# Lifestyles & Discussion > Family, Parenting & Education > Books & Literature >  If you absolutely had to pick only 1 book to recommend...

## Reason

If you absolutely had to pick only 1 book to recommend reading for an aspiring libertarian, what would it be?

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## PierzStyx

George Orwell's 1984. 



That book is _the_ book on the kind of government we are looking at now, and the kind of future we can expect if we continue to allow them to rule over us. Its applicability its frightfully correct.

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## Sola_Fide

For the aspiring Christian libertarian...



http://www.amazon.com/Freedom-Capita..._aya_orig_subj

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## Xhin

Agreed. Here's a modern-day example of doublespeak:

http://yro.slashdot.org/story/12/06/...us-it-spied-on

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## CaptUSA

Without a doubt.

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## Demigod

> George Orwell's 1984. 
> 
> 
> 
> That book is _the_ book on the kind of government we are looking at now, and the kind of future we can expect if we continue to allow them to rule over us. Its applicability its frightfully correct.


+1  and + rep

It explains everything.I especially like the chocolate part which I think best describes how today's governments work.

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## libertyfanatic

Check out Brave New World. Our government is using Brave New World to achieve 1984. War is a Racket is also good.

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## Barrex

"1984" was my first pick too 
Second one was "Brave New World"
Third would be "Animal Farm" 

If you want educational: Bastiats "Law"

*I dont play by your rules

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## idiom

Small Gods, Terry Pratchett.

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## ShaneEnochs



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## Victor Grey

Have to go with Bastiat's The Law.

It's short, gets to the point, can be understood by everyone, it touches upon both morality, ethics, and philosophy, and they're likely to read through it all.
It's a classic work.

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## NoOneButPaul

> Check out Brave New World. Our government is using Brave New World to achieve 1984. War is a Racket is also good.


So many people here say this...It's definitely the other way around... In Brave New World everyone was grown out of test tubes and the entire society was scientifically calculated- controlled by massive amounts of sex and drugs. 

You wouldn't go from BNW to 1984... you'd go from 1984 to BNW as technology advanced itself to make BNW possible... 


My suggestion would be The Law, The Revolution: A Manifesto, End the Fed, Economics in 1 Lesson, or What Has Government Done to Our Money?

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## whippoorwill

Our Enemy, The State 
By Albert J. Nock
http://mises.org/etexts/ourenemy.pdf

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## cajuncocoa

Atlas Shrugged

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## cajuncocoa

> Agreed. Here's a modern-day example of doublespeak:
> 
> http://yro.slashdot.org/story/12/06/...us-it-spied-on

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## Tom in NYC

> Without a doubt.



Winner.

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## DGambler



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## No Free Beer

Atlas Shrugged

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## Philhelm

Malleus Maleficarum - Hammer of Witches.

Actually, it should be Ron Paul's "Liberty Defined."

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## green73

Economics In One Lesson

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## specsaregood

lol @ people recommending 1984 and brave new world.   Many current americans had to read those books in school growing up; looking around at the state of things i can only come to the conclusion that they thought the scenarios in those books sounded like a good idea.

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## ShowMeLiberty

> George Orwell's 1984. 
> 
> 
> 
> That book is _the_ book on the kind of government we are looking at now, and the kind of future we can expect if we continue to allow them to rule over us. Its applicability its frightfully correct.


^ This, or another great libertarian novel - An Enemy of the State by F. Paul Wilson



For nonfiction, have to go with Liberty Defined by Ron Paul.

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## PatriotOne

In one of the debates, the candidates were asked if they could only recommend 1 must read book, which would it be.  

Ron answered Bastiats, The Law.

It's only 74 pages long and available for free online:

http://mises.org/books/thelaw.pdf

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## Shredmonster

Personally I would recommend a book that is non-fiction, based in history that explains why a freedom based economy, government and system is far superior to a collectivist system.

Fredrick Hayek - THE ROAD TO SERFDOM.

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## Acala

The Law

Followed by Liberty Primer, since nobody else has mentioned it.

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## iamse7en



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## Wesker1982



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## olehounddog

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXlw-VOwyho

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## green73

> 


After Economics in One Lesson, this.

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## green73

> 


Audio
http://mises.org/media/categories/87/For-a-New-Liberty

text
http://mises.org/rothbard/newlibertywhole.asp

pdf
http://mises.org/books/newliberty.pdf

epub
http://mises.org/document/1010

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## XTreat

\\

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## brandon

It would depend on what their strengths and weaknesses were, and what their reading level was.  But most of the time, I think it would probably be Economics in One Lesson.

The Law, probably due to the translations and original date of publication, is not really a fun or easy read.

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## Sam I am

> George Orwell's 1984. 
> 
> 
> 
> That book is _the_ book on the kind of government we are looking at now, and the kind of future we can expect if we continue to allow them to rule over us. Its applicability its frightfully correct.


That is a fine book with a lot of very good themes, but it is only a Science Fiction novel.  

It's good to have read that book when you want to participate on forums like these and know what people are talking about when they reference it, but you should not look at it as though it were a comprehensive guide to all things to avoid from government, because it's not.

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## brandon

I read 1984 when I was a young teenager and went on to become sort of a libertarian mutualist until many years later when I started learning about economics.

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## thoughtomator

_Stranger in a Strange Land_

Not only possibly the greatest work of science fiction ever, but also a fascinating exploration of the virtues of individualism and the destructive nature of government.

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## TheGrinch

The Revolution Manifesto was the book that really got me into Dr. Paul in 2008.... I was sitting at a friends house waiting on him, and read the first 15 pages, and couldn't put it down.... I asked "What course is this for?" assuming that a book like that was academic, and viewed Dr. Paul and libertarianism in a whole new light after that.

I still have a lot more advanced readings I'd like to do, so I also thank you all for the recommendations....

Also, Dr. Paul's Liberty Defined is also an outstanding beginner book on his views, with each issue divided into easily digestible 3-5 page chapters.

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## damiengwa

Healing our world by mary ruart. Free audio book: http://freekeene.com/about/books/

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## Mahkato

The right book (or video) _really_ depends on the person. The Law is good, but not accessible to a lot of people. The Politically Incorrect Guide to Capitalism might be a good place to start for a lot of people. Watching The Philosophy of Liberty would be a good start for others. How an Economy Grows and Why It Doesn't (or Peter Schiff's remake of it) might be good too.

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## LibertyEagle

> In one of the debates, the candidates were asked if they could only recommend 1 must read book, which would it be.  
> 
> Ron answered Bastiats, The Law.
> 
> It's only 74 pages long and available for free online:
> 
> http://mises.org/books/thelaw.pdf


Yup, I agree.  This is the best.

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## polomertz

All awesome books.  I wish these were the books I was required to read in public school..... Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt is, in my opinion, the best to start with of all these.

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## angelatc



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## Dary

Ain't Nobody's Business If You Do : The Absurdity of Consensual Crimes in Our Free Country - 
Peter McWilliams

http://www.amazon.com/Aint-Nobodys-B.../dp/0931580587

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## Uncle Emanuel Watkins

> If you absolutely had to pick only 1 book to recommend reading for an aspiring libertarian, what would it be?


Plato's Republic.  Actually, these were scrolls.  Some interesting notes.  Aristotle never did finish his works by developing them to form as did Plato.  Plato didn't write for people to read, but he wrote his dialogues to be performed.  The lone student often left in attendence during Plato's performances had to be Aristotle as he was the one responsibility for enscribing the performance as he was the only one other than Plato who knew how to both read and write (these two abilities weren't considered intelligent abilities at the time).  While it might appear that Plato never wrote conclusions, the dialectic was always the main idea in every dialogue.  Plato should be considered the greatest fiction writer to ever live because he developed the endeavor of science as a genre.  Plato believed mathematics was science.  Plato wasn't a writer who picked up philosophy, but he was a philosopher who picked up a pen to challenge every filthy poet, as he viewed them.  In the end, Plato succeeded in bettering most of the writers and at least matching the very best of them.  
On and on.

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## matt0611

_The Law_, by Bastiat, I think is the best if you could only read one.

Runner's up are Hazlitt's _Economics in One Lesson_, _The Revolution: A Manifesto_, Rothbard's _For a New Liberty_ and Tom Wood's _Rollback_ (it has a terrible name but its really an awesome book for people new to liberty)

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## Roxi



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## Romulus

> 


That is a great book..... I still don't have any friends though. lol

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## Uncle Emanuel Watkins

> _The Law_, by Bastiat, I think is the best if you could only read one.
> 
> Runner's up are Hazlitt's _Economics in One Lesson_, _The Revolution: A Manifesto_, Rothbard's _For a New Liberty_ and Tom Wood's _Rollback_ (it has a terrible name but its really an awesome book for people new to liberty)


"The safest general characterization of the European philosophical tradition is that it consists of a series of footnotes to Plato." -Alfred North Whitehead 

Why not read the work that produced the underlying philosophy of every book written in Western Civilization?  How can this even be questioned?  Have we fallen this far?

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## Cowlesy

Fahrenheit 451.

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## Kotin

Anything on John Locke's property rights concepts..

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## jj-

> 


hahahaha!

sorry.

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## jj-

> lol @ people recommending *1984* and brave new world.


1984 wasn't even good enough to convert the one who wrote it! If one is to recommend something like that, go with Atlas Shrugged. At the very least the author wasn't a socialist.

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## jj-

I'd recommend "End The Fed".

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## GeorgiaAvenger

I strongly recommend that every American acquire some basic knowledge of economics, monetary policy, and the intersection of politics with the economy. No formal classroom is required; a desire to read and learn will suffice. There are countless important books to consider, but the following are an excellent starting point: *The Law by Frédéric Bastiat; Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt; What has Government Done to our Money? by Murray Rothbard; The Road to Serfdom by Friedrich Hayek; and Economics for Real People by Gene Callahan.*
If you simply read and comprehend these relatively short texts, you will know far more than most educated people about economics and government. You certainly will develop a far greater understanding of how supposedly benevolent government policies destroy prosperity. If you care about the future of this country, arm yourself with knowledge and fight back against economic ignorance. We disregard economics and history at our own peril.

Ron Paul

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## NoOneButPaul

> 1984 wasn't even good enough to convert the one who wrote it! If one is to recommend something like that, go with Atlas Shrugged. At the very least the author wasn't a socialist.


Always found Orwell's socialism simply fascinating since he wrote perhaps the two most anti-socialists books in history...

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## mikeyc90

liberty defined by ron paul

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## NoOneButPaul

> “I strongly recommend that every American acquire some basic knowledge of economics, monetary policy, and the intersection of politics with the economy. No formal classroom is required; a desire to read and learn will suffice. There are countless important books to consider, but the following are an excellent starting point: *The Law by Frédéric Bastiat; Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt; What has Government Done to our Money? by Murray Rothbard; The Road to Serfdom by Friedrich Hayek; and Economics for Real People by Gene Callahan.*
> If you simply read and comprehend these relatively short texts, you will know far more than most educated people about economics and government. You certainly will develop a far greater understanding of how supposedly benevolent government policies destroy prosperity. If you care about the future of this country, arm yourself with knowledge and fight back against economic ignorance. We disregard economics and history at our own peril.”
> 
> —Ron Paul


3 of my 5 picks  

And the two he didn't include, that I did, were his own books 

Anyone read Economics for Real People? Is it any good?

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## The Free Hornet

> In one of the debates, the candidates were asked if they could only recommend 1 must read book, which would it be.  
> 
> Ron answered Bastiats, The Law.
> 
> It's only 74 pages long and available for free online:
> 
> http://mises.org/books/thelaw.pdf


FEE has Economics in One Lesson for free as well.

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## jj-

> Anyone read Economics for Real People? Is it any good?


I read it, was underwhelmed.

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## Uncle Emanuel Watkins

> Anything on John Locke's property rights concepts..


Could you elaborate please?

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## BuddyRey

Lysander Spooner's "No Treason: The Constitution of No Authority"

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## A Son of Liberty

> 


Drat.  Beat me to it.   

ETA:

You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to Wesker1982 again.

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## PierzStyx

> lol @ people recommending 1984 and brave new world.   Many current americans had to read those books in school growing up; looking around at the state of things i can only come to the conclusion that they thought the scenarios in those books sounded like a good idea.


But most did not apply what they were reading. When you begin applying the ideas, start thinking and comparing, that is when they come alive. Schools get you to regurgitate, not think about what is going on.

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## PierzStyx

> That is a fine book with a lot of very good themes, but it is only a Science Fiction novel.  
> 
> It's good to have read that book when you want to participate on forums like these and know what people are talking about when they reference it, but you should not look at it as though it were a comprehensive guide to all things to avoid from government, because it's not.


Its barely science fiction. The conditions of the people and mentality of the state were based on Soviet Russia during Stalin's reign. That said, I disagree about its comprehensiveness. It doesn't list everything you should be wary about, but it does hit the big ones and the things it does talk about it does cover in depth.

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## PierzStyx

> 1984 wasn't even good enough to convert the one who wrote it! If one is to recommend something like that, go with Atlas Shrugged. At the very least the author wasn't a socialist.


Just the first neocon.

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## jj-

> Just the first neocon.


Some people don't need any help to humiliate themselves.

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## DerailingDaTrain

> "1984" was my first pick too 
> Second one was "Brave New World"
> Third would be *"Animal Farm"* 
> 
> If you want educational: Bastiats "Law"
> 
> *I dont play by your rules


If I ever have kids I'm going to read that to them when they're young. I didn't get a chance to read it until the 6th grade.

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## PierzStyx

> Some people don't need any help to humiliate themselves.


Apparently not. Go study up on how Ayn Rand was all for using US military forces and money to defend Israel, even though she preached nonintervention for everyone else.

Though I will admit she wasn't the _first_ neocon. 

Also, I think its hilarious how many people here love Ayn Rand and hate Rand Paul on foreign policy even though they both waffled on pure nonintervention.

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## DerailingDaTrain

> That is a fine book with a lot of very good themes, but it is only a Science Fiction novel.  
> 
> It's good to have read that book when you want to participate on forums like these and know what people are talking about when they reference it, but you should not look at it as though it were a comprehensive guide to all things to avoid from government, because it's not.


The book actually draws from history in case you didn't know:

Much of Oceanic society is based upon the U.S.S.R. under Joseph Stalin—Big Brother; the televised Two Minutes Hate is ritual demonisation of the enemies of the State, especially Emmanuel Goldstein (viz Leon Trotsky); altered photographs and newspaper articles create unpersons deleted from the national historical record, including even founding members of the regime (Jones, Aaronson and Rutherford) in the 1960s purges (viz the Soviet Purges of the 1930s, in which leaders of the Bolshevik Revolution were similarly treated

Orwell was a socialist but his book seems to be warning against it. The party is named IngSoc which comes from English Socialism.

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## farreri

For the evils of foreign aid and interventionism:


*Dollars & Dictators: A Guide to Central America*

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## danda

Libertarianism in one Lesson, by David Bergland

The Adventures of Jonathan Gullible, by Ken Schoolland.

The philosophy of Freedom.   online animation.

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## heavenlyboy34

A lot of people like the fiction books mentioned here, but don't "get" the message being conveyed.   Non-fiction is the way to go, IMO.  Subtlety seems to be lost on modern audiences.  I may change my mind later, but I think "Man, Economy, and State" is what I would recommend.

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## DerailingDaTrain

> A lot of people like the fiction books mentioned here, *but don't "get" the message being conveyed*.   Non-fiction is the way to go, IMO.  Subtlety seems to be lost on modern audiences.  I may change my mind later, but I think "Man, Economy, and State" is what I would recommend.


 nvm it hit me

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## heavenlyboy34

> The book actually draws from history in case you didn't know:
> 
> Much of Oceanic society is based upon the U.S.S.R. under Joseph Stalin—Big Brother; the televised Two Minutes Hate is ritual demonisation of the enemies of the State, especially Emmanuel Goldstein (viz Leon Trotsky); altered photographs and newspaper articles create unpersons deleted from the national historical record, including even founding members of the regime (Jones, Aaronson and Rutherford) in the 1960s purges (viz the Soviet Purges of the 1930s, in which leaders of the Bolshevik Revolution were similarly treated
> 
> Orwell was a socialist but his book seems to be warning against it. The party is named IngSoc which comes from English Socialism.


Indeed.  The book was based on "We"-written by Yeveny Zamyatin in the 1930s as a sort of satire of Soviet life.  "We" and "1984" are the most accurate fictional depictions of the future (our present) I'm aware of.

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## heavenlyboy34

> Could you elaborate?


They don't see the correlation/parallels between the story world/events and real life.  Outside libertarian circles, I don't even hear the word "Orwellian" or "Dystopian" anymore.  Make sense?

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## jj-

> They don't see the correlation/parallels between the story world/events and real life.  Outside libertarian circles, I don't even hear the word "Orwellian" or "Dystopian" anymore.  Make sense?


Idiot leftists talk about Orwell all the time. They are morons just like him.

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## heavenlyboy34

> 


In that genre, Napoleon Hill is better, IMO.

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## kuckfeynes

> Apparently not. Go study up on how Ayn Rand was all for using US military forces and money to defend Israel, even though she preached nonintervention for everyone else.
> 
> Though I will admit she wasn't the _first_ neocon. 
> 
> Also, I think its hilarious how many people here love Ayn Rand and hate Rand Paul on foreign policy even though they both waffled on pure nonintervention.


I'm not an Ayn Rand disciple, but I don't think you can really compare the two. They come from totally different places. Ayn Rand's minor interventionist streak was due to deeply embedded prejudices, and she was just a philosopher (albeit an influential one). 

Rand Paul has no discernible philosophy guiding his interventionism besides the desire to seek influence, and is one of only 535 whose decision is needed to to engage in such matters of life and death.

Two very different shortcomings affecting two very different degrees of responsibility.

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## green73

> I think "Man, Economy, and State" is what I would recommend


That's a bit heavy for a starter

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## jj-

> That's a bit heavy for a starter


A bit? I bet HB wouldn't pass a quiz on it either.

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## COpatriot

Machiavelli's "The Prince"

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## PierzStyx

> I'm not an Ayn Rand disciple, but I don't think you can really compare the two. They come from totally different places. Ayn Rand's minor interventionist streak was due to deeply embedded prejudices, and she was just a philosopher (albeit an influential one). 
> 
> Rand Paul has no discernible philosophy guiding his interventionism besides the desire to seek influence, and is one of only 535 whose decision is needed to to engage in such matters of life and death.
> 
> Two very different shortcomings affecting two very different degrees of responsibility.


Sure he does. Rand Paul believes that interventionist steps (such as sanctions) can be taken when a nation presents a danger to the country, but that open war should only take place under situation of an open attack and only when declared by Congress. Very paleo-Republican. Is this nonintervention in its purest sense? Not at all. But there is a philosophical guide there.

Ayn Rand was if anything a hypocrite. She openly was against intervention _except_ in the case of Israel where she was about as gung-ho as our Evangelical friends who think God wills we protect America. Note I am not saying she believed this for religious reasons, but that her dedication was as intense.

The imperfection of both of them though doesn't mean they should be totally rejected in my book. The Fountainhead is still one of my favorite books. And Rand Paul has done a lot of good but his isn't his father.

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## PierzStyx

> That's a bit heavy for a starter


Yeah. If you're starting on economics, "END THE FED" has a list of Beginner, Moderate, and Advanced books on the subject in the back of it.

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## PierzStyx

> Always found Orwell's socialism simply fascinating since he wrote perhaps the two most anti-socialists books in history...


Orwell believed that socialism could be used for the good and to expand liberty and justice if practiced correctly. But he also recognized that socialism could also be twisted and warped into what you saw in Stalinist Russia (as he portrayed in 1984). He was a utopian, but wasn't completely blind. I'd say its sad he never got that utopian socialism just is impossible. Socialism will _always_ lead to 1984 if not interrupted.

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## Austrian Econ Disciple

> Orwell believed that socialism could be used for the good and to expand liberty and justice if practiced correctly. But he also recognized that socialism could also be twisted and warped into what you saw in Stalinist Russia (as he portrayed in 1984). He was a utopian, but wasn't completely blind. I'd say its sad he never got that utopian socialism just is impossible. Socialism will _always_ lead to 1984 if not interrupted.


Orwell was never a socialist. He was an anarcho-syndicalist. If he were alive today I think he would be very sympathetic to our movement and ideals, and not as douchey and idiotic as someone like Noam Chomsky who is a rabid Statist parading around as a farce of An-Sync.

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## axiomata

There's plenty of good short online nudges towards libertarianism listed in this thread.  But the final push and the cement is Human Action by Mises.

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## Shane Harris

imo the best, shortest read on individualism vs. collectivism is Anthem.

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## enoch150

> So many people here say this...It's definitely the other way around... In Brave New World everyone was grown out of test tubes and the entire society was scientifically calculated- controlled by massive amounts of sex and drugs. 
> 
> You wouldn't go from BNW to 1984... you'd go from 1984 to BNW as technology advanced itself to make BNW possible...


Agreed. The point of the test tubes was more illustrative, I think. The idea was that children belong to the state. Germany, Japan, Australia, Russia, and other countries now directly subsidize people to have children. After they're born, most get a factory education that teaches them flag waving worship of the state. Once they're older, they get Ritalin or Prozac. Some would include fluoride. Drugs like alcohol, marijuana, and, increasingly, extasy and cocaine are culturally glorified. And that is really the goal, just like in Brave New World. Forcible medication by the government is difficult because people instinctively rebel. Encouraging cultural acceptance is better, but many will still stand aside if there is no peer pressure to join in. Creating societal peer pressure to make your problems disappear with Soma allows for a much more docile and controllable society. And then there's the distractions on the idiot box every night - baseball, porn, American Idol, video games, and the daily play struggle between Republicans and Democrats. 

The stick of 1984 is only used by incompetent rulers who haven't yet learned that control is much easier when people love their servitude.

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## qh4dotcom



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## realtonygoodwin

Total Money Makeover -  Dave Ramsey

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## qh4dotcom

> Total Money Makeover -  Dave Ramsey


Ramsey is a clown who claimed Peter Schiff was an idiot and he was wrong...he bragged he didn't own any gold and it's a stupid investment...can't believe you are recommending this clowns book

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S98_eMax9xo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Amluk6HxUH8

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## Bastiat's The Law

> imo the best, shortest read on individualism vs. collectivism is Anthem.


By Ayn Rand?

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## thoughtomator

I always found Ayn Rand to be an absolutely horrible writer... every damn thing is about 10x as long as it needs to be (minimum) to get the point across.

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## idiom

Is there anywhere you can check to see if everybody in a thread has set you to 'ignore'?

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## fisharmor

Of the ones I've read so far, The Road to Serfdom makes the most cogent argument.
1) Freedom caused an unprecedented rise in standard of living 
2) For some reason, people weren't content with the pace of that rise
3) Enter the idea of central planning
4) Central planning by nature attracts the worst elements of society
5) Therefore, Nazi Germany
6) Here's what the rule of law is
7) Central planning can't give us what it promises, only tyrants
8) Here's how to get back to #1

I like a lot of the other books suggested, but I don't see a whole lot of writing style difference between Henry Hazlitt and Anne Coulter.  "Let's just throw a bunch of stuff together that supports the idea and make it readable".

If the reader can't cope with unabridged Hayek, I'd definitely go with The Law, though.

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