Friedrich A. Hayek

A fundamental Euro flaw

On a philosophical level, Europe’s crisis can be interpreted as a practical lesson in the errors of constructivism. It shows what happens if grown economic and social structures are wilfully ignored and replaced by systems designed in academic ivory towers and the backrooms of power. [...]

The Multi-layered Hayek

Friedrich August von Hayek was one of the intellectual giants of the 20th century. His contributions ranged from economics to philosophy, from law to psychology. In 1972, he won the Nobel Prize in Economics, and his ideas had great influence on politicians like Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher. At an event hosted by The Centre for Independent Studies in 2008, four academics delivered an assessment of Hayek’s contributions to different fields of research and analysed their relevance to contemporary debates. This collection of essays demonstrates how much a source of inspiration Hayek’s works still are. [...]

Why world must take interest in our boom

It is appropriate for the society's international members to visit Australia. Its position of economic strength owes a lot to Hayekian ideas of freedom, competition and discovery. Australia remains one of the best case studies on the power of market-based reforms. [...]

Learning about Hayek the hard way

IN his masterpiece, The Road to Serfdom, Friedrich Hayek considered the follies of mistaken policies to conclude: "We shall not grow wiser before we learn that much that we have done was very foolish." If only Kevin Rudd heeded this advice, his much-televised apologies for the government's insulation fiasco and other policy blunders would be more credible. [...]

Clueless road to serfdom

THE great sociologist Max Weber once defined the art of politics as "a strong and slow boring of hard boards" that required "both passion and perspective". What, one wonders, would Weber have made of Kevin Rudd, who early this month ventured into the sphere of political philosophy with a renewed attack on liberal thinker Friedrich Hayek? While it is hard to deny the passion behind the Prime Minister's views, the perspective of his critique of the Nobel prize-winning economist is far from clear. [...]

Intellektuelle Schützenhilfe – Über die Möglichkeiten von Think Tanks

Dass Unternehmer sich in öffentliche Debatten einbringen, ist in Deutschland immer noch eher die Ausnahme als die Regel. Das gilt ganz besonders für Familienunternehmer. In anderen Ländern hingegen ist unternehmerisches Engagement in der Politik viel verbreiteter, und zwar auch außerhalb der Parteien. In Großbritannien konnte sich zum Beispiel eine vielfältige Kultur von Denkfabriken („Think Tanks“) entwickeln, die der Politik in der Vergangenheit immer wieder neue Anstöße gegeben hat. [...]