Classic Books That Drive the Debate
NCF’s mission is to drive the policy debate on the important emerging issues by formulating arguments, developing options, and influencing thinking in an effort to move the American business agenda forward. As part of that mission, we consulted with industry specialists and Chamber staff to select a list of books that both advance our agenda and challenge our thinking.
The following are our two highly recommended reading selections by leading think tanks, business leaders, and policy experts.
The Intelligent Investor
by Benjamin Graham
The classic bestseller, perhaps the greatest investment advisor of the 20th century, has taught and inspired hundreds of thousands of people worldwide. Since its original publication in 1949, Benjamin Graham’s book has remained the most respected guide to investing, due to his timeless philosophy of “value investing,” which helps protect investors against the areas of possible substantial error and teaches them to develop long-term strategies with which they will be comfortable down the road.
Extraordinary Popular Delusions & the Madness of Crowds
by Charles Mackay, LLD
Why do otherwise intelligent individuals form seething masses of idiocy when they engage in collective action? Why do financially sensible people jump lemming-like into hare-brained speculative frenzies–only to jump broker-like out of windows when their fantasies dissolve? We may think that the Great Crash of 1929, junk bonds of the ’80s, and over-valued high-tech stocks of the ’90s are peculiarly 20th century aberrations, but Mackay’s classic–first published in 1841–shows that the madness and confusion of crowds knows no limits, and has no temporal bounds. These are extraordinarily illuminating,and, unfortunately, entertaining tales of chicanery, greed and naivete. Essential reading for any student of human nature or the transmission of ideas.
The Wealth of Nations
by Adam Smith
In the first sentence of Wealth of Nations, Smith explained his conception of the nature of the wealth of nations. In so doing, he separated his views from those of the mercantilists and physiocrats.
The annual labour of every nation is the fund which originally supplies it with all the necessaries and conveniences of life which it annually consumes, and which consists always either in the immediate produce of that labour, or in what is purchased with that produce from other nations.
Atlas Shrugged
by Ayn Rand
The theme of Atlas Shrugged, as Rand described it, is “the role of man’s mind in existence.” The book explores a number of philosophical themes that Rand would subsequently develop into the philosophy of Objectivism. It advocates the core tenets of Rand’s philosophy of Objectivism and expresses her concept of human achievement. In doing so it expresses many facets of Rand’s philosophy, such as the advocacy of reason, individualism, the market economy and the failure of government coercion.
Capitalism and Freedom
by Milton Friedman
Capitalism and Freedom is written from the perspective of the United States. It was published nearly two decades after World War II, a time when the Great Depression was still in collective memory and the Cold War had just begun. Under the Kennedy and preceding Eisenhower administrations, federal expenditures were growing at a quick pace in the areas of national defense, social welfare and infrastructure. Both major parties, Democratic and Republican, supported increased spending in different ways. This, as well as the New Deal, was supported by most intellectuals with the justification of Keynesian economics.
The Road to Serfdom
by F.A. Hayek
The Road to Serfdom is a book written by Friedrich von Hayek (recipient of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 1974) which transformed the landscape of political thought in the 20th century, shifting the terms of debate for millions of people across the political spectrum. The Road to Serfdom is among the most influential and popular expositions of classical liberalism and libertarianism.
Economics in One Lesson
by Henry Hazlitt
Economics in One Lesson is an introduction to free market economics written by Henry Hazlitt and published in 1946, based on Frédéric Bastiat’s essay Ce qu’on voit et ce qu’on ne voit pas (English: “What is Seen and What is Not Seen”). The “One Lesson” is stated in Part One of the book: “The art of economics consists in looking not merely at the immediate but at the longer effects of any act or policy; it consists in tracing the consequences of that policy not merely for one group but for all groups”. Part Two consists of twenty-five chapters, each demonstrating the lesson by tracing the effects of one common economic belief, and showing that common economic belief to be a fallacy.
The Constitution of Liberty
by F.A. Hayek
The Constitution of Liberty is a book by Austrian economist and Nobel Prize recipient Friedrich A. Hayek. The book was first published in 1960 and it is an interpretation of civilization as being made possible by the fundamental principles of liberty, which the author presents as prerequisites for wealth and growth, rather than the other way around.
Human Action
by Ludwig von Mises
Human Action: A Treatise on Economics is the magnum opus of the Austrian economist Ludwig von Mises. It presents a case for laissez-faire capitalism based on Mises’ praxeology, or rational investigation of human decision-making. It rejects positivism within economics. It defends an a priori epistemology and underpins praxeology with a foundation of methodological individualism and laws of apodictic certainty. Mises argues that the free-market economy not only outdistances any government-planned system, but ultimately serves as the foundation of civilization itself.
Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy
by Joseph Schumpeter
Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy is the most famous book by Joseph Schumpeter in which he deals with capitalism, socialism and creative destruction. First published in 1942, it is largely unmathematical, compared with neoclassical works, focusing on the unexpected, rapid spurts of entrepreneur-driven growth instead of static models. The book is unusual insomuch as it was written to appear sympathetic to socialism, beginning with an account of Karl Marx, in order to encourage socialists to read it. Schumpeter hoped they would achieve self-recognition of the problems with socialism in the light of the book, without having to be explicitly told: if the book appeared to be favourable to capitalism, he feared socialists, his target audience, would not bother to read it.
Do you have any suggestions for Classic Books That Drive the Debate? Please let us know at ncfevents@uschamber.com.
