A classic that for over two decades has been hailed as the best general work on libertarianism available. Rothbard begins with a quick overview of its historical roots, and then goes on to define libertarianism as resting "upon one single axiom: that no man or group of men shall aggress upon the person or property of anyone else." He writes a withering critique of the chief violator of liberty: the State. Rothbard then provides penetrating libertarian solutions for many of today's most pressing problems, including poverty, war, threats to civil liberties, the education crisis, and more.

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights: #1 When I began learning English, my mother was worried about my mental stability. When I added Russian to my curriculum, she took me to the doctor. Luckily, he was a student of Russian himself and was able to assure her that my ambitions were not medically abnormal. #2 I, too, accepted the laws curtailing my rights quietly. I was 15 when I was struck off the roll of the local high school, and I was forbidden to study on my own. I became a laborer, and I found there were two salary scales - a low one for Jews and a higher one for all others. #3 I had to take a taxi ride to freedom. I was picked up in Sered, half an hour away, and taken to Trnava, where I paid my mother two hundred crowns for the taxi ride. I then took the train to Sered, where I met my school friend who helped me get to Galanta in Hungary. #4 I crossed into Hungary at Galanta, and after a long and cold walk, I arrived at my friend’s house at five in the morning. The maid stared at me as if I had a bomb in my pocket. I had to have a bath, and my clothes were freshly sponged and pressed when I came out.

The authoritative text on the libertarian political position In recent years, libertarian impulses have increasingly influenced national and economic debates, from welfare reform to efforts to curtail affirmative action. Murray N. Rothbard's classic The Ethics of Liberty stands as one of the most rigorous and philosophically sophisticated expositions of the libertarian political position. Rothbard’s unique argument roots the case for freedom in the concept of natural rights and applies it to a host of practical problems. And while his conclusions are radical—that a social order that strictly adheres to the rights of private property must exclude the institutionalized violence inherent in the state—Rothbard’s applications of libertarian principles prove surprisingly practical for a host of social dilemmas, solutions to which have eluded alternative traditions. The Ethics of Liberty authoritatively established the anarcho-capitalist economic system as the most viable and the only principled option for a social order based on freedom. This classic book’s radical insights are sure to inspire a new generation of readers.