The Human Action Podcast

Bob untangles two arguments that even Austrian economists sometimes conflate: Mises' calculation problem and Hayek's knowledge problem. Then, he explains why the distinction matters, especially in light of recent claims that AI and modern computing could finally make central planning viable.Related:Bob's Article, "Socialism: The Calculation Problem Is Not the Knowledge Problem": Mises.org/HAP543aThe Mises Institute is giving away 100,000 copies of Hayek for the 21st Century. Get your free copy at Mises.org/HAPodFree

In memory of Roger Garrison, Bob walks through Garrison's famous capital-based macroeconomics diagrams, showing how they translate the Mises-Hayek theory of the boom-bust cycle into the language of modern macroeconomics.Related:Roger Garrison, The Austrian Theory of the Business Cycle: Mises.org/HAP542aRoger Garrison, Austrian Macroeconomics: A Diagrammatical Exposition: Mises.org/HAP542bThe Diagrams Referenced in the Podcast: Mises.org/HAP542cDr. Garrison's PowerPoints: Mises.org/HAP542dThe Mises Institute is giving away 100,000 copies of Hayek for the 21st Century. Get your free copy at Mises.org/HAPodFree

A tour of five influential economic ideas from Murray Rothbard, including when deficits actually cause inflation and the role of bank credit. A fresh critique of monopoly theory and why temporary monopoly profits can spur entrepreneurship. A challenge to the excess-capacity claim and a look at realistic cost curves. A time-structured circular flow of production and a reconstruction of utility and welfare theory.

A discussion sparked by a call to ban congressional trading examines whether insider trading and speculation can help markets by transmitting information. Examples include how speculators anticipate supply shocks, the role of futures and inventories in smoothing volatility, and why wartime windfall taxes and criminalization might backfire. The argument also considers special rules for government employees.

This week, Bob walks through Javier Milei’s 2026 address to the World Economic Forum, explaining the Austrian and neoclassical ideas behind Milei’s defense of capitalism—from Rothbard and Kirzner to Pareto efficiency and the welfare theorems.Related:Bob's Breakdown of The Intra-Austrian Debate over Milei: Mises.org/HAP539aThe Mises Institute is giving away 100,000 copies of Hayek for the 21st Century. Get your free copy at Mises.org/HAPodFree

Bob lays out California’s proposed 5% wealth tax on billionaires, using it to explain why taxes on wealth are especially destructive, how different tax structures change incentives, and what recent migration data says about people voting with their feet.Related:Data on 2020–2024 State-to-State Migration: Mises.org/HAP538a"Where Americans Choose to Move and Where They Leave": Mises.org/HAP538bPoliticians don’t build prosperity. Entrepreneurs do. Join Keith Smith, Caitlin Long, Ryan McMaken, Per Bylund, and Timothy Terrell for our first event of 2026: Mises.org/OKCHAThe Mises Institute is giving away 100,000 copies of Hayek for the 21st Century. Get your free copy at Mises.org/HAPodFree

Dr. Keith Smith, an anesthesiologist who founded the Surgery Center of Oklahoma and pioneered transparent cash pricing. He recounts walking away from government reimbursement and posting all-inclusive prices online. Short sentences cover sticker-shock comparisons with hospitals. He explains why insurers resist low-cost providers. He describes barriers to scaling the model and growth of free-market medical alternatives.

A lively debate about whether Bitcoin fits Mises' framework as commodity or fiat money. Clear explanations of Austrian definitions like medium of exchange and the regression theorem. Discussion of privately issued fiat, network consensus as money-creating authority, and historical examples from gold to POW-cigarette markets. Questions about how money persists when direct uses disappear.

A data-driven dive into record U.S. gold exports and how they skew trade-balance headlines. A look at BEA methodology and why price spikes can masquerade as trade shifts. Discussion of tariff-driven front‑loading, U.S. gold production, and how physical tonnes differ from dollar measures. A brief tour of Austrian critiques of trade-deficit panic and links between gold, resource depletion, and GDP accounting.

Dive into a thought-provoking critique of the exploitation theory, where the age-old battle of billionaires versus workers is examined. The discussion unveils how much value is created by factors beyond just labor, like land and entrepreneurship. Bob Murphy dissects historical theories and highlights how current claims against billionaires echo past arguments. Learn why wages reflect present value rather than future potential, and discover the complexities of profit, regulation, and the myth of labor-only entitlement.