“I see no other conceivable strategy for the achievement of liberty than political action. Religious or philosophical conversion of each man and woman is simply not going to work; that strategy ignores the problem of power, the fact that millions of people have a vested interest in statism and are not likely to give it up.... Education in liberty is of course vital, but it is not enough; action must also be taken to roll back the State.” PeopleMenGivingStatesEnoughFactsProblemActionPoliticalCoursesInterestReligiousLibertyMillionsTakenAchievementMen And WomenPhilosophicalStrategyConversionGoing To WorkVested InterestsPolitical Action Author:Murray Rothbard
“[T]he crucial question is not, as so many believe, whether property rights should be private or governmental, but rather whether the necessarily 'private' owners are legitimate owners or criminals. For ultimately, there is no entity called 'government'; there are only people forming themselves into groups called 'governments' and acting in a 'governmental' manner. All property is therefore always 'private'; the only and critical question is whether it should reside in the hands of criminals or of the proper and legitimate owners.” PeopleShouldBelieveHandsGovernmentActingRightsGroupsPropertyCriticalCriminalsOwnersCrucialEntityProperty Rights Author:Murray Rothbard
“The modern welfare state, highly touted as soaking the rich to subsidize the poor, does no such thing. In fact, soaking the rich would have disastrous effects, not just for the rich but for the poor and middle classes themselves. For it is the rich who provide a proportionately greater amount of saving, investment capital, entrepreneurial foresight, and financing of technological innovation that has brought the Unites States to by far the highest standard of living - for the mass of the people - of any country in history.” PeopleDoeCountryStatesFactsPoorClassRichGreaterModernMiddleEffectsAmountHighestMassStandardsInnovationInvestmentSavingWelfareMiddle ClassTechnologicalEntrepreneurialForesightStandards Of LivingWelfare StateFinancingSoaking Author:Murray Rothbard
“It is no crime to be ignorant of economics, which is, after all, a specialized discipline and one that most people consider to be a ‘dismal science.’ But it is totally irresponsible to have a loud and vociferous opinion on economic subjects while remaining in this state of ignorance.” PeopleStatesPoliticalLibertyOpinionEconomicSubjectsCrimeIgnoranceDisciplineEconomicsLibertarianIgnorantLoudIrresponsible Author:Murray Rothbard
“It is curious that people tend to regard government as a quasi-divine, selfless, Santa Claus organization. Government was constructed neither for ability nor for the exercise of loving care; government was built for the use of force and for necessarily demagogic appeals for votes. If individuals do not know their own interests in many cases, they are free to turn to private experts for guidance. It is absurd to say that they will be served better by a coercive, demagogic apparatus.” PeopleIfsKnowsUseGovernmentCareTurnsIndividualForceInterestAbilityCasesDivineExerciseBuiltVoteOrganizationRegardAbsurdCuriousAppealsGuidanceExpertsSelflessSantaSanta ClausUse Of Force Book:Man, Economy, and State with Power and Market, Scholar's Edition Source: Man, Economy, and State with Power and Market, Scholar's Edition
“In short, the early receivers of the new money in this market chain of events gain at the expense of those who receive the money toward the end of the chain, and still worse losers are the people (e.g., those on fixed incomes such as annuities, interest, or pensions) who never receive the new money.” PeopleStillsEndsInterestLibertyEconomicEventsGainsEconomicsIncomeChainsFixedExpensesLoserPensionReceiverChain Of EventsFixed Income Author:Murray Rothbard
“Governments have persistently tried their best to promote, encourage, and expand the circulation of bank and government paper, and to discourage the people's use of gold itself.” PeopleUseGovernmentMoneyPaperGoldEncouragementDiscouragingCirculation Author:Murray Rothbard
“I see a great future for gold and silver coins as the currency people may increasingly turn to when paper currencies begin to disintegrate.” PeopleMayTurnsPaperGoldSilverCurrencyCoinsGold And SilverGreat FutureGold Coins Author:Murray Rothbard
“Who wants good people in government? Good people should be in the private sector. Helping us out, helping themselves out in the private sector. We want schmoes in government. We want people who can't find the doorknob. Why waste productive people, as well as looting the taxpayer?” PeopleWantShouldWellsHelpingGovernmentWasteLibertarianProductiveGood PeopleTaxpayersPrivate SectorLooting Author:Murray Rothbard
“The libertarian sees the State as a giant gang of organized criminals, who live off the theft called "taxation" and use the proceeds to kill, enslave, and generally push people around. Therefore, any property in the hands of the State is in the hands of thieves, and should be liberated as quickly as possible. Any person or group who liberates such property, who confiscates or appropriates it from the State, is performing a virtuous act and a signal service to the cause of liberty.” PeopleShouldPersonsStatesUseHandsCausesLibertyGroupsPropertyLibertarianCriminalsRevolutionaryPerformingGiantsOrganizedVirtuousThievesSignalsTaxationGangTheftLiberated Author:Murray Rothbard
“We must, therefore, emphasize that 'we' are not the government; the government is not 'us.' The government does not in any accurate sense 'represent' the majority of the people. But, even if it did, even if 70 percent of the people decided to murder the remaining 30 percent, this would still be murder and would not be voluntary suicide on the part of the slaughtered minority. No organicist metaphor, no irrelevant bromide that 'we are all part of one another,' must be permitted to obscure this basic fact.” PeopleIfsDoeStillsFactsGovernmentPercentDecidedMurderSuicideMajorityMetaphorMinoritiesAccurateObscureIrrelevant Author:Murray Rothbard
