I once read that if you live your life based on principles, then 97% of your decisions are already made. Well, is a 96% close enough?
A very dear friend mentioned at dinner the other day that he had taken an economics pop quiz on mises.org, and the result was that he was part Austrian School and part Chicago School. So I took the quiz (http://mises.org/quiz.aspx) and got a 96%. I guess that makes me an Austrian!
I don't know much about economics, much less Austrian economics, or any other school of economic thought for that matter (but you can be sure that now I'll be reading up on the subject). But I like to think I know a thing or two about individual liberties and the need to protect them above anything else. You know, those quaint old notions that our country, society and economy were built on? And I also know from a pragmatic standpoint that the state breaks everything it touches. So with a couple of guiding principles and zero knowledge of economics, you too can take the quiz!
I think this quiz happens to be an excellent meter of one's understanding of individual liberty. If you want to get the most out of the quiz, then I would answer all the questions without pausing to do research. Just take it. You might just find yourself looking up that socialist professor with his or her stale, intellectually compromised cliches and asking for your money back!
Once you take the quiz, I would advise anyone who cares about the economy, the environment and about helping to make the world a better place for those less fortunate, to review the questions and answers and do a little homework. After following up on the questions that kept me from getting a 100% (I had chosen the Chicago School answers), I discovered that if I'd had a stronger understanding of the subject, I would have chosen the Austrian School answer.
After I took the quiz, I looked at Chicago School Economics, starting with the famous Milton Friedman. I really think this school of thought is philosophically and morally compromised. Not to mention logically. I'm guessing it must be popular among neoconservatives, who honestly believe in the completely contradictory idea of forcing the American Way on other people. It gives them an avenue to claim they are defenders of liberty without having to waver on their obsequious devotion to the state.
The point is, it doesn't matter how much you know about economics--in fact, the less the better in my opinion. Go with the the same principles you use to guide you in your daily life and see how you do on the test. Assuming of course, that you have any guiding principles. If you don't know what your guiding principles are, then just go back to how you felt last time somebody forced you to do something you didn't want to do, and build from there. Basically if you agree with the Golden Rule, then apply that to the quiz. (And yes, the Golden Rule applies to governments, too. It also happens to apply to the unplanned, spontaneous, unfettered free market system ).
Frankly, I think the test was over my head, which is good. It provided an impetus for looking more closely at the economic topics behind the questions. I also especially liked the grading system: the lower your score, the more of a socialist you are. It's quite a hard look in the mirror. I guess now I can say that I'm 100% Austrian! (I guess it could be true.:I saw a photograph of Zell am See once, does that count?)
A very dear friend mentioned at dinner the other day that he had taken an economics pop quiz on mises.org, and the result was that he was part Austrian School and part Chicago School. So I took the quiz (http://mises.org/quiz.aspx) and got a 96%. I guess that makes me an Austrian!
I don't know much about economics, much less Austrian economics, or any other school of economic thought for that matter (but you can be sure that now I'll be reading up on the subject). But I like to think I know a thing or two about individual liberties and the need to protect them above anything else. You know, those quaint old notions that our country, society and economy were built on? And I also know from a pragmatic standpoint that the state breaks everything it touches. So with a couple of guiding principles and zero knowledge of economics, you too can take the quiz!
I think this quiz happens to be an excellent meter of one's understanding of individual liberty. If you want to get the most out of the quiz, then I would answer all the questions without pausing to do research. Just take it. You might just find yourself looking up that socialist professor with his or her stale, intellectually compromised cliches and asking for your money back!
Once you take the quiz, I would advise anyone who cares about the economy, the environment and about helping to make the world a better place for those less fortunate, to review the questions and answers and do a little homework. After following up on the questions that kept me from getting a 100% (I had chosen the Chicago School answers), I discovered that if I'd had a stronger understanding of the subject, I would have chosen the Austrian School answer.
After I took the quiz, I looked at Chicago School Economics, starting with the famous Milton Friedman. I really think this school of thought is philosophically and morally compromised. Not to mention logically. I'm guessing it must be popular among neoconservatives, who honestly believe in the completely contradictory idea of forcing the American Way on other people. It gives them an avenue to claim they are defenders of liberty without having to waver on their obsequious devotion to the state.
The point is, it doesn't matter how much you know about economics--in fact, the less the better in my opinion. Go with the the same principles you use to guide you in your daily life and see how you do on the test. Assuming of course, that you have any guiding principles. If you don't know what your guiding principles are, then just go back to how you felt last time somebody forced you to do something you didn't want to do, and build from there. Basically if you agree with the Golden Rule, then apply that to the quiz. (And yes, the Golden Rule applies to governments, too. It also happens to apply to the unplanned, spontaneous, unfettered free market system ).
Frankly, I think the test was over my head, which is good. It provided an impetus for looking more closely at the economic topics behind the questions. I also especially liked the grading system: the lower your score, the more of a socialist you are. It's quite a hard look in the mirror. I guess now I can say that I'm 100% Austrian! (I guess it could be true.:I saw a photograph of Zell am See once, does that count?)
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If you're interested in learning a little bit more about voluntarism, you might be interested in my free audio book Everyday Anarchy, available at my website - http://www.freedomainradio.com/free :)
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