by Redmond Weissenberger, James E. Miller, and Chris Horlacher

There are few
in this world that dramatically change the way one views society
and its functionality. Their work creates a dynamic shift in perspective
which in turn leads to new attitudes about humanity and civilization.
In sum, their message becomes life changing and forever alters the
course others pursue in trying to incrementally better their lives.
Men such as Thomas Paine and Karl Marx were able to convince a great
number of listeners to embrace their philosophy on societal rule.
John M. Keynes and Milton Friedman had a profound impact on the
science of economics and the subsequent policies which emanated
from various Western governments. Today, Lew Rockwell and the Ludwig
von Mises Institute are instrumental in changing how not just how
economics is viewed but human action in general. The work of Austrian
scholars is slowly breathing life into the once dismal science.

Ron Paul once
remarked that he studied economics because he was curious about
how the world worked. It is not a stretch to say that most who delve
into the science of human exchange do so for the same reasons Paul
gave. They are each seeking an explanation for why we all enjoy
the luxuries of today and how a better future for tomorrow can be
secured.

For us authors,
it was the work of the Austrians that transformed the lens through
which we view the society. From the explanation of the market process
to the stressing of the beneficial nature of decentralized information,
the Austrian school reintroduced us to the world. Only this time,
we saw it occupied by beings that are living, breathing, thinking,
and acting purposefully. And itÂ’s all thanks to the Ludwig
von Mises Institute.

The Mises Institute
is a remarkable institution for a number of reasons. We believe
we speak for most, if not all, readers when we say that it provides
a kind of escape from the monotony that passes as informed opinion
on public policy. By putting the writings of Mises, Hayek, Rothbard,
Hoppe, Hazlitt, etc. out free of charge, the Institute offers a
perspective that by no means has gotten a fair shake from the intellectual
establishment. And that is because the message of free markets,
peace, and absolute liberty runs in sharp contrast to the statist
policies seen as conventional.

If there is
needed proof of the animosity the intellectual and political establishment
have toward the idea of a free society, look no further than the
presidential campaign of Congressman Paul. By taking on central
banking, American imperium, and the very moral basis of a strong,
centralized government, he brought out the ire of all the entrenched
interests that seek to keep the state around for their own benefit.
He exposed the state for what it truly is: a “gang of thieves
writ large” to borrow Murray Rothard’s famous and apt
description. In turn, he influenced millions of minds and got them
to think about liberty and sound economics like never before.

This is the
power of freedom. It is an energy the Mises Institute is harnessing
as thousands of curious individuals are being turned on to the idea
of a truly free society everyday. Instead of shoving the knowledge
down the worldÂ’s throat, Rockwell and company have simply made
it freely available to anyone interested. Like the remnant
Albert Jay Nock described in his essay “Isaiah’s
Job,” thinkers from all walks of life have been drawn to
the Institute to learn the correct means by which human life should
be observed.

While an education
in sound economics is what the Ludwig von Mises Institute excels
at providing, it also offers another lesson often intermingled within
the various lectures, articles, video lessons, and academic journals.
This lesson is profound yet simple: what makes the state so egregious
isnÂ’t the various economic interventions it engages in to impoverish
the many to the benefit of the few. It is the complete disregard
politicians and bureaucrats have for the rights of the people who
they claim to represent. Those who carry out the stateÂ’s bidding
do so to the detriment of their own species. The defense of natural
law and human freedom that runs so frequently throughout the work
of Murray Rothbard is but another important insight the Institute
offers in the enormous volume of work given the public. In some
respects, it is the most important as it provides a moral spring
for society from which liberty flowers.

So on this
30th anniversary, we give thanks to Lew Rockwell. Your work has
opened a new way of thinking for millions. Most notably, those who
wish to read the works of Mises, Hayek, Rothbard, and the various
scholars to which you give voice to, do so because of a personal
yearning. Through the kind of spontaneous order which Hayek himself
wrote so eloquently about, those economists, writers, journalists,
and thinkers who were faintly heard in their own time have finally
gotten their due. And the big players in the corporatist states
around the globe couldnÂ’t be more upset.

H.L. Mencken
once wrote,

“The
most dangerous man to any government is the man who is able to
think things out for himself, without regard to the prevailing
superstitions and taboos.”

Thanks to the
tireless work of Mr. Rockwell and the Mises Institute, the state
must grapple with a whole new set of these dangerous men. Rather
than be armed with tools of revolution like Molotov bottles and
jerry-rigged explosives, they fight with the most powerful weapons
of all: ideas and reason. As Mises once put it, “Both force
and money are impotent against ideas.”

No matter how
large the opposition, the forces of liberty will prevail in the
end. It wonÂ’t be because their view of the world is fundamentally
correct. Freedom wins because itÂ’s just. And let there be no
mistake about it; Lew Rockwell and the Mises Institute reside on
the side of justice.

Reprinted
from Miller’s
Genuine Draft.

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James E. Miller holds a BS in public administration with a minor in business from Shippensburg University, PA.
He is the chief blogger at the Ludwig von Mises Institute of Canada and a current contributor to his hometown newspaper, the Middletown Press and Journal.
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