The Tragedy of the Commons
June 12, 1994
by David J. Theroux
"Those close to the land—whether in a commercial sense or even in terms of a cause—are
far better stewards than bureaucrats, whose management of the “commons” ensures abuse
since they possess few incentives to protect the land. Since their revenues are extracted
from the citizenry by the force of taxation, bureaucratic managers have no way of telling
whether they administrate resources in ways beneficial to the public or not."
Free Riders and Collective Action Revisited
by Richard L. Stroup
"The imperfections of government are increasingly recognized across the political
spectrum, but seldom are they explicitly traced to the problem of “free riders.” Yet
the free-rider problem is inherent in all politically directed activity, as can be seen
from a fresh look at the classic cases of public goods provided by government."
Suckers, Free Riders, and Public Goods
by Robert Sugden
A review of Anthony de Jasay's Social Contract, Free Ride.
How would anarchists handle the "public goods" problem?
by Bryan Caplan
Public Goods and the Justification for the State
by Dan Garrett
A review of David Schmidt's The Limits of Government: An Essay on
the Public Goods Argument.
Public Goods Fallacies: False Justifications for Government
by Francois-Rene Rideau
This article exposes economic and moral fallacies used to
justify state intervention in the market.
The Stateless Society: An Examination of Alternatives
by Stephan Molyneux
This article deals with the allegations that the state in necessary to (1) settle disputes,
(2) provide public goods, and (3) fight pollution.
Externalities, Conflict, and Offshore Lands: Resolution Through the Institutions of Private Property
by John Brätland
"Oil leaks and spills are the most visible externality associated with offshore
development, but public policy must also take into account another type of negative
externality: cost-shifting through the political process (such as when environmentalists
successfully lobby to ban offshore oil drilling). Fortunately, both environmental and
political externalities can be resolved through the often-neglected institution of
private-property rights."
Fallacies of Public Goods Theory and the Production of Security
by Hans-Hermann Hoppe
Networks, Anarcho-Capitalism, and the Paradox of Cooperation
by Bryan Caplan and Edward Stringham
This paper provides reasons to believe that a cartel of free-market defense firms
would not be likely to form or undermine an anarcho-capitalist society.
The Limits of Market Organization edited by Richard R. Nelson
reviewed by Robert Murphy
"Besides the monotony of the content, the book has a more frustrating feature—namely,
the antiseptic euphemisms used for policy recommendations. Just as one who reads large
excerpts from the Pentagon Papers might find himself being sucked into the worldview of
the war planners, so too does the reader of this book find himself numbed by the very
language used by Nelson’s contributors. Needless to say, no one ever explicitly suggests
that men with guns take certain amounts of money away from citizens and spend that money.
Rather, we are treated to pleas for “public responsibility” and “government investment.”
After reading chapter after chapter of such claims, they sound more and more reasonable
and indeed moderate."
The Theory Of Market Failure Edited by Tyler Cowen
reviewed by Jeffrey A. Tucker
"As a caveat, most of the contributors to this volume are neo-classical economists
and therefore assume the postulates of “perfect competition” and utility scales that
are interpersonally measurable, both of which are untenable in a world of action. For
a more fundamental critique of market failure, one that takes into account the insights
of subjectivism, readers must look toward economists writing within the tradition of
Austrian economics.
Cowen’s volume is nonetheless an outstanding research tool. Many economists will
continue attempting to justify government intervention by pointing to “market failures.”
But this collection puts them on the defensive. Their claims will not be regarded as
self-evidently true, as they were only a few years ago."
Why Market Failure Fails
by Michael S. Rozeff
"There is a logical standard for the proper amount of government interference. That
standard is none, no interference whatsoever."
Privateering and National Defense: Naval Warfare for Private Profit
by Larry J. Sechrest
"Almost all economists declare that national defense is a “public good” that will be
provided in sub-optimal quantities—or not provided at all—by private, profit-seeking
firms. The purpose of this paper is to challenge just that sort of statement. The
attack on national defense as a public good which must be provided by the state will
be two-pronged. One part, the briefer of the two, will raise theoretical questions
about public goods in general and national defense in particular. The second part will
be devoted to a detailed survey of privateering, a form of naval warfare conducted by
privately-owned ships which lasted from the twelfth century to the nineteenth century.
What privateers were, how they operated, the legal customs that grew up around them,
how effective they were, how profitable they were, and why they disappeared will all
be addressed. The common employment of privateers during wartime will be offered as
empirical evidence that defense need not be monopolized by the state."
Private Provision of Public Goods:
Theoretical Issues and Some Examples from Maritime History
by Larry J. Sechrest
Public Goods and Private Solutions in Maritime History
by Larry J. Sechrest
A Short History of Highway and Vehicle Regulations
by Carl Watner
"The development of the automobile, in contrast to the history of the
socialized roads upon which it runs, was largely a free market phenomenon.
Public Goods and Private Communities: The Market Provision of Social Services by
Fred Foldvary
reviewed by Roy E. Cordato
"Fred Foldvary has made a valuable contribution to the economic literature on public
goods and public finance. If it is fully appreciated by the economics profession it
could revolutionize and dramatically improve the study of urban economics specifically
and public economics in general. Unfortunately it is not in the interest of individual
economists to buck the system as it currently exists. In this sense maybe Dr. Foldvary's
book, itself, should be the subject of some public goods analysis."
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