Paranoia, the Destroyer

Title: “The Road to Serfdom”

Author: F.A. Hayek

Rank: 4

Blurb: “Originally published in 1944 — when Eleanor Roosevelt supported the efforts of Stalin, and Albert Einstein subscribed lock, stock, and barrel to the socialist program — The Road to Serfdom was seen as heretical for its passionate warning against the dangers of state control over the means of production.”

Review: “This guy is well spoken and insightful. But beyond that his style makes his writing hard to follow. Preferably books ought to be written in the most easily understood and comprehended form. This author’s style is one where the sentences are long and filled with commas and interjections. Also the text is somewhat old so the phrasing and expressions sometimes were extremely hard for me to understand.”

Customers Also Bought: “Ayn Rand Box Set”

Footnote: Hayek in the Amazon Top Ten? Glenn Beck, of course. Let’s see Oprah do that.

The Road to Serfdom [Amazon]

Buy or Die [Stinque@Amazon kickback link]

22 Comments

NOOOOOO! Flashbacks to Husband #2, Mises and all that dumb shit!

bad night.when I woke up very early this morning to come in to work so I can still have a part of a day later I found both Earl the ripsaw catfish and the arowana dead.
I dont have a clue what happened. I tested the water and it seemed fine so I gave some to my fish buddy to test.
might have been the feeder fish I had just given to them.
anyway, moment of silence. they both had a good run. I was finally able to weigh the catfish. he was 9 pounds.

to work.

Oh okay…

Like economic libertarianism, this book is stunningly obsolete. Means of production? Don’t we call that China?

About a month ago, there was a discussion on io9 about Robert Heinlein’s “The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress” which for those who don’t know, is pretty much the story of a libertarian revolt on the moon. I loved it when I read it first at 18, but by the time I was 28 I realized that the story was too perfect/idealized (much like the society of Starship Troopers.) Most revolts fail in large part because the gubbiment carries more and bigger sticks than the rebels do.

There was a comment by someone who probably bought this book stating that it was the primer for a revolution. My reply to him was a rather harsh: “Why not read Ghandi, Mao or someone who actually fought a revolution and won?”

That review reminds me of something out of Idiocracy. I don’t think we’re 500 years out from it turning into simply, “He writes like a fag”, unfortunately…

@Capt Howdy: Deepest sympathies.

@ManchuCandidate: Even after getting Engels to do most of the heavy lifting (read: ghost writing), Marx’s “Capital” (all volumes) is a horror as far as prose goes. In any event, I’d follow Salma Hayek anywhere, but this guy?

SportJack: Benedick, JNOV and other h8ers will be thrilled. They had a soccer match, and show tunes broke out, according to this fluffy piece of sports journalism at the Old Gray Lady.

@ManchuCandidate: “Means of production? Don’t we call that China?”

@Nabisco: “I’d follow Salma Hayek anywhere, but this guy? ”

Dang, you guys are waaay to alert and witty for a Sunday morning.

@Nabisco:
thank you
I will be depressed when I have more time.

@Capt Howdy:
Sorry to hear that.

@Serolf Divad:
Nabisco’s on the other side of world. I have no excuse. I’ve been up since 7:30 (went to bed early for a Sat) and doing my Sunday morning reading (only time I get a chance to read without interruptions.)

@Capt Howdy: I’m so sorry about that.

@Nabisco: I wonder if Engels, Freud and Proust were ever in a room together?

As to the Gay Lady piece, I didn’t understand a word of it.

But speaking of show tunes, I finally saw the Tony broadcast and was struck by its amazing integration. It was really sort, dare I say, hopeful? I’ve never seen anything where black and white America, gay and straight America, and man and woman America were all working it quite so successfully together. It’s always much more sophisticated than the Oscars because, well, it’s the theatre, but I’ve never seen it quite this groovy before.

The past season has been written off by the Queens of Broadway as pretty lack-lustre but the Memphis number, although almost note-for-note the big dancey-dance number from Hairspray, featured spectacular Broadway dancing, the kind of thing you can see nowhere else, people, with the men doing high split-jumps every time they turned around. I mean, WOW. Poor Catherine Z-Jones tried to sing and a man from Glee was pretty terrific. For some reason the men in the Twyla Tharp number, perhaps thinking they were at Broadway Bares, strode forward and ripped their shirts open at the audience which made everyone sit up. Jada P-Smith, dressed as a Christmas cracker, brought the glamour of Frederick’s of H’wood to Radio City and looked seriously out of place. Somebody should have told her that the entrance to the Lincoln Tunnel was further downtown. And C Blanchett needs to eat something, pronto. Though I loathe the way these awards shows reduce everything to a contest I have to say this one was very well done and even made me want to see the new revival of La Cage aux Folles, and there’s a sentence I never thought I’d write. I saw the original which was vulgar beyond belief but they seem to have learned how to pronounce the title and fixed the heinous mistake of having Random Character Singing the Big Song issue, which is right up there with Happy Villagers, so I might have to conquer my extreme fear of drag and go. Speaking of Happy Villagers there seemed to be a lot of them about in the various dance numbers but I held off from judging (I know, that’s a first) till I could see it in context.

Best joke was from Nathan Lane saying that in his house they referred to the Tonys as Passover.

@Capt Howdy:
i’m sorry howdy. i had fish for many years. you do get attached.

@Benedick:
well, finally. i didn’t dare bring them up because i’m on probation, but i loved every minute.
wait wait wait wait, the original la cage was vulgar? i have absolutely no idea of what you speak, mum.
i saw it 3 times, and nothing compared to opening night with gene barry and george hearns. blasphemy!

anyone else confused as to why katie holmes right tit was squashed and exposed?

@baked: I thought it looked hideous, only time I ever thought that Theoni Aldredge (of blessed memory) made ugly costumes; Hearne etc were pretty damn fine but the supporting cast? the hand down the dress? no. I’m glad you loved it but you’re way gayer than me. In the new one they seem to be having Albin sing The Best of Times at the dinner for the in-laws, which is, of course as it should be. Give the Big Song to the Star people, sit back, and let it soar.

I do think it’s about time they did a tribute to Jerry Hermann at the Tonys. We are about to lose him. He’s sick and not working on anything new. I, for one, would be happy not to have to look at more teenagers reviving the 50s – which is what everything else, including the dreadful American Idiot – seemed to be.

Plus: the Broadway opening of a hit musical is not to be confused with real life.

@Benedick:
at the risk of you disinheriting me, i saw JerseyBoys in miami….
and LURVED IT.
yes, i agree, the supporting cast sucked, but how could they not? barry and hearns shine too brightly.
all for it…jerry, we love you.
did you know before or after i knew the chi chi la rue reference that i was the gayest one here?

@baked: Darling, on a scale of one to ten you’re at eleven.

It wasn’t well directed. The youngsters were just not good. And everything was so broad and pushy. Plus, the dancing houses. Hello? But don’t let me put a damper on your happy memories. I adored Annie.

@Benedick: The Passover joke is a direct steal from Bob Hope, who used it while hosting the Oscars. Myself, I preferred Abbot and Costello to Bob and Bing. Not to mention the Marx brothers, whose gym bag Bob could not carry.

@Dodgerblue: Did not know that, thank you. I am still young in the way of the Yanqui.

@Serolf Divad: Manchu is too polite. I had an entire day beneath my belt by your morning, and really, who can’t think Salma when you see Hayek, whatever time of the day?

Manchu on the other hand is a wunderkind. Y’all are a bunch of bright lights, I’m just lucky to be a piece of space flotsam in your cosmic, um, thing.

@Capt Howdy: I’m sorry to hear that you have lost cherished fish. It’s sad and hard to take.

@baked: You’re not on probation with me. [now i’m whispering: most of us, doubtless because of the idiosyncratic odd (often very odd) psychic wounds and scars we all suffer from (on account of being human), are swift to strike out when words come too near sore subjects. it’s excellent that you didn’t counterreact to such reactions.]

@lynnlightfoot: (aside) I know. We love that screwy hoyden.

@lynnlightfoot: @Benedick: @baked: I guess I’m the simple cousin at Thanksgiving dinner over whose head family drama totally sails, cuz I missed any dustup.

I lurv u guys, pass the potatoes!

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