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Good Websites or Books on Economics

CaptainDDC

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I am looking to better understand economics. The history, the theory, the application, and the differing schools of thought. I want the information to be fair and balanced. (I can see the Fox News articles flying my direction as I type. >>> :lamo)

Thanks,
CaptainDDC

Notes:I am not sure if Book Nook is a better place for this thread. I will let a moderator decide. I picked this section because it is of the specific subject I am looking for. I figured I would have better luck here. Also, I am very tired. Please ignore any errors in this thread.
 
I doubt you'll find Fox News articles in this section of the forum. That said, you already sound skeptical of anything that isn't left-wing supported. I'd advise you to come into this with an open mind since that's the only way you're going to find truth.

The greatest lesson you could ever learn about economics. It's kind of long, but well worth it.

That Which Is Seen, and That Which Is Not Seen - Wikisource

As for Austrian economics:

Economics in One Lesson
 
I am looking to better understand economics. The history, the theory, the application, and the differing schools of thought. I want the information to be fair and balanced. (I can see the Fox News articles flying my direction as I type. >>> :lamo)

Thanks,
CaptainDDC

Notes:I am not sure if Book Nook is a better place for this thread. I will let a moderator decide. I picked this section because it is of the specific subject I am looking for. I figured I would have better luck here. Also, I am very tired. Please ignore any errors in this thread.

Figuring out what is truely fair and ballanced is the hard part. What one person thinks is fair another doesnt. Personally, I would suggest purposely trying to find materials that were created by people on the far left and the far right and then sorting out what makes sense to you. Most of what is written by either extreme is pure garbage, you should read both extremes, and they try to find the truth somewhere in the middle.

A while back I was looking for information about the Reagan economy. I found articles written from one viewpoint or the other, both citing the exact same figures, but interpreted in very different ways. I found that the interpretations by both extremes to be intelectually very dishonest, but I looked at the numbers and used my own intellect to sort out the trash from the treasures and now have a very different outlook on the facts than if I had not seriously looked at both sides with an open mind.

If you are interested in what I determined, the articles written by conservatives right tended to be much more distorted than the articles written by liberals (and I am a conservative!).

There are very few authors who are not trying to prove one side or the other. Very few honest evaluations. I do find that Ben Stein, who is a conservative economist, tends to give very honest answers and evaluations - even though he is frequently scorned (and occasionally silenced) by the right for doing so.
 
Depending on your background and knowledge

I would suggest University text books on micro and macro economics first. They will provide a good background base to build on.

For general knowledge dont bother with the equations behind the theory's just understand what the theory is stating
 
When I said Fair and Balanced I figured someone on the left would post a Fox New link sarcastically. (I would have) Which is what I meant by the comment. I am an issue by issue person. I am a social libertarian. From my small understanding of economics I have always leaned right of center. I am totally willing to look at this with a mind wide open to all possible sides.
 
As for Austrian economics:

Economics in One Lesson

Hazlitt's book is not Austrian. It is based on the work of Frédéric Bastiat, who was French and wrote in the early 1800's, a half a century before Menger published Principles in 1871.

Hazlitt exposes many common mistakes made by laymen using arguments familiar to any legitimate economist - not just to Austrians. Just because his book is now in the public domain does not give the Austrians the right to claim it as their own.

On my website, the difficulty of papers is denoted by little cap-and-mortarboard symbols.

My simplified Exposition of Axiomatic Economics has three caps and is probably over your head.

My Critique of Austrian Economics has two caps and is 50 pages long but accessible to anybody familiar with Austrian economics.

I also have many short critiques (difficulty: one cap) of people on both the left and on the right organized in three sections: critiques of the tea party, critiques of socialism and critiques of fascism.
 
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How was Hazlitt anything but Austrian? He used the same technique of methodological individualism.
 
Your choice really depends on your base level (what you already know) and where you want to go with your newly acquired/enhanced understanding. If your current situation consists of maybe high school or college into macro or micro econ, and you want to expand your knowledge sufficiently to understand the current media frenzy concerning "austerians" versus Keynesians, then I would suggest a focus more on the history of the development of economic thought in somewhat less than mathematical treatments. IMO, a good intro would be Heilbroner's, "The Worldly Philosophers." Its available in paperback: not much of an investment for a trial run. There are others but this is, I think, a good way to start.

If you are already ahead of this level, post up and we'll recommend something else.
 
Some of the works by Niall Ferguson would be appropriate, while not an economist, a few of his works deal to a degree with economics and the impact the economy has on society
 
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