Comments on: And Then There Were Three: How an Economy Grows and Why It Crashes

By: Danille Eblen

Danille Eblen — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 04:47:01 +0000

Imagine that they operated outside of US law, and that the Constitution did not apply to them. Imagine that every now and then they made mistakes or acted on bad information and accidentally killed or terrorized innocent Americans, including women and children, most of the time with little to no repercussions or consequences. Imagine that they set up check points on our soil and routinely searched and ransacked entire neighborhoods of homes. Imagine if Americans were fearful of these foreign troops, and overwhelmingly thought America would be better off without their presence.
Watch the Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLZhsN5M_qA

By: Daniel Hannan: Teach yourself free market economics in two hours » The Cobden Centre

Tue, 13 Jul 2010 08:02:39 +0000

[...] Daniel Hannan: Teach yourself free market economics in two hours By Andy Duncan, on 13 July 10 Daniel Hannan MEP, of The Daily Telegraph, is as impressed by the Schiff Brothers’ new book as we were, when we first reviewed it a couple of weeks ago: [...]

By: Ambrose Evans-Pritchard: Time to shut down the US Federal Reserve? » The Cobden Centre

Thu, 01 Jul 2010 15:19:57 +0000

[...] By the way, economics is easy. It is as simple as catching a fish. [...]

By: The “Stimulators” versus the “Austereians”: The New Ideological Divide » The Cobden Centre

Wed, 30 Jun 2010 17:12:18 +0000

[...] spend because economies grow [for a detailed explanation of how this works, read my latest book: How an Economy Grows]. Investment capital comes from savings, and when governments borrow, savings are diverted from [...]

By: Toby Baxendale

Toby Baxendale — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 20:40:04 +0000

Well said. I agree.

By: Toby Baxendale

Toby Baxendale — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 20:13:14 +0000

Al, you are spot on.

By: John

John — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 22:23:46 +0000

I just have to say, I love this website and the commenters! Rarely does one find a news source that discusses common sense economics and have people commenting who understand the Austrian school of thought.

Well anyway, I’ll be buying Peter Schiff’s book in due time. I love how he can explain complex ideas with simple examples – this is what he need to do to reach out to the masses who haven’t the time, nor patience, to read up on economic theory. Cartoon books on economics = Great idea :)

By: Al Sledge

Al Sledge — Sat, 19 Jun 2010 04:52:23 +0000

I was appalled by Mr. Doohan’s comment and felt a degree of rage, thus postponing my response. All three of the Schiff family do not even pretend to cover all aspects in an economy in the pretend economies of Moltz or in the fishing model. These stories are just that, a model, because the real world is too complex for any individual to understand. Even the cheerleaders for the state should be able to recognize this fact. The difference between our groups are insurmountable. The statist deifies the state while free men understand that any “leader” is merely a mortal man. Not a god. If this makes each man his own deity, then so be it, because the alternative is to be a slave. In reality I know where I fit in the nature of things. I am not any better than a skid row bum, nor any worse than a king, pope, or a president. The only way I can be controlled by others is at gunpoint. And at this behavior, the state excels. An estimated 400 MILLION dead in the 20th Century alone, mostly civilian non-combatants!

The common thread in the Schiff stories that I see is about the role of savings and productivity generating wealth and health. Money can be printed, savings cannot. They are not the same. I have come to believe in the “invisable hand” of the true free market and today we are witness to the “invisable FOOT” of government firsthand world wide. And the worse off humans conditions get, the harder the FOOT kicks!

At what point should we be willing to admit central planning and government intervention in the economy are utter failures? When you lose your job? When your retirement and savings become worthless? When your children die from starvation?

Unlike many, I force my views on no one. If you wish to believe Santa, the Tooth Fairy, and the Easter Bunny are real, then you are free to do so. I just see the world crumbling around us and take the steps that I can to try to get our family through it intact. Understanding the problem is but the first step. However if one cannot grasp the poblem then any solution MIGHT work. It kind of sounds like the Hope and Change platform.

Sorry for this rather long and possibly boring scattered diatribe.
Yours in Liberty,
Al

By: Riley O'Neill

Riley O'Neill — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 18:18:44 +0000

The Schiff brothers did address the idea of over consumption in their book. They stressed that it was a result of cheap debt which enabled people to consume things they normally would not. They also stressed that under consumption, using that money for capital investment rather than spending was the way how economies grow. Actually these were likely the two major points behind the book. Especially when the source of credit stops coming in and all the high consumption industries which were dependent on customers having access to cheap credit completely failed and thus “the crash” occurred.

By: Jody

Jody — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 03:00:50 +0000

I’m also with ‘stuidity is permanent.’ Statism has never worked, it never will, it’s like the war on drugs, the war on terror, the war on prostitution and any other war on humanity, fruitless. Countries round the world are screwed, Greece will default, Greece will drop the Euro, then the real pain begins.

The UK will never right itself, it’s to late, unless of course the government grows some balls(not gonna happen) and instead of cutting schools, health and roads (not that I agree with the government funding those things, I don’t), perhaps the government should cut bombs (the military and associated industries), banks (all those bailouts) and other corporate welfare. Governments around the world do nothing but give out welfare to the rich and in the UK the recent cuts amount to less than half a percentage point of the total budget, in other words, squat.

Here’s an idea, get rid of the army, who’s going to invade us hmmm? Are the Germans going to come marching in, or perhaps the Russians? Let’s get real, the only reason we have an army is to maintain a pathetic excuse for an empire, get rid of it. Let individuals own an assault rifle, then if some evil force invades us (cue spooky music), we could fend them off instead of relying on idiots in government. Government pensions? Why? It’s up to me to fund my retirement, not the taxpayers. Bailouts to banks, how much this year? How much last year? How much next year?

You see if government stopped stealing from people who actually work, and did not give it to corporations that are protected from competition, thanks to rules and regulations, what would all our current MP’s do? Go out and get a real job is the answer.