The Rise and Fall of Society, by Frank Chodorov
Frank Chodorov adored the work of Albert Jay Nock, particularly Nock's writings on the State. And so Chodorov set out to do something implausible: to rework the Nock book in his own style.
The result is something completely different: a flawlessly distilled view of all of economics, sociology, and political philosophy, in Chodorov's gloriously clear prose. The Rise and Fall of Society is short (194 pages) but pithy and enormously powerful. Indeed, for a book so overlooked, the reader will be surprised to find that it might be Chodorov's best work overall. Certainly it is suitable for classroom use, or as a primer on economics and society. Insight abounds herein.
Comments (2)
Kenneth R. Gregg
As you correctly state, it is "pithy and enormously powerful." This is Chodorov's finest work in explicating the anti-statist Georgist tradition in the tradition that Nock forged. It is logical, radical, and very exciting. Suzanne LaFollette, George Schuyler (who brought this form of anarchism to the black community, little recognized by most students of libertarianism--and not mentioned at all in the recent "Radicals for Capitalism" by Brian Doherty) and the others in this tradition brought these ideas forward as well, but this is the best book of all of them!
Best to you,
Just Ken
kgregglv@cox.net
http://classicalliberalism.blogspot.com
Published: March 3, 2007 11:28 PM
banker
I wonder if the current depopulation and plummeting birth rates of Japan, Europe, and, to some extent, the US are in anyway similar to what happened in Italy during the decline of Rome. It would be interesting to see if declining (plummeting) populations are a sign of a government pushing its citizens to the brink. Does anyone know where I could find population statistics for the Roman Empire circa 200-400AD?
Published: March 5, 2007 6:45 PM