The Mystery of Banking, History of Money and Banking in the US"), as well as some essays and articles downloaded here at Mises.org. Mostly, I am interested in learning the theory well enough that I can gain a clear understanding of what's happening in the economy, and perhaps prepare myself for things I might not otherwise see coming. I knew the housing market was a bubble before people talked about it, but I had no idea how it would effect the rest of the economy. If I had known what I know now, I would have been better prepared.

Also, I'm rather concerned at the moment about inflation, seeing as the government has injected about $1 Trillion dollars into reserves, essentially doubling the monetary base. I read a few Dailys about this, and it has me rather scared, honestly. Any input from those of you more educated in these matters would be great.

Anyway, I'm glad to be here and that there's a forum like this, and I look forward to many excellent discussions.

The Rev