Rank the Austrians by best writing ability

Economics Economics Questions
1

Who are the best writers among them? I don’t mean the best economists or the best thinkers, just which ones’ prose you most enjoy reading.

  1. Rothbard

  2. Hazlitt

  3. Böhm-Bawerk

  4. Sennholtz

Are my top 4.

2

  1. Rothbard

  2. Thomas Woods

  3. Ralph Raico

3

Can we do a best speakers also? I only ever read specific chapters that I look up.

4

I’ve burst out laughing with some Hoppe works.

5

Reading Rothbard is like eating ice cream.

6

Exactly! Painless, enjoyable, and fun!

I don’t have a problem with many of the present Austrians though.

Ludwig Von Mises can make my head spin at times, seriously.

7

I love reading Rothbard. His style and responses to various topics are great.

To Marx this phenomenon of the market and the division of labor was a radical evil, for it meant that no one consumed any of his own product. The steelworker thus became “alienated” from his steel, the shoemaker from his shoes, etc.

The proper response to this “problem,” it seems to me, is: “So what?” Why should anyone care about this sort of “alienation?”

I don’t know of any scholar who’s going to respond to Marx’s argument with “So what?” and make it seem legitimate and professional as Rothbard.

As far as who’s the best that’s a hard one to make.

I think it’s even more so for best speakers. I think if it comes to that you would have to break it down more (length, subject, type of conference…).

To throw this out there I like listening/watching Walter Block. Seems like he’s generally surrounded by a bunch of stiffs who can’t stand the fact he’s there. I think it would be hilarious to unleash him on a Fox news cast who have no clue who he is.

8

Hm. Looks like Hayek didn’t make this thread. [:P]

9

Mises is best, for a perfect balance between Menger’s fullness and Bastiat’s concision.

I don’t understand why so many people these days have such a hard time reading tight reasoning. I’m guessing it’s the low quality of non-fiction prescribed in schools, packed as it is with loose and sloppy argumentation.

10
  1. Ludwig von Mises
11

I need to get more books by him aside from the one he’s most famous for, but I’ve always liked Joseph Schumpeter’s style & find him to be pretty quotable.

I think Rothbard is too wordy and/or self-righteous, found Hazlitt to be boring (I only got mid-way through The Conquest of Poverty before eventually forgetting about it), but that may due to the book relying on statistics.

I can’t really judge on too many Austrian School authors, however.

12

  1. Mises

  2. Hayek

  3. Rothbard

  4. Bohm-Bawerk

"For the naive mind there is something miraculous in the issuance of fiat money. A magic word spoken by the government creates out of nothing a thing which can be exchanged against any merchandise a man would like to get. How pale is the art of sorcerers, witches, and conjurors when compared with that of the government’s Treasury Department! " -Ludwig von Mises, Theory of Money and Credit.

13

Good one, Esuric. I also particularly like…

Mises, Socialism:

“Society lives and acts only in individuals; it is nothing more than a certain attitude on their part. Everyone carries a part of society on his shoulders; no one is relieved of his share of responsibility by others. And no one can find a safe way out for himself if society is sweeping towards destruction. Therefore everyone, in his own interests, must thrust himself vigorously into the intellectual battle. None can stand aside with unconcern; the interests of everyone hang on the result. Whether he chooses or not, every man is drawn into the great historical struggle, the decisive battle into which our epoch has plunged us.“

Mises, Theory and History:

But Marxists, anxious to avoid dealing with the economic problems of a socialist commonwealth, did nothing to demonstrate the superiority of socialism over capitalism apart from the circular reasoning that runs: Socialism is bound to come as the next stage of historical evolution. Being a later stage of history than capitalism, it is necessarily higher and better than capitalism. Why is it bound to come? Because the laborers, doomed to progressive impoverishment under capitalism, will rebel and establish socialism. But what other motive could impel them to aim at the establishment of socialism than the conviction that socialism is better than capitalism? And this preeminence of socialism is deduced by Marx from the fact that the coming of socialism is inevitable. The circle is closed.

14

Pre-Austrians:

  1. Bastiat

Austrians:

  1. Rothbard

Non Austrians:

  1. Mencken, Spooner
15

Mises and Rothbard are my favorite Austrian writers.

16

I’m half way through In Defense of Women. One of the best reads ever, so far.

17

Beefheart…this is the best AC flag

18

I wonder what sort of face Rothbard had on while writing this.

19

Getting smacked by your girlfriend is tax enough for staring at another girl. [:P]

20

The questions of “writing ability” and “favorite authors” are, to me, COMPLETELY DISTINCT. While I appreciate the works of Mises and Hayek, I hate their writing style. It’s dry.

Rothbard and Tom Woods are polemic and fun.