Austrian School - Baby of the Far Right?

I've written before about how the Austrian economics school seemed wrapped up with the far-right. I also mentioned that the extreme free-marketeering Mises Institute couldn't run as a business and had to exist off of charity - receiving large donations from one wealthy backer whom also supported the extreme far-right with substantial donations.

Whilst looking into the Austrian school I came across a great page of critiques, one of which had a very interesting mention of the Austrian school and the far-right, alongside its stinging criticism:

The Austrian School of Economics is a tiny group of libertarians at war with mainstream economics. They reject even the scientific method that mainstream economists use, preferring to use instead a pre-scientific approach that shuns real-world data and is based purely on logical assumptions. But this is the very method that thousands of religions use when they argue their opposing beliefs, and the fact that the world has thousands of religions proves the fallibility of this approach. Academia has generally ignored the Austrian School, and the only reason it continues to exist is because it is financed by wealthy business donors on the far right. The movement does not exist on its own scholarly merits.
SOURCE

So, financed by 'wealthy business donors on the far-right'. I find it ironic that their message is an extreme sort of economic free-market darwinism, yet they rely on donations (from the far-right!) Yeah, right. Nice work if you can get it?

An ineteresting collection of threads - Mises Institute, Austrian School, wealthy far-right business funding - and its proponents and fans - Ron Paul, Alex Jones, Ryan Dawson, Rivero(ish - who knows what Rivero really digs? He'll even pretend to a bit of socialism when it suits him.) all that jazz.

That site goes on and the criticism of Austrian school is very good - though obviously theAustrians would completely reject it, I suppose:

Mainstream economists dismiss the Austrians as cranks. Nobel economist Paul Samuelson wrote that "I tremble for the reputation of my subject" after reading the "exaggerated claims that used to be made in economics for the power of deduction and a priori reasoning [the Austrian methods]." Noted economist Mark Blaug has called Austrian methodologies "so cranky and idiosyncratic that we can only wonder that they have been taken seriously by anyone."

Haha. That's quite a blast.

Aside from the technical criticism, this is of interest:

For most of the Austrian School's history, mainstream academia has simply ignored it. Even today, none of its works are on the required reading list at Harvard. Most introductory economics texts don't even mention the school, and its economists are absent from many encyclopedias or indexes of the century's great economists. Several of its founding figures struggled to make ends meet, rejected by universities which did not view their work as sound. Even today, the movement's faculty boasts no more than 75 scholars worldwide. By comparison, there are over 20,000 economists in the American Economics Association alone. Their failure to rise in academia has not been for want of publicity -- on the contrary, their leaders have been publishing books for over 120 years, all the while bumping elbows with famous economists like John Maynard Keynes. And after Hayek shared a Nobel Prize in 1974 for a contribution to monetary theory, the school received a huge burst of academic attention. But it was just as quickly rejected. Their dismal showing in academia stems from the fact that they have simply failed to make their case.

In classic crank tradition, Austrians have a conspiracy theory to explain this failure. In an essay subtitled "Ignorance and the Universities," Austrian professor Patrick Gunning writes:

"The aim of this essay is to try to explain why positivism [the mainstream approach] has succeeded in professional economics, while subjectivist economics [the Austrian approach] has failed. It… identifies two main reasons for this phenomenon. The first is that ordinary people cannot tell the difference between good and bad economics. The second is that the training ground for professional economics is the university. In modern times, the university is more likely than not to be funded by the government. In a democracy, government funding implies a competition for funds and bureaucracy. Both of these characteristics favor positivism."

Today the Austrian tradition is kept alive by the Ludwig von Mises Institute, a think tank financed entirely by wealthy business donors. It is part of a broader phenomenon, the explosion of far-right think tanks in the last 20 years, funded by such conservative and libertarian donors as the Bradley, Coors and Koch family foundations. These foundations have poured hundreds of millions of dollars into the creation of an "alternate academia" of right-wing think tanks, after the failure of mainstream academia to support right-wing dogma. This alternate academia comes complete with extensive media ties to publicize their research, which is why Austrians are so frequently found on conservative talk radio. Austrian economist Israel Kirzner describes the critical role that their primary backer, the Foundation for Economic Education (FEE), has played in the "revival" of Austrian economics:

"It was their vision which brought Ludwig von Mises to FEE at a time when he was, to put it mildly, all but ignored on the academic scene. It was through the resources of FEE, its skilled use of the tools of communication and public education, which ensured that Mises' message would survive."

Very interesting.

Their criticism of Austrian economics is good. Several of the criticisms are of Austrian positions which are akin to religious claims - which is doubtless part of why it seems to appeal to conservative christian folk - rich and poor.

Here's a very good page on criticism of Austrian economics (Ron Paul, Mises, Lew Rockwell etc)

So who is to blame, Ryan Dawson?

Oh wow. The movers and shakers are.....Christians and Jews! It's not really saying anything much is it? And hold on - doesn't Ryan Dawson's signature say "This is not a site to flail on about space aliens-illuminati-masonic-deathcult-jewish-catholic-lizard-lucifarian-jesuit-queen-barvarian-etc bull hockey."

Indeed it does. It even says "Take that junk somewhere else."


So one can't say it is Catholics, but one can say "Die-hard Christians!"? One can't say "Jesuits" but one can say 'Die-hard Jews'?

But hold on....Ryan says he's against claims about Jews, he's opposed to Zionism not religious Jews? Or....well, who knows? One moment it's one thing, the next another.

Ryan explains, kinda (lol):

... the faction that has nothing to fear from the US media and who could cover up something as huge as 911 or larger are the Zionists of Israel and their allies in the US government and press who all profit through the MIC and investments from fringe element religious organizations who are rewarded with air-time.

So now it's 'the Zionists of Israel' and the military industrial complex(MIC) to blame? How does all that fit together? Ryan again:

"Multi-national corporations run our press and government. They tie back to the privately owned central banks."

So, 'christians and jews' must run multi-national corporations? Amazing.

The Central banks as you know are rooted back to the same Zionists who wrote the plans for foreign policy

Where did the die-hard Christians go?

So, the MIC controls corporations, press and banks.....all tied back to the private central banks....which are 'rooted' with those same 'Zionists of Israel' etc profiting from the MIC?

The US and Israeli agencies and their Neocon governments work for their own interests and those interests are guided by a racist, political ideology mixed up with a fascist version of a religion and Straussian philosophy.

Their own interests? The 'racist political ideology' of Zionism, apparently. So the MIC is 'guided' by this supposed racist Israeli Zionism then?

Ryan once again:

Israel is a violent nation that engages in false flag operations routinely and serves the interests of the MIC not any particular ethnicity.

Eh? Now Israel serves the interests of the MIC not 'any particular ethnicity', and yet the MIC is guided by 'the racist Zionism' of Israel. Glad that's clear! [Pssst! Noticed the circularity there yet?]

Ryan again:

US foreign policy works for Likud Israeli interests first second and third. This is because the Zionists and MIC have overlapping financial interests. But most of all the press is Zionist.

Ah - overlapping interests now? Separate and distinct, but 'overlapping'? That doesn't explain why America would work to Israel's agenda and not the other way around.

Ryan really does think all roads lead to Israel. Apparently Zionism is racist, provides a philosophy for the MIC and controls America's press politics and policy to serve its own interests - even though Israel apparently 'serves the MIC and not any particular ethnicity'.

Yet if Israel doesn't 'serve a particular ethnicity' how is it racist? And how come America apparently serves Israeli Likud interests rather than the other way around if Israel's Zionists don't serve any particular ethnicity only the interests of the MIC?

How can MIC serve the interests of 'the racist Israeli Zionists' whilst Israel serves the MIC interests and not 'any particular ethnicity'?

This is just a run-around - batshit crazy bamboozled. It's a load of half-arsed tautology playing kiss-chase with anti-semitism.

Zionism

"Zionism is a Jewish political movement that, in its broadest sense, has supported the self-determination of the Jewish people in a sovereign Jewish national homeland".
SOURCE

Anti-zionism is therefore opposition to 'the self-determination of the Jewish people'.

----------

The charge is sometimes made that Zionism is inherently "racist" because its concern is specifically Jewish. However, Judaism can be practiced by anyone from any race, so it simply cannot be a matter of race and cannot rightly be called "racist".

Moreover, those claiming to be 'anti-Zionist' don't appear to consider the constitutions of specifically Islamic nations to be offensive. However they do find Israel's foundation as a Jewish nation objectionable. Clearly the distinction that causes them such offence is not the fact it is a religion, because they accept Islamic state constitutions as legitimate and offer no protest about it.

Instead, this sort of supposed 'anti-racist anti-zionism' is against the ethnic part of jewish identity: the offence must be being taken at the ethnic (Jewish) part of the distinction of "Jew/Jewish nation", rather than the religious aspect because Judaism can of course be adopted and practiced by anyone from any ethnic group).

Here's Ryan Dawson's claim about his website, anti-neocons.com:


Ryan bluntly equates zionism as racism (thereby suggesting his grounds for opposition is anti-racism. Who would complain about that, eh?).

But clearly, absolutely anybody whom supports Israel or Jewish self-determination can be called a Zionist, and anybody from any ethnicity can adopt Judaism. If Zionism is support for Jewish self-determination and any ethnicity can adopt Judaism, it can't be 'racist'.

Are we to understand then that when Ryan says 'Zionist' he really means ethnic Jew? What else can it mean? The only possible 'racial' aspect of "Zionism" would be if one considered Zionism a description to be applied only to ethnic jews. This conclusion is given additional weight by the loose and interchangeable use of "Jewish" and "Zionist" right across Ryan Dawson't website, including his own work.

Here's a Rabbi. Presumably he's a 'racist zionist', according to Ryan Dawson:


Maybe he is a racist? But about which 'race'?

And aren't these 'racist Zionists' just awful? Here's a picture from 'the racist fascist state of Israel'.....yawn.


'Zionism as racism' is an untenable position, and what we're really seeing is an attack on ethnic jews. It isn't Zionism that is being attacked here but rather the Zionism of ethnic jews. If it isn't that, what is it? There is no other answer available?

Also, is it not an act of racial prejudice to discount the Zionism of non-ethnic jews, whilst opposing the Zionism of ethnic jews?

So, what is the substance of the objection to Zionism as racism? Nothing, it's a hollow claim, and so it seems the whole notion is a mental contortion undertaken by anti-semites to escape the fact of their prejudice. Whether undertaken consciously (and cynically for propaganda purposes) or not, the result is the same.

Here's Ryan Dawson(Rys2Sense)'s view of the press: "the press is Zionist"


So what on earth does that mean? That the press supports 'a right for Jewish peoples' self determination'? What's wrong with that? Of course, when asked for the basis of this assertion that 'the media is Zionist' we're demeaned by Jew-spotters saying "He's a jew!" As if being Jewish is automatically the same as being a Zionist.

And look, here's Ryan claiming elsewhere that Israel and Zionism don't serve any particular ethnicity: Ryan says: "Understand that Israel is not Jewish people OK please get that through your warped heads. Israel is a violent nation that engages in false flag operations routinely and serves the interests of the MIC not any particular ethnicity.


If Israel 'does not serve any particular ethnicity' how can Ryan Dawson claim it is racist-zionist?

Clearly Ryan is a bit confused and his use of terms inaccurate at best.

Ryan Dawson, endorsed at Stormfront

The largest Nazi website in the world, Stormfront, digs "anti-fascist" Ryan Dawson.

Ryan Dawson wrote an excellent book about the entire Jew World Order. He's had to hide in exile in Japan for a few years.

"However, just how the Hell do they get away with it? Well they are free from any and all criticism because they play the two cards which an over-socialized liberal can not see through. They play the race card and the religion card, a double whammy. If you say the J word it is over, even if Israel has an illegal military occupation and sets up racially segregated colonies into Palestine, kills kids, knocks down homes of civilians and attacks them with a military and runs a brutal police state which is causing a backlash of terrorism on Israeli people (racist or not that is not a reason to kill someone). The Zionists are the real racist, engaging in ethnic cleansing in the name of defense and calling any opposition terrorists. They are creating terrorism by engaging in it themselves. Israel can do ANYTHING and the press will not mention. But then again just who owns our press and our banks?...
SOURCE

Here's another example, which even includes a plug for his book and a link to buy it. Free adverts at Stormfront now? Everyone's happy.

One might imagine the Nazis over at Stormfront could spot a committed anti-fascist, such as Ryan Dawson, especially once familiar with a whole book of his political "work" and "research". ****smirk**** Let's just say it wouldn't be on any Nazi "to burn" list?

Perhaps the 2nd Edition of the book will have an endorsement by Duke on the cover, perhaps it'll be available on the Stormfront bookclub. $$$. Sorted.

Ryan Dawson "anti-fascist" - Published by David Duke. Racist traffic is "something I need", Dawson admits.

Must make ya prouder than shit. The full article is here, at Duke's website. [Duke is former Klan, racist, propagandist. Obviously.] Must be real nice making money out of that crowd. Reeeeaaaaal ethical, like.

Rys2Sense (Ryan Dawson) posted his publication at Duke's site to his own forum, anti-neocons.com. HE was quickly supported by this comment:

[Duke's] not as bad as people make him out to be, although he supports white sepratism (which is irritating), he's never actually claimed whites are superior or supported violence against non-whites.

the kkk was not some homogeneous organisation, there were many organisations classed as the kkk, he condemned the violent kkk organisations, and supported the peaceful but stupid white sepratist one. [SIC]

Ahhh......he's not so baaaad! White "sepratism" is just an irritance? I see. That quote comes from a member with over 2000 posts.

These people congratulate themselves as being anti-fascist! Whilst in reality, just as I claimed, they are surrounded by the far-right, including genuine fascism and neo-nazism.

And look at this next post, clearly betraying a radical anti-fascism, no?

Ry just the fact that David Dukes and David Icke and the like have found and read and support your work is impressive. It means people are paying attention.

Impressive? David's Duke and Icke? HAHA. Again, this is from a poster with 1500+ posts and whom imagines themselves to be "anti-fascist".

Talk about Doublethink.

When someone objects to how it might look to be endorsed by ex-Klan racists, Ryan justifies it thus:

I think the negative attention will actually work in my favor I can easily wipe it away, I'm not racist or crazy period. Their traffic however is something I need. I have a much better message. People hearing my take on 911 may actually prevent future racism and or crazies. I would infect their crowd they couldn't touch mine. People don't go backwards.

I need racist traffic! What an admission.

Funny that he sees the consumers of his output as separate types of people.....the anti-zionists and the...errrr...racists, I suppose. It doesn't seem to occur to him that there might be a darker implication about one's politics when finding one's "work" promoted by the Klan and Nazis.

Does Ryan imagine they like it because of its "anti-fascism", or because of its use to their racism and ultranationalism? Does Ryan care? No, he's happy to get the traffic. Ugh. Gotta love a guy with principles?

Ryan's signature says "This site is against war, Zionism, (or any other form of racism), profiteering......"

Well, isn't embracing much 'needed racist traffic' both racism and profiteering? [I doubt Ryan makes much money out of it, but that's hardly the point.]

And this is what an anti-fascist looks like, is it, Ryan? Do us a favour?

Miscellaneous Wisdom from Anti-neocons.com

Here's a few more pearls thrown from high table at anti-neocons.com - a supposed "anti-fascist" website:

Why shouldn't he attack Linton's house if Linton is an infiltrator and possible a Jew puppet? As the video says, you need to counter infiltrate to bring these people down.

Interestingly that thread features a direct link to Stromfront as a source. Shock! The author of the comment is "Drew J" - Joined: Jan 9th, 2007, Posts: 1629 The poster can't be dismissed as a short-term member.

The content of "Drew J's" posts are identical to those at Stronfront and National Alliance type places - they're far-right, anti-semitic, fascist, neo-nazi. Same content, same sources, same agenda, same distortions and sytle of fear-mongering. It's fascist propaganda. And Drew J spends pages posting typical Stormfront crap, and yet nobody at the supposed "anti-fascist" forum bats an eye. Or rather, those that do protest get banned - for being agents of the Jews....err...Zionists.

Here's Drew J responding in the same comment again - look at what he's actually condoning?

Tell me what Brendon meant by it. Because I heard him say he wanted them put in camps only to be asked where their loyalties were. If they said Israel, out of the camps they go and off to Israel. If they said their host nation and say passed a lie detector test, boom out of the camp and back into society. If I'm wrong, correct me and prove it. Don't just make insinuations that he wants them holocausted.

Camps, lie detectors, deportation. All fine. But how dare one suggest this smacks of the Nazis! Sheesh. That comment was in response to somebody saying that the person facing criminal charges for racism - Brendon - had in fact called "Jews to be dealt with like the good old days....."

Rather than report some anti-semitic nut getting done for racism, Drew J and the antineocons forum allowed the far-right narrative to be told - until one person stepped in to point out the guy was in fact a (racist) nut. Drew J sold the story as he often appears to - as one of Jewish malignancy:

The Jews in Australia have been leaning on Brendon charging him with racial vilification.

Anti-Zionism? Oh yeah, sure. Drew J has no inclination to make a distinction here whatsoever and nobody else at "anti-neocons.com" notices, despite their lame claims to not "hate jews".

Anti-neocon.com : Anti-fascist? Hardly. Part One.

The following are all examples of the "culture" over at Rys2Sense's self-proclaimed "anti-fascist website" - anti-neocons.com.

See how anti-fascist these array of comments appear to you? Hint - it reads like Stormfront to me.

The quotes appear first, followed by a snapshot of the page. [I'm IP banned by the "freedomfighters" over at anti-neocons.com, so can't simply link direct to the posts]. Here's the view from anti-neocons.com:

Far as I'm concerned we need to finish off all the zionists while we got the countermeasures to do so.......take them all to the courts, break out the tazer rifles...

"By the way, in March 24 of 1933 the "Jews" declared an economical war on Germany......and you wonder as to why Herr Hitler was pissed off at them?"

...maybe I should go there and slaughter a few jewish kids and babies myself, i wouldn't even think twice just give me a saw or a knife.

...you must kill [Israel's] seeds (babies and children)....

Why do people hate the Jews?
...
They hate Arabs as a race. They think of Arab women as baby makers.....

Israeli Jews are after all the self proclaimed chosen race of god. It sick what do to their own kids. It is even more sick what they do to everyone else's children.

As long as you call It, or them, anything other than "Jewish" they are safe to continue to do their evil deeds in the shadows.

I do agree with you that we've been intimidated by them to some extent to the point that we are adverse to using the J word.

They're Jews, plain and simple.

THOUGHT CRIME ALERT - Holocaust denier Fredric Toben has been taken into cutody to serve a jail term over publishing offensive material on the internet.

I wonder if we can send [Toben] letters in prison.

Holocaust Denial for Dummies - The International Red Cross reported that less than 300,000 ...died of all causes....barely more than half were JEws....

They never found any trace evidence of Zyclon B in any "gas chambers" at any camp. The Zyclon B was used to prevent diseases at the camps, of course I could go to prison for saying that if I lived in Europe. It's still a fact, the Zionist's deny it because they're delusional and can't face the fact that other people suffered much worse than they could ever dream of under Hitler.

The majority of deaths were from exhaustion and starvation.

There was no 6 million figure..... The escalation of deaths for Jews/communists/gays/atheists came at the very end of the war, the majority by starvation after the allied bombings. ....the intention was that of slavery not extermination or they would all have just been shot upon stepping off the train. (as the handicapped were)

...between 750 to a million people (not all jews) were killed in the prisons on purpose then many many more than that were used as slaves most of whom died of stavation after allied bombings.

Hideous Allied War Crimes during and after WWII

From Ingrid Rimland - Good morning from the Zundelsite.....

Ernst Zundel out of Jail Today!

Our "war prisoner", the world famous freedom fighter, Ernst Zundel has been released to day after seven years from the Mannheim prison!

Great News! I hope [Zundel] is doing well.

Try watching a video by Ted Pike on google video

Full video of interview with Eustace Mullins.

-------------------

That reflects the lexicon and agenda of the far-right, fascism - nazism.

The sources include Willis Carto, Ted Pike, Eustace Mullins, Ernst Zundel, Zundelsite, AmericanFreePress, CODOH. The subjects focus around a mix of Holocaust denial, demonisation of "zionism" whilst being ambivalent about distinctions between Zionism and "Jews", conspiracism (World Jewish/Zionist conspiracy), legitimisation of Nazism and anti-semitism, delegitimisation of Israel and Jew-spotting, generally.

This is hardly what one should expect from an "anti-fascist" forum. It reads like Stromfront - just without the Swaztikas and obvious "tells". It's Stormfront Lite. It's the "acceptable" face of neo-Nazism.

This is what masquerades as an alternative. Oh dear.

And just in case you think Ryse is joking, check this:

If you must kill, Kill the, generlas, kill the politicians kill the zionist media. I never understand why buses and malls are targets. Seems like it be more effective to just poison the water, set random fires etc. A ton of things would work better than a one time suicide mission. Makes me think some of these are staged.

kill the politicians kill the zionist media?????

Jared Loughner anyone?

The disturbing thing about this is that Rys2Sense believes the entire American media and political system is "controlled by Israel", so presumably qualifies for errr.....extermination.