A Credit-Crunch Reader (web publication)
SUGGESTED
A new edition of this Hayek classic. Available as a free download or a hardcopy
An IEA classic from the 1970s, Stephen Littlechild offers an introduction to the 'Austrian School'
Free-market blog and think-tank responses to the crash of 2008
Material is selected from the world’s most renowned classical-liberal and liberarian think tanks, including the Cato Institute, the Heritage Foundation and the Ludwig von Mises Institute, as well as the Institute of Economic Affairs.
The overriding message from these readings is clear. Contrary to conventional wisdom, the crash was not the result of unchecked “laissez-faire” capitalism. In fact the credit crunch can be explained by a combination of misguided regulation, government intervention and loose monetary policy. Unfortunately, as the authors point out, governments’ responses to the credit crunch would appear to be equally ill-conceived.
2009, Current Controversies 29
Further reading
Verdict on the Crash: Causes and Policy Implications by Philip Booth et al.
Economic Contractions in the United States: A Failure of Government by Charles K. Rowley and Nathanael Smith.
Money and Asset Prices in Boom and Bust by Tim Congdon.
Money, Inflation and the Constitutional Position of the Central Bank by Milton Friedman and Charles Goodhart.
Denationalisation of Money by F.A. Hayek.