The Tom Woods Show

Austrian economics is accused of being unscientific because it does not derive economic laws using the methods of the natural sciences. Does that make the Austrians dogmatic and unreasonable? We tackle this question today.

Stand-up comedian and libertarian Dave Smith discusses libertarianism and comedy, and how he's opened minds through his material. Plus, comedy vs. political correctness, and more!

It's under the radar, but there's been more state-level pushback against the federal government this year than at any time since the creation of the Tenth Amendment Center. Pushing back on what? Surveillance, drones, license-plate tracking, the drug war, police militarization, the NSA, the FDA, hemp, guns, and more. Check it out! View the full show notes: http://tomwoods.com/525

Lew Rockwell and I field audience questions on everything from Pope Francis to the Confederate Battle Flag, and whether conservatives have their own kind of political correctness. Lew, of course, is the founder and chairman of the Mises Institute, publisher of LewRockwell.com, and former chief of staff to Ron Paul.

The Scandinavian countries are held up as model economies and welfare states. We've already taken a closer look at Sweden and Denmark in order to evaluate these claims. Today it's Norway's turn to go under the microscope.

Lew returns to the show to discuss the Republican debate on CNBC. The debate, focused on the economy, hit on "tax reform," entitlements, and related topics. We watched it so you wouldn't have to.

Author Jamie Bartlett joins me to discuss the "dark net," that corner of the Internet that can be accessed only with a special browser. What goes on there, and why is it important for the cause of freedom?

Whether it's nonintervention abroad, or Social Security, or WikiLeaks, or Iran, or the Department of Homeland Security, or the drug war, libertarians don't quite fit in to the official "conservative movement." Jim Babka, who emphasizes these very issues, joins me to talk it all through. Plus, we discuss the great Harry Browne, an important and skilled communicator for our cause.

Some voices in the libertarian world have argued that a basic income guarantee for everyone would be better than the current welfare state from a pragmatic point of view. Matt Zwolinski adds that it is morally required, given the dubious origins of so many existing property titles. Result: an engaging exchange of ideas I know you'll enjoy. But be sure to listen all the way to the end, since that's where the best parts can be found.

Here I start with the basics and conclude with the financial crisis. The origins of money, how money creation was taken over by government, why deflation isn't a problem, how even low inflation can devastate the average person, how central banking creates instability and moral hazard, and more. These are my remarks at Liberty Fest Houston 2015.

Justin and Jessica Pavoni entered the military for the same patriotic reasons many other Americans did in the years following 9/11. But several years later, they decided they could no longer participate, and filed for conscientious objector status. We follow them through the whole story in today's episode!

Bob Murphy has co-written far and away the best book on health care from a libertarian perspective. But it's not just economics and policy in here, great and original as that material is. It's also chapters like "Surviving the Hospital" and  "Medical Screening & Elective Procedures: Worth the Risk?" One of my favorite episodes so far.

Eric Peters is the libertarian authority on cars, and writes at EPAutos.com. We discussed the VW issue, the $5000 SUV Americans aren't allowed to buy, a court case in New Jersey that allows the police to search your car no matter what you're stopped for, and more.

The American establishment treats Henry Kissinger like royalty. Dissidents call him a war criminal. I get to the bottom of all this with author and professor Greg Grandin.

Is the socialist calculation problem severe enough to account for the collapse of communism? We discuss that, as well as the Rothbardian contribution to monopoly theory, and whether it makes sense to think of a "monopoly price" on the free market.

We're told that young people today are just super -- why, they're so darn tolerant, unlike their stupid and backward parents and grandparents. But if we define toleration as involving how we treat the rights of people we dislike -- and of course, we should define it that way -- how tolerant are they?

There's a reason so many libertarians are Rush fans, and even if for some reason you don't care for their brand of music, you should know about them for the same of libertarian literacy. Brad Birzer, author of a new book on drummer and writer Neil Peart, joins me for a fantastic discussion!

It's hard to get a lot of people to accept our critique of a longstanding institution like the Fed. Frankly, it's hard to get them to accept much of what we believe at all, given that for at least a dozen years they've been systematically taught the opposite. Maybe we're going about this wrong. My guest and I have a compelling discussion about what might work instead!

Pretty much, no. On the other hand, does this not ring a bell? A large group is exploited by a smaller group (a ruling class) that gets the larger group to believe that this exploitation is good and just and not exploitation at all; competition among the ruling class creates more concentration and centralization, and eventually, breakdown.

The politically correct crowd believes differences in income and job placement among racial and ethnic groups must be accounted for by "discrimination." This claim is left in shreds after today's episode. I also discuss the so-called gender wage gap, and show it doesn't really exist. And quite a bit more.