Crisis and Leviathan: Critical Episodes in the Growth of American Government (Independent Studies in Political Economy) - Hardcover

Robert Higgs

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1598131214 ISBN 13: 9781598131215

Publisher: Independent Publishers Group, 2013

Synopsis

Discussing how government has continually grown in size and scope during the past century, this account demonstrates that the main reason lies in government’s responses to national “crises” (real or imagined), including economic upheavals and, especially, war. The result, this book argues, is the ever-increasing government power, which endures long after each crisis has passed, impinging on both civil and economic liberties and fostering extensive corporate welfare. <br><br>Offering ideological explanations for the ascension of the role of government out of a capitalist, free-market economy, it will appeal to those with interests in political economy, American history, and libertarian politics.

About this title

Review:

"A book of major importance, thoroughly researched, closely argued, and meticulously documented. It should be high on the reading list of every serious student of the American political system." --Political Science Quarterly

"An important, powerful, and profoundly disturbing book." --James M. Buchanan, Nobel Laureate in Economic Science, Journal of Economic History

"A thoughtful and challenging work." --Harper's

"Insightful, compelling, and clear, Higgs breaks new ground in explicating the most important socio-political trend of our time--the growth of American government." --Freeman

About the Author:

<strong>Robert Higgs</strong> is senior fellow in political economy for the Independent Institute and the editor of the Institute’s quarterly journal, the <em>Independent Review</em>. He is also the author of several books, including <em>Against Leviathan, Competition and Coercion, Neither Liberty Nor Safety, Resurgence of the Warfare State</em>, and <em>The Transformation of the American Economy 1865–1914</em>, and the recipient of numerous awards, such as the Gary Schlarbaum Award for Lifetime Defense of Liberty and the Lysander Spooner Award for Advancing the Literature of Liberty. He lives in Covington, Louisiana. <br><br><strong>Arthur A. Ekirch, Jr.</strong> was a professor emeritus of history at the State University of New York–Albany, a Guggenheim fellow, and the author of dozens of articles and 10 books, including <em>The Civilian and the Military</em> and <em>The Decline of American Liberalism.</em>

About this edition

• Publisher: Independent Publishers Group
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 1598131214
• ISBN 13: 9781598131215
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 392