I have however in the past week been able to finish this little ditty on property rights. It's called Supreme Neglect and it's written by this incredibly brilliant law professor at Chicago name Richard Epstein. It's premise is that by abandoning subtle distinctions of property protection the Supreme Court has abdicated its responsibility to US citizens and it offers a road back. I loved it but I doubt it has much universal appeal to those without an interest in property law.
now....for the moment I've been waiting for (and if you had any common sense you'd be eagerly anticipating....) i shall decree the next ten books to be added to my literary conquests.
1) Collapse by Jared Diamond. His Guns, Germs and Steel was definitely worth the time spent reading it. Both are about the success and failure of societies and the proximate and ultimate causes of the destinies.
2) The Logical Foundations of Constitutional Liberty by James Buchanan. If i ever expect anyone to take me seriously when I tell them that men need to be free I need to read this book.
3) Capitalism, Socialism, and Democracy by Joseph Schumpeter. I've read it before, but I didn't understand it, and I want to be smart.
4) The Fortunes of War by Patrick O'Brian. Because he's the bomb.
5) The Surgeon's Mate by Patrick O'brian. See above.
6) The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism by Max Weber. His basic premise is that protestants make the best capitalists because we stress individual salvation and God blessing you for your works....yadayadayada. we'll see.
7) In Pursuit of Reason: The Life of Thomas Jefferson by Noble Cunningham. Because TJ is the man with the libertarian plan.
8) Democracy and the Rule of Law by two people I couldn't care less about. This is another book that's mandatory reading to be taken seriously.
9) Politics by Aristotle. Another one I've already read at a dumber stage of my life.
10) The Collected Works of J.R.R. Tolkien for when I need to escape reality and feel a little more....something....
So there it is. Kind of boring? Maybe. But I will get much smarter, and that brings a satisfaction all of its own.
4 comments:
I have a feeling that if I understood politics and all that I would not think any of your choices were boring at all.
I would also like to concur that Patrick O' Brian is indeed "the bomb."
Oh man just reading your list made me want to slice my wrists with a ballpoint pen I had lying nearby. I guess there has to be some people in this world who like to read such books as those, and I'm glad that this lot did not fall to me.
i have a couple fun books in there, and as i see it the patrick o'brian novels are worth at least 2 normal fiction books apiece.
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