Mises in Wartime
Like many others, writes Jörg Guido Hülsmann, Ludwig von Mises anticipated the outbreak of World War I years in advance. Unlike many others, he dreaded it. He was a Lieutenant of the Austro-Hungarian Army and dearly loved his country, but he was no chauvinist and despised the militarism and statism that were about to drag an entire continent into catastrophe. But the ruling philosophy of government glorification under the guise of patriotism had made its cause irresistible.
After the war, Mises would write on these subjects in detail. He explained how the war had resulted from state worship, in this case, from worship of the nation-state. But for now he thought that he — the agnostic Jew, cultural German, political individualist, scientific cosmopolitan, and Austrian patriot — had to fight the nationalists' war. FULL ARTICLE
Comments (3)
Mises experiences of war bring to mind long buried memories of my own participation in the mid sixties. Without the benefit of my later exposure to economics, and Austrian econ in particular, I thought that I had little choice in the matter. The problem was that at that time I could not see through the state's lying propaganda and for lack of a better phrase was sucked in to believing that SE Asia was where communism must be stopped.
The irony is that today as I view the political and cultural climate in the US--from local to fed--it becomes apparent that the infection of collectivism has really come from within. What bitter irony it holds for us individualists--especially when reminded of the 58,000 that were sacrificed to the politicians' disease.
Published: September 8, 2007 1:52 PM
Clearly,
Mises' experience reinforces what I've always believed. There is no better vantage point to see the evil, the waste, counterproductivity, and the inhumanity of the state than as a junior officer in the armed forces of a country. the problem is having eyes to see it. If one has them, it's always a good idea to keep that under one's patrol cap or boonie hat.
Published: September 10, 2007 3:48 PM
It's kind of surreal to see LVM in a uniform. But I believe that we are the sum total of our experiences, and so it may be that Mises' terrible experiences on the battlefield, seeing firsthand the ugliness of war, contributed to his becoming the principled person that he was.
An important aspect of the human condition is its ability to triumph in spite of tragedy. To be able to transcend the injury inflicted upon it by the State and become better/stronger than it was before the injury occurred.
If we do not believe this, then there is no hope for mankind.
Published: September 10, 2007 3:49 PM