|
|
Freedom Book of the Month for November, 2002:
The Ultimate Foundtion of Economic ScienceI've already admitted publicly that I've not been able to get through Human Action -- not yet, anyway -- so that fact, coupled with this selection as Freedom Book of the Month, says a lot about The Ultimate Foundation of Economic Science. Subtitled An Essay on Method, Ludwig von Mises' last book examines the proper application of scientific methods and philosophical ideas. While that might seem a dull subject, remember that we're talking about von Mises and praxeology -- the study of human action.
First published in 1962, one might read The Ultimate Foundation of Economic Science and think the book is a little out of step with modern times. After all, free-market ideas have gained much ground in the 40 intervening years, and logical positivism, which receives much attention in the essay, seems to be waning. Many other "isms," however, persist in academic and mainstream circles -- namely, materialism, hard-core empiricism, and monism -- and von Mises takes each to task deftly and justly. His views on studying human action can seem a bit radical, for he divides that study into "history" and "praxeology" (psychology and the other behavioral sciences go into the "history" category), but, agree with it or not (I'm not sure I do), his justification is well thought out, and persuasive.
A slim volume, weighing in at 133 pages, The Ultimate Foundation of Economic Science is packed with ideas. Von Mises sweeps from showing a thorough understanding of Darwin's theory of natural selection (which many current biologists seem yet to get) to holding forth on epistemology. As an experimental psychologist, I found his critiques of research methods across the sciences particularly informative and on target. Yet one need not have an advanced degree, or any degree, to find value in this book.
For those of you who have been intimidated by other of Ludwig von Mises' books, The Ultimate Foundation of Economic Science is likely to be a good introduction to his brilliance. Yes, you'll likely need a good dictionary beside you (unless your conversation is sprinkled with terms like "ampliative" and "supererogatory"), but the time invested into comprehending his ideas will be well worth it. If anything, von Mises' ideas have aged well in the time since The Ultimate Foundation of Economic Science was first published, and like a fine wine, continue to sparkle and show a first-rate lineage.
Order from Laissez Faire Books, $14.95.
More book information for November 2002
edited by Sunni Maravillosa
October 2002: The Haunted Air, by F. Paul Wilson
September 2002: Lead Astray and Out of Bounds, Out of Control by Peter Samuel and James V. DeLong respectively
August 2002: Boston's Gun Bible II by Boston T. Party
July 2002: Economics for Real People by Gene Callahan
June 2002: Net Assets by Carl Bussjaeger
May 2002: The Ballad of Carl Drega by Vin Suprynowicz
April 2002: Toward Liberty: The Idea that is Changing the World edited by David Boaz
March 2002: Liberty for Women edited by Wendy McElroy
February 2002: The State vs. the People by Aaron Zelman and Claire Wolfe
Freedom Book of the Year, 2001: Hope by Aaron Zelman and L. Neil Smith
January 2002: Death by Gun Control by Aaron Zelman and Richard W. Stevens
December 2001: The American Zone by L. Neil Smith
November 2001: Ayn Rand and Business by Donna Greiner and Theodore Kinni
October 2001: Junk Science Judo by Steven J. Milloy
September 2001: Jonathan Gullible by Ken Schoolland
August 2001: Hope by L. Neil Smith and Aaron Zelman
July 2001: Dissenting Electorate edited by Wendy McElroy and Carl Watner
June 2001: Tethered Citizens by Sheldon Richman
May 2001: Lever Action by L. Neil Smith
April 2001: The Cato Handbook for Congress from the Cato Institute
March 2001: The Contested Legacy of Ayn Rand by David Kelley
February 2001: Crypto by Steven Levy
January 2001: Total Freedom by Chris Matthew Sciabarra
Freedom Book of the Year 2000: Forge of the Elders by L. Neil Smith
December 2000: The Mystery of Capital by Hernando de Soto
November 2000: Escape from Leviathan by J.C. Lester
October 2000: The Art of Political War by David Horowitz
September 2000: An Enemy of the State by Justin Raimondo
August 2000: The Triumph of Liberty by Jim Powell
July 2000: A Generation Divided by Rebecca Klatch
June 2000: Law's Order by David Friedman
May 2000: Forge of the Elders by L. Neil Smith
April 2000: Reciprocia by Richard G. Rieben
March 2000: The Art of Fiction: A Guide for Writers and Readers by Ayn Rand
February 2000: Addiction is a Choice by Jeffrey A. Schaler
January 2000: Revolutionary Language by David C. Calderwood
Special December 1999 Feature: The Freedom Book of the Year: Send in the Waco Killers: Essays on the Freedom Movement, 1993-1998 by Vin Suprynowicz
November 1999: Conquests and Cultures by Thomas Sowell
October 1999: A Way To Be Free by Robert LeFevre, edited by Wendy McElroy
September 1999: Assassins (Left Behind) by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins
August 1999: Don't Shoot the Bastards (Yet): 101 More Ways to Salvage Freedom by Claire Wolfe
July 1999: The Mitzvah by L. Neil Smith and Aaron Zelman
June 1999: The Incredible Bread Machine by R.W. Grant
May 1999: Send in the Waco Killers by Vin Suprynowicz
April 1999: It Still Begins with Ayn Rand by Jerome Tuccille
March 1999: The Dictionary of Free-Market Economics by Fred Foldvary
February 1999: Feminist Interpretations of Ayn Rand edited by Mimi Reisel Gladstein and Chris Matthew Sciabarra
In December 2004 this page was modified significantly from its original form for archiving purposes.
, founded in 1995, is now a part of ISIL.
|
|