About a week ago I posted a topic about a book I just got titled "Socialism: An Economic and Sociological Analysis," by Ludwig von Mises.

http://www.galtsgulchonline.com/posts/1c...

Anyway, I've been reading through it, and I think it may just be the most amazing piece of economic literature I've ever read. About two years ago I decided I needed to learn about Socialism, since everybody seemed to be talking about it all time, yet no one seemed to be able to explain exactly what Socialism actually was. Based purely on the media and hyperbole of the general public, the message I was getting seemed to be saying, "This is Socialism! That is Socialism! Everything is Socialism!"

The label of "Socialism" was getting applied to so many different things, both by its supporters and opponents, that it was becoming impossible to clearly distinguish whether Socialism was actually any concrete thing at all, or merely a negative byword people used to describe any government policies they disliked.

The desire to free myself from all this political, economic, and philosophical confusion is what drove me to begin a personal, intellectual journey to discover the true nature and meaning of Socialism. I had already been reading financial self-help books like the "Rich Dad, Poor Dad," series of books, in which the author, Robert Kiyosaki, would occasionally and briefly condemn Socialism in passing, but would never dwell on it or fully explain what it was.

In the summer of 2012, I read "The Naked Socialist," by Paul B. Skousen, which I had hoped would provide me with the deep understanding I had been looking for. Unfortunately, Skousen's book turned out to be little more than right-wing propaganda, and not only failed to distinguish between Communism, Fascism, and Socialism, but actually encouraged and promoted the idea that there was no distinction. All totalitarianism was the same. This view was not helpful, and did nothing to alleviate my confusion. If anything, it made the subject even more confusing than it had been before.

Ludwig von Mises, however, seems to actually provide legitimate, precise, scientific arguments, which is exactly what I had been craving. Not only that, but Mises also promotes classical liberalism and explains how classical liberal ideas are actually the antitheses of socialism (which refutes the accusation some modern conservatives have occasionally made that Nazis were supposedly far-left liberals). This is exactly the sort of book I've been looking for for the past two years. It's amazing.

I'll post more in this topic as I progress through the book. Has anyone else read it?