The Market, Competition and Democracy : A Critique of Neo-Austrian Economics

Austrian economic theory has heavy ideological overtones and is associated with extreme policy recommendations. Unfortunately, in such circumstances surfeits of both blinds praise and ill-informed cirticism have emerged. This book by Stavros Ioannides is an exception. It is written by someone - not himself a member of the Austrian School - who is nverttheless aware of the subtleties and complexities of Austrian thought and of the heterogeneity within the Austrian economics and the work of Marx. It is a comprehensive critique of neo-Austrian economics, from the work of von Mises and Hayek in the 1920s to the present day. It is argued that, in their effort to deprive the state of any power to intervene in the economy, the neo-Austrians are led to a rejection of democratic politics and, thus, instead of promoting liberty, their ideas lead to an authoritarian political structure.