The Human Action Podcast

Even well-read fans of Austrian economics often have a hard time understanding and conceptualizing what the Fed really does. So we asked our good friend Dr. Jeffrey Herbener to join us and make sense of it all. We cover the basic blocking and tackling of central bank mechanics: how commercial bank reserves are created, the difference between the monetary base and the money supply, and how the Fed Funds rate impacts lending and the structure of production. We consider how Austrian business cycle theory describes the distortions created by artificially low interest rates, and how interest rates ought to operate as price signals. Finally, we discuss how early recipients of newly created money and credit benefit in ways that ordinary citizens don't.

This show is a great primer on the Fed from an Austrian perspective. 'Modern Money Mechanics: A Workbook on Bank Reserves and Deposit Expansion' is available at https://www.community-exchange.org/docs/ModernMoneyMechanics.pdf

Lew Rockwell, Chairman and Founder of the Mises Institute, delivered a moving message at our event in Boston, last week. Entitled "Our Prospects are Bright", Lew's talk serves to remind us that the future of true liberalism was much darker during the life of Ludwig von Mises.

For most of the 20th century, only a handful of libertarian activists existed. Today, millions around the world interact and spread the message using digital platforms that would have been unthinkable even when Mises died in the early 1970s. Our ideas grow in popularity, while the tired Democrats and Republicans struggle to maintain legitimacy and relevancy. Rather than lament politics and the state, we should be heartened by how far we've come—and go forward confidently.

On Mises Weekends, this week, Jeff joins our friend John O'Donnell at Power Trading Radio to dive deeper into the the broken state of modern economics. Along with touching on what is really being taught in American econ programs today, Jeff and John discuss the college federal loan scam, and the unique role the Mises Institute plays in economic education.

On the heels of the Fed's annual meeting in Jackson Hole, "extraordinary" monetary policy may be the new normal. Janet Yellen refuses to raise rates for now, and Former Chair Ben Bernanke openly questions whether the Fed's Treasury-laden balance sheet—swollen after successive rounds of QE—will ever be unwound. Real growth is flat, real incomes are stagnant, inflation is higher than the government admits, and millions of Americans still haven't recovered from the Crash of '08.

Is economics broken? Have we entered a new era of technocratic impotence, where mainstream economists simply have run out of monetary policy tools? Can we undo the damage caused by the Fed's relentless attack on savers? Do most professional economists understand the role of interest rates at all? And what kind of revolution is needed to save economics as a profession?

Dr. Joe Salerno, professor of economics and Academic VP of the Mises Institute, joins us to makes sense of it all.

The Mises Institute is in Asheville, North Carolina, this weeked, celebrating our Supporters Summit. We thought you might enjoy hearing a talk that Jeff Deist gave entitled the "The Role of the Mises Institute". Here's a hint: it's not politics, it's not public policy, and it's not lobbying. But, rather, to be a school — a new kind of school — for the 21st century.

Our own Senior Fellow Dr. Mark Thornton recently appeared on Press TV to make the libertarian case for real free trade, as opposed to unholy negotiated trade deals like the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Brent Budowsky, a journalist for 'The Hill' newspaper in Washington DC, also joined the show to present a pro-union, left-populist perspective. They both conclude that complex trade schemes, which often involve creating supra-national regulatory bodies, are bad for America and the economy — but for totally different reasons.

Our friend and former member of the European Parliament Godfrey Bloom rejoins us for a lively postmortem on the Brexit vote. It's been two months, and the sky hasn't fallen in the UK. In fact, markets are up—and new Prime Minister Theresa May promises that a withdrawal treaty will be negotiated in due time. Mr. Bloom dismisses this, pointing out that her new administration could act swiftly and unilaterally. He also point out that the Germans are unlikely to deny BMWs to British buyers, just as French wineries are unlikely to suspend shipments of champagne across the Channel. In other words, trade can be accomplished without bureaucratic help. All the common market needs is buyers and sellers, not complex treaties and byzantine regulations.

How did "Leave" forces, overwhelmingly represented in the British countryside, defeat the bureaucratic class in London? And what does Brexit mean for the march of globalism generally? Mr. Bloom is an engaging speaker and a thoroughly pro-trade Rothbardian.

Dr. Tom DiLorenzo has a fantastic new book out entitled 'The Problem with Socialism' (http://store.mises.org/-P11032.aspx), and his talk summarizing it was a great hit recently at Mises University. This is Tom at his best: witty and provocative, but always bravely revisionist when it comes to skewering sacred cows like welfare, minimum wage, and progressive income taxes. His book—and this talk—are a must for anyone who wants a concise and easy refutation of the enduring myths surrounding socialism.

Jeff Deist discusses libertarian strategy with Adam Camac and Daniel Laguros of the "Wake Up Call" podcast (WakeUpCallPodcast.com). How can libertarians achieve a freer society, given the depressing state of politics, in both America and abroad? Jeff shares his thoughts on Liberland, the Free State Project, and how modern technology has become “the great leveler” in the battle of ideas.

Judge Napolitano, the great constitutional scholar and legal analyst for Fox News, recently gave a dynamite talk to our Mises U students on the real meaning of the 1st Amendment. While many protections in the Bill of Rights have been almost completely eviscerated by a lawless federal government, the Judge finds reasons to be optimistic about the current state of free speech in America. In fact, he suggests that 1st Amendment freedoms actually may be expanding—even as much of the Constitution becomes a dead letter. This is a compelling talk you won't want to miss.