Back on the Road to Serfdom: The Resurgence of Statism by Thomas E. Woods Jr.


Back on the Road to Serfdom: The Resurgence of Statism
Title : Back on the Road to Serfdom: The Resurgence of Statism
Author :
Rating :
ISBN : 193519190X
ISBN-10 : 9781935191902
Language : English
Format Type : Hardcover
Number of Pages : 234
Publication : First published November 15, 2010

'The threat of statism has reemerged in force. The federal government has seized on the economic crisis to radically expand its powerùthrough bailouts, "stimulus" packages, a trillion-dollar health-care plan, "jobs bills," massive expansions of the money supply, and much more. But such interventionism did not suddenly materialize with the recent collapse. The dangerous trends of government growth, debt increases, encroachments on individual liberty, and attacks on the free market began years earlier and continued no matter which political party was in power.

This shift toward statism "will not end happily," declares Thomas E. Woods Jr. In Back on the Road to Serfdom, Woods brings together ten top scholars to examine why the size and scope of government has exploded, and to reveal the devastating consequences of succumbing to the statist temptation.

Spanning history, economics, politics, religion, and the arts, Back on the Road to Serfdom

How government interventionism endangers America's prosperity and entrepreneurship

The roots of from the seminal conflict between Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton to the vast expansion of federal power in the twentieth century

Why the standard explanation for the economic crisis is so terribly wrongùand why the government's frenzied responses do more harm

Why the European welfare state is not a model to aspire to but a disaster to be avoided

How an intrusive state not only hurts the economy but also imperils individual liberty and undermines the role of civil society

The fatal flaws in the now-common arguments against free markets and free trade

How big business is helping government pave the road to serfdom

Why the Judeo-Christian tradition does not demand support for the welfare state, but in fact values the free market

How the arrogance of government power extends to the cultural realmùwhere central planning is just as inefficient and destructive

Back on the Road to Serfdom: The Resurgence of Statism Reviews

  • Bernie

    A book of essays chronicaling the emergence of a the Western World's on-ramp merge back on to the Road to Serfdom.... back on the road to a resurgent state and statism. These authors are the true heirs to Fredrick Hayek, being schooled in the Austrian school. Compare that to the Book, the New Road to Serfdom by Daniel Hannan, which was good but not exactly on the same topic as Hayek. This is a nice little read that you will enjoy, though it will serve as warning concerning the ascendency of soon-to-fail Utopianism, or as Sowell would put it, "unconstrained visions". This book fits in nicely with Sowell's "Conflict of Visions", and Mark Levin's "Ameritopia".

  • Steffi

    I love this modern American spin on The Road to Serfdom. This book contains great examples to help the reader grasp concepts and ideas. Very eye-opening! It is so important to stay informed on why and how government intervention continues to rear its ugly head in the US. Statism is very relevant in society today. It is necessary to be awake to stop encroachments on our liberties that we hold so dear as Americans.

  • M.E.

    This is a good primer on the Austrian economics take on a variety of topics. If you want to pure free market take on various issues that are facing the modern world, this is a reasonably good place to start.

  • Emily

    To be honest, I expected a lot more out of an ISI book. At the very least, a more thorough editor who might have taken care of the numerous errors and poor phrasing.

  • Peter

    Too much government control is messing up society.