Synopses & Reviews
Benjamin A. Rogge's ability to speak and write about serious economic topics with humor, humility, and wit, but without difficult jargon, math, or diagrams, places him in a category all his own. This new collection of fifty-three essays, many of which have never before been published, gathers some of Rogge's most interesting talks and writings spanning the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. This volume encompasses a vast array of topics including the case for individual liberty and responsibility in maintaining the free-market economy, the nature of economics, the business system, labor markets, money and inflation, and education. By organizing the volume thematically, the editor, Dwight R. Lee, has been able to highlight and place in context the many different areas of economics that compose Professor Rogge's extensive output.
Part 1: Individual Liberty, Responsibility, and the Morality of the Market
This opening section is composed mostly of Rogge's speeches describing his broad philosophy on liberty, responsibility, government, and the market, as well as their roles in maintaining a free-market economy.
Part 2: The Role of Economists
With humor and insight, Rogge discusses what economists can do and cannot do to promote a free and prosperous society.
Part 3: Education
The longest section of this volume includes Rogge's many thoughts on education, such as his ideas on the role of the student, tenure, financing higher education, economic education, and the role of the intellectual. This section includes an especially entertaining article called "Well, So You're a College Graduate: What Tricks Can You Do?"
Part 4: Microeconomics, Labor Issues, and Political Foibles
This seciton provides a diverse and insightful compilation of writings on government policies, discrimination, antitrust, the gold standard, and energy.
Part 5: Macroeconomics: Policies and Forecasts
The chapters in this section focus on macroeconomic issues such as inflation, unemployment, government stabilization policy, and economic forecasts.
Part 6: Foreign Policy and Economic Development
Rogge's writing in this section includes several pieces on economic development that effectively argue against the prevailing view at the time of writing, which is still popular today: that underdeveloped economies require government planning if they are to develop.
Benjamin A. Rogge (1920-1980) was Distinguished Professor of Political Economy at Wabash College. He was also the author of Can Capitalism Survive?, published by Liberty Fund.
Dwight R. Lee is William J. O'Neil Professor of Global Markets and Freedom at Southern Methodist University's Cox School of Business.
Synopsis
This new collection of fifty-three essays, many of which have never before been published, gathers some of Benjamin Rogge's most interesting talks and writings spanning a vast array of topics including the case for individual liberty and responsibility in maintaining the free-market economy, the nature of economics, the business system, labor markets, money and inflation, and education.
Benjamin A. Rogge (1920-1980) was Distinguished Professor of Political Economy at Wabash College. He was also the author of Can Capitalism Survive?, published by Liberty Fund.
Dwight R. Lee is William J. O'Neil Professor of Global Markets and Freedom at Southern Methodist University's Cox School of Business.
Table of Contents
Introduction by Dwight R. Lee ix
PART 1 Individual Liberty, Repsonsibility, and the Morality of the Market
The Case for Economic Freedom 3
The New Conservatism 10
The Only Economic System Consistent with Freedom and Responsibility 16
Intellectuals' Curse of Capitalism 23
Voluntary Organizations in the Free Society 26
Speech in Honor of Leonard Read's Seventieth Birthday 33
The Power of Tomorrow: Whither FEE? 39
What Are the Duties of the State? 48
Is Economic Freedom Possible? 55
PART 2 The Role of Economists
What Economists Can and Cannot Do 69
When to See Your Economist 81
Economists as Freedom Fighters 89
The Bicentennial of Economic Liberty 94
PART 3 Education
Section 1: Education in a Free Society 97
Education in a Free Society (with Pierre Goodrich) 99
Complexity in Hades 123
The Promise of the College 129
Section 2: Financing and Administering Higher Education 135
What Price Education? 137
Financing Higher Education 143
Tenure 148
Student Power and All That 150
Section 3: The Role of the Student 153
Thursday Chapel: Rogge Raps Pledge Training 155
Youth's Cause 160
Well, So You're a College Graduate: What Tricks Can You Do? 162
All Who Play Can Win 169
Section 4: The Role of Businesspeople and Intellectuals 175
Speech in Honor of Charles D. LaFollette on His Retirement from Wabash's Board of Trustees 177
It's Nice, but it May Never Sell 186
I Remember . . . 190
An Entry in the Business Citizenship Competition 196
Section 5: Economic Education 203
Interview with Dr. Benjamin Rogge 205
Economics in Schools: Discussion 208
PART 4 Microeconomics, Labor Issues, and Political Foibles
The Myth of Monopoly 213
Putty in the Hands of the Image-Makers 230
Debating the Gold Standard 232
Job Creation. . . Whose Job Is It? 235
People, Problems, and Progress 241
Union Wage Hike: An Economic Yes and No 246
Barriers on the Road to Employment 249
Racial Discrimination and the Market Place 252
The Welfare State against the Negro 264
Motivation and the Cost Squeeze 279
Of Turnips and Energy Scarcity 289
Yes, America, There Is an Energy Problem, But . . . 292
PART 5 Macroeconomics: Policies and Forecasts
Keynesian Policy 299
Economics--Some Relationships of Theory and Practice 317
The Outlook for the American Economy 321
Misconceptions of the Cause and Cure of Inflation 326
Political Incentives and Continued Inflation 337
The Political Economy of Inflation 349
PART 6 Foreign Policy and Economic Development
Should the United States Be in Vietnam? 365
East-West Trade 369
A Letter from São Paulo: They've Got an Awful Lot of Rogges in Brazil 379
Haste Makes Waste in Economic Development 384
The Role of Government in Latin American Economic Development 388
Index 409