Rating: 
Summary: One Nation Under the Fed
Review: Ever since the creation of the Federal Reserve Board ("the Fed"), the American economy has been subject to a cycle of boom and bust. Most recently, we saw a bubble in technology stocks in general and telecommunication stocks in particular, fueled by the creation of credit. But no one wants to blame the culprit -- the Fed. Why has an institution that was created allegedly to bring stability to the economy caused such havoc? Equally importantly, why is an institution that has so much power so unaccountable?Murray Rothbard (1926-1995) provides in this book an outstanding discussion of money, banking, the Fed, and U.S. monetary policy. As usual, Rothbard sees the "big picture." There was no need for a central bank, however the Banksters � in combination with Big Business and Big Intellectuals -- pushed for the creation of the Fed. Rothbard's discussion of the battles between the Rockefellers and the House of Morgan is fascinating. (See his Wall Street, Banks and American Foreign Policy for a more elaborate discussion of this great "conspiracy" in U.S. history.) The foundation for this work is Austrian economic theory. Through fractional reserve banking � which is little more than legal counterfeiting � banks are permitted to print new money, thus creating inflation. Yet the central insight of Austrian theory is that this creation of money doesn't simply increase prices, but distorts the cycle of production as it works its way through the economy. This creates the boom and bust cycles that have plagued our economy. For a more detailed discussion of many of the issues raised in this book, the interested reader should consult Rothbard's The Mystery of Banking.
Rating:
Summary: One Nation Under the Fed
Review: Ever since the creation of the Federal Reserve Board ("the Fed"), the American economy has been subject to a cycle of boom and bust. Most recently, we saw a bubble in technology stocks in general and telecommunication stocks in particular, fueled by the creation of credit. But no one wants to blame the culprit -- the Fed. Why has an institution that was created allegedly to bring stability to the economy caused such havoc? Equally importantly, why is an institution that has so much power so unaccountable? Murray Rothbard (1926-1995) provides in this book an outstanding discussion of money, banking, the Fed, and U.S. monetary policy. As usual, Rothbard sees the "big picture." There was no need for a central bank, however the Banksters ' in combination with Big Business and Big Intellectuals -- pushed for the creation of the Fed. Rothbard's discussion of the battles between the Rockefellers and the House of Morgan is fascinating. (See his Wall Street, Banks and American Foreign Policy for a more elaborate discussion of this great "conspiracy" in U.S. history.) The foundation for this work is Austrian economic theory. Through fractional reserve banking ' which is little more than legal counterfeiting ' banks are permitted to print new money, thus creating inflation. Yet the central insight of Austrian theory is that this creation of money doesn't simply increase prices, but distorts the cycle of production as it works its way through the economy. This creates the boom and bust cycles that have plagued our economy. For a more detailed discussion of many of the issues raised in this book, the interested reader should consult Rothbard's The Mystery of Banking.
Rating:
Summary: Bypassing Conspiracy Theorists
Review: Fantastic. Many Fed 'apologists' have spent lots of ink and paper labeling people like Rothbard, and others critical of state institutions in America, as conspiracy theorists. Reading Rothbard shows that what we have in the Federal Reserve is in fact worse than a conspiracy: like the myriad unneeded, wrong-headed and expensive state beaurocracies, its simply a mindlessly self-perpetuating fixture of government. Oh! if only this horrid insitutition could be exposed for the anti-freemarket enabler that it really is. Unfortunately, its too embedded in our economic and political system. The best we can do is keep looking for the sound and impartial truth from guys like Rothbard.
Rating: 
Summary: An opinion worth reading.
Review: For the realtively uninitiated. These days, anything related to the Austrian school of economics is worth al least looking at. Rothbard is a bit extreme, proposing that un-backed credit creation is equivalent to counterfeiting. In my opinion there is a difference, since money supply based solely on credit can evaporate into bad debt write-offs if a credit bubble bursts, while money supply cannot evaporate if based on the issuance of counterfeit currency. Nevertheless, this is interesting material in a concise book with no fluff. If you're reading a dozen books on the Fed and money, this might as well be one of them.
Rating:
Summary: An opinion worth reading.
Review: For the realtively uninitiated. These days, anything related to the Austrian school of economics is worth al least looking at. Rothbard is a bit extreme, proposing that un-backed credit creation is equivalent to counterfeiting. In my opinion there is a difference, since money supply based solely on credit can evaporate into bad debt write-offs if a credit bubble bursts, while money supply cannot evaporate if based on the issuance of counterfeit currency. Nevertheless, this is interesting material in a concise book with no fluff. If you're reading a dozen books on the Fed and money, this might as well be one of them.
Rating:
Summary: If you liked this book...
Review: If you liked this book, read "The Creature From Jekyll Island: A Second Look At The Federal Reserve" by G. Edward Griffin. Griffin's book is excellent, and reads like a thriller. The only drawback is that everything he says is true, and that is somewhat depressing at times. Bring back the GOLD STANDARD!
Rating:
Summary: Have times changed?
Review: IN 1933 AS IT WAS: A MERCHANT EXCHANGED WEALTH FOR DOLLARS, BORROWED FROM THE BANK-AND COULD EXCHANGE DOLLARS FOR WEALTH AT THE BANK. A BANK WAS OBLIGED TO REDEEM DOLLARS FOR WEALTH ON DEMAND, THEREFORE-THE BANK HAD TO HAVE A PLEDGE OF WEALTH FROM THE BORROWER BEFORE LENDING ITS DOLLARS. ALMOST 67 YEARS HAVE ELAPSED AND IN 2000 IT STILL IS: A MERCHANT EXCHANGES WEALTH FOR DOLLARS BORROWED FROM THE BANK-BUT CANNOT EXCHANGE DOLLARS FOR WEALTH AT THE BANK. THE BANK IS NOT OBLIGED TO REDEEM DOLLARS FOR WEALTH ON DEMAND, BUT-THE BANK STILL INSISTS ON A PLEDGE OF WEALTH FROM THE BORROWER BEFORE LENDING ITS DOLLARS. PLEASE JUSTIFY-OR FIND THE ERROR! IT CANNOT BE JUSTIFIED-AND THERE ISN'T ANY ERROR! IT IS SIMPLY PROOF POSITIVE THAT THE PUBLIC IS NOT AWARE OF THE OPERATIONS OF ITS MONETARY AUTHORITY AND COMMERCIAL BANKS.
Rating:
Summary: A must-read for any patriot!
Review: Like other books by Rothbard, it is a most excellent piece! A must-read for any person interested in expanding his horizons on the world's most important social and political issue - the Money Issue. This is a very accessible book.
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Summary: Rothbard Exposes Americas Greatest Counterfeiter: The Fed
Review: Murray Rothbard once again cuts through the popular dogma and conventional knowledge which government would prefer we all simply take on faith. In this case, the subject is money and the creation of it. Rothbard, an exceptional economist, showcases his ability to set aside the technical jargon and higher mathematics of the profession in favor of language accessible to everyone. In "The Case Against the Fed," Professor Rothbard examines the roots of money, as a commodity with subjective value which, because of wide-spread acceptance and other desireable qualities, becomes a medium of exchange for a people. Furthermore, he exposes the government's, via the Federal Reserve, monopolization of money. Rothbard shows how the Fed uses the power of the printing press to tax the people via inflation, to redistribute income, and to artificailly lower the interest rate leading to the infamous "business cycle" and the roller coaster of depressions and booms which our eceonomy is regualraly subjected to. Anyone who is concerned about the purchasing power of their income and about the unemployment which the business cycle regularly brings should read this book. Professor Rothbard portrays the federal government as what it is: the self-proclaimed, legitimate counterfeiter
Rating:
Summary: Is Our Money Worth The Paper It's Printed On?
Review: Murray Rothbard writes a scathing indictment of the Federal Reserve System and the book is worth reading if you want to understand your how money comes into existence. According to Rothbard the money in our economy and our personal accounts is created out of thin air by the Federal Reserve, which credits accounts of the Federal Government and member banks with deposits that can then be spent.
Rothbard explains how and why the Federal Reserve and our personal banks do this. The bottom line is that the Federal Government privatized the monetary system of the United States when it created the Federal Reserve early in the last century. Rothbard tells this history and the politics behind that privatization. The results of those politics are that the very organizations the Federal Reserve is designed to control and regulate, banks, actually control the Federal Reserve. The interests of those banks and our interests as consumers of bank services or users of money are not typically the same. Rothbard's point is that the fox has been put in charge of the hen house.
In short the value of our money is a matter of trust. After reading this book the question to ask yourself is, "Do you trust your banker and the Federal Reserve System?" If you do you have nothing to worry about. If you don't, the ultimate consequence of the Federal Reserve will be financial chaos for the United States and the rest of the world and you should probably be buying gold. Rothbard has no trust in the current system. And, Rothbard lays the blame for the Great Depression and the high level of inflation during the 20th Century at the door of the Federal Reserve.
I strongly urge you to read this book and then drop in on your local branch manager and discuss the conclusions Rothbard reaches. You may find you know more about the Fed then the manager. In any case it should be an interesting conversation.
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