Larry White Lecture THURSDAY

Join the GMU Economics Society as we welcome economist and GMU professor Larry White as he lectures on "Central Banking and The Sovereign Debt Crisis" for the first Community Economics Forum co-sponsored by the GMU Economics Department!


THIS Thursday November 17th
7:30pm - Innovation Hall 105

Zero-price refreshments will be served. Attend the Facebook event HERE.




Lawrence H. White specializes in the theory and history of banking and money. He received his A.B. from Harvard and his Ph.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles. He previously taught at New York University, the University of Georgia, and the University of Missouri - St. Louis.

Professor White is the author of The Theory of Monetary Institutions (1999), Free Banking in Britain (2nd ed., 1995), and Competition and Cu rrency (1989). He is the editor of The History of Gold and Silver (3 vols., 2000), Free Banking (3 vols., 1993), and other volumes. His articles on monetary theory and banking history have appeared in the American Economic Review, the Journal of Economic Literature, the Journal of Money, Credit, and Banking, and other leading professional journals.

In 2008 he received the Distinguished Scholar Award of the Association for Private Enterprise Education. He has been a visiting research fellow at the American Institute for Economic Research, a visiting lecturer at the Swiss National Bank, and a visiting scholar at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. Professor White is a co-editor of Econ Journal Watch and a member of the board of associate editors of the Review of Austrian Economics. He is a contributing editor to the Foundation for Economic Education's magazine The Freeman and an adjunct scholar of the Cato Institute.

David Bernstein Video

Below is the video for the FFF & GMU Econ Society lecture with David Bernstein held on Monday, February 7th:

Economic Liberty Lecture Series - David E. Bernstein from The Future of Freedom Foundation on Vimeo.

This Week's Upcoming Events

GMU Economics Society Meeting
Wednesday, September 22nd, at 5:00pm
Enterprise 318


Atlas Liberty Café with Peter Boettke
Wednesday, September 22nd at 10am
At the Cato Institute
1000 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC

The Atlas Economic Research Foundation hosts monthly Liberty Café’s. This month’s Liberty Café will focus on the Wall Street Journal article, "Spreading Hayek, Spurning Keynes." George Mason University Professor of Economics Dr. Peter J. Boettke will discuss the current economic crisis, its causes and a free market response. To RSVP for the event, please contact Anca.Rusu@atlasnetwork.org.

A couple of us will be going in together - we're taking the Mason to Metro shuttle at 8:40am and then taking the metro in - if you'd like to join, meet at the Mason to Metro Shuttle Stop right by Rappahannock Parking Deck. Email me at liya02@gmail.com for details or questions.

Facebook event: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=145624268808425#!/event.php?eid=154405574577515&ref=ts


Cato on Campus: Balancing Liberty and Security in an Age of Terrorism
Friday, September 24th at 4:00pm
At the Cato Institute
1000 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC

Come out to the FIRST DC Forum For Freedom Event at the Cato Institute. The event will be featuring David Rittgers, Legal Policy Analyst, Cato Institute; and Michael German, National Security Policy Counsel, American Civil Liberties Union; moderated by Chip Bishop, Manager of Student Programs, Cato Institute.

This will be a great opportunity to meet the Cato Scholars as well as other students from George Washington University, Georgetown, American, Maryland—and more! There will be a FREE reception to follow. To register: http://www.cato.org/events/100924sf.html

If you want to metro in, a bunch of us will be meeting at at the Mason to Metro shuttle at 2:40pm and taking the metro in - if you'd like to join, meet at the Mason to Metro Shuttle Stop right by Rappahannock Parking Deck. Email me at liya02@gmail.com for details or questions. The dress code is business casual. After the event & reception, there will be the Mason Liberty Social (see next event below for details).

Facebook event: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=145624268808425#!/event.php?eid=152252314795032&ref=ts


Mason Students For Liberty Social
Friday, September 24th at 6:30pm
Hunan Number 1 - 3033 Wilson Blvd, Arlington, VA

Hunan happy hours have been a great way for Mason and DC area liberty groups to come together! Come join Mason Liberty again this year for great discussion and networking-Friday, September 24th at 6:30 pm. If you’ll be at the Cato for Campus Event on Friday, all of us will be heading to the social after the Cato event. Hope to see you guys there!

Facebook event: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=145624268808425


Economics Society Discussion Group
Wednesday, September 29th at 5pm
Enterprise 318

Next week’s reading will be the first History of Economic Thought paper of the semester before we dive into specific schools of thought. Email us so we can send you the paper!

Be sure to come out to the discussion group and bring your questions!

Additionally, we’ll start using the Econ Discussion Group on Facebook, so be sure to join that as well: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=160522500628158&ref=ts



Reminders:


Students for Liberty Mid-Atlantic Conference
Saturday, October 9th
Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA

Have you registered for the Students For Liberty Mid-Atlantic Conference yet? If you haven’t be sure to do so ASAP! Join Students For Liberty in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania birthplace of the Declaration of Independence as Drexel University’s Student Liberty Front hosts the 2010 Mid-Atlantic Regional Students For Liberty Conference. Come meet fellow students as we improve our knowledge and understand of individualism and free markets. The Mid-Atlantic Conference is your opportunity to meet other students interested in similar ideas and some of the biggest names in the liberty movement. Leave with the skills necessary to be a leader for liberty on campus, a stronger intellectual framework, connections to new friends and organizations dedicated to liberty, and a revitalized vision for the future of the freedom movement. As of now, there are over 100 registered students – you don’t want to miss out!

Registration and attendance is FREE, as are all of the events and meals during the day-long conference. Several members of the GMU Econ Society have already registered, and we're planning on carpooling up there - so if concern over transportation is holding you back, worry no longer! If you have registered for the conference and need a ride, email us back ASAP so we can start planning. And if you’ve registered and would LIKE to drive, let us know how many you’re able to take. The drive is about 2-2 ½ hours. Additionally, accommodations will be taken care of as well – just be sure to note that in your registration application and they will get you connected to stay with students at Drexel. To find out more about the conference and to register, visit: http://politicalconferences.org/2009/10/philadelphia-conference/.

Facebook event: http://www.facebook.com/?sk=messages&tid=1188099640258#!/event.php?eid=110082322375037&ref=ts


Fall 2010 Economics Department Welcome Reception
Thursday, September 23, 3-4:30pm
Economics Department, Enterprise 354

Econ majors and minors are invited to come enjoy refreshments and meet professors and advisers. This is a great way to meet other economics students, as well as a way to get to talk to your professors outside of a classroom environment. There will also be a raffle...you can win some free books (possibly signed by some of your professors)!

Mercatus Center hosts Bastiat event on June 8

The Mercatus Center invites you to.... "Frédéric Bastiat: A Beautiful Mind,” A lecture by Jacques de Guenin, Founder and President, of Cercle Frédéric Bastiat. The event will be held on Tuesday, June 8 from 4:00pm – 5:30pm at the Mercatus Center Board Room, 4th Floor, Hazel Hall
3301 N. Fairfax Drive
Arlington, VA 22201

How much do you know about the father of the broken window fallacy?
French Economist. Philosopher. Judge. Politician. Frédéric Bastiat ranks among
the greatest economic communicators of all time. His writings and insights are as
relevant and provocative today as they were in the early 19th Century.
In this special presentation, distinguished Bastiat scholar Jacques de Guenin,
Founder and President of the Cercle Frédéric Bastiat, will reacquaint us with
this important hero of liberty and markets.
Come learn about this extraordinary advocate for human freedom.

To register or for more information, please contact Megan Gandee at
mmahan@gmu.edu or 703-993-4967

The Center for Freedom and Prosperity Foundation videos on Taxes

Here are the newest videos from the Center for Freedom and Prosperity Foundation:
Dan Mitchell of the Cato Institute on the flat tax rate:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhUOpNve1bY

and Hiwa Alaghebandian on the compliance cost of the internal revenue code:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XX8EswfGKQw

Separation of Health & State Debate Video

All,

The video for Debate over the Separation of Health & State with Economists Bryan Caplan and David Balan is now up!

Debate: Separation of Health & State from GMU Econ Society on Vimeo.

This is only the debate portion -- unfortunately the audience Q&A did not come out due to technical difficulties.

Dr. Caplan also set-up a resource page where you can have access to the opening statements by both debaters, the PowerPoint slides, and the video, check it out:

http://econfaculty.gmu.edu/bcaplan/hsdeb.htm

Economic Liberty Lecture Series: Richard M. Ebeling

The GMU Economics Society & the Future of Freedom Foundation invite you to the last installment of the Economic Liberty Lecture Series of this year with Dr. Richard Ebeling.

Dr. Ebeling will be speaking on "America's New Road to Serfdom -- and the Continuing Relevance of Austrian Economics"

Economic Liberty Lecture Series --
Dinner, Lecture, and Social Hour

DATE: April 5, 2010 – Monday
PLACE: George Mason University - Student Union Building II -- Rooms 5-7

5:30 pm – Pizza
6:00 pm – Talk with Q&A
7:30 pm – Social hour at Brion's Grille
ADMISSION: FREE

Speaker: Richard M. Ebeling is a Professor of Economics at Northwood University. He was formerly President of the Foundation for Economic Education (2003-2008), was the Ludwig von Mises Professor of Economics at Hillsdale College (1988-2003) in Hillsdale, Michigan, and served as Vice President of Academic Affairs for the Future of Freedom Foundation (1989-2003).
His most recent book is Political Economy, Public Policy and Monetary Economics: Ludwig von Mises and the Austrian Tradition (Routledge, 2010)


Social Hour:
Come join us at a social hour at Brion's Grille in Fairfax, Virginia, right next to George Mason University - 10621 Braddock Road, Fairfax, VA 22030 (703) 352-7272

Questions? Email us:
gmueconsociety@gmail.com

DEBATE: The Separation of Health & State

The GMU Economics Society will be hosting a debate entitled "The Separation of Health & State" between GMU Economics Professor Bryan Caplan and Economist David Balan.

Wednesday, March 24th at 5pm

Enterprise 80 (George Mason University -- Fairfax Campus)

The Resolution: "Significant governmental involvement in health care is both economically sensible and morally just."

Dr. David Balan will defend the motion that "Significant governmental involvement in health care is both economically sensible and morally just," while Dr. Bryan Caplan will oppose the motion and advocate for a separation between health and state.

Event Schedule:

Opening Statements by both debaters

Debate -- with moderator

Closing Statements

Audience Q&A

Refreshments with speakers and attendees

Come out to see the arguments for both sides and determine the winner of this important issue. This is definitely an event you don't want to miss out on -- mark your calendars!

Questions? Need Directions? Email us! gmueconsociety@gmail.com

Jeffrey Miron: Obamanomics -- Growing the Pie or Dividing the Pie?

Come out to the first installment of the Economic Liberty Lecture Series of the semester with Harvard economist Jeffrey Miron!

Economic Liberty Lecture Series --
Dinner, Lecture, and Social Hour

DATE: February 8, 2010 – Monday
PLACE: George Mason University (Fairfax campus) - Johnson Center Cinema

5:30 pm – Pizza
6:00 pm – Talk with Q&A
8:00 pm – Social hour at Brion's Grille
ADMISSION: FREE

SPEAKER: Jeffrey Miron

Jeffrey A. Miron is a Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute and the Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Department of Economics at Harvard University. His area of expertise is the economics of libertarianism, with particular emphasis on the economics of illegal drugs. Miron has served on the faculty at the University of Michigan and as a visiting professor at the Sloan School of Management, M.I.T. and the Department of Economics, Harvard University. From 1992-1998, he was chairman of the Department of Economics at Boston University. He is the author of Drug War Crimes: The Consequences of Prohibition and The Economics of Seasonal Cycles, in addition to numerous opeds and journal articles. He has been the recipient of an Olin Fellowship from the National Bureau of Economic Research, an Earhart Foundation Fellowship, and a Sloan Foundation Faculty Research Fellowship. Miron received a B.A., magna cum laude, from Swarthmore College in 1979 and a Ph.D. in economics from M.I.T. in 1984.

Social Hour:
Come join us at a social hour at Brion's Grille in Fairfax, Virginia, right next to George Mason University - 10621 Braddock Road, Fairfax, VA 22030 (703) 352-7272

Presented by:

GMU Econ Society

The Future of Freedom Foundation
www.fff.org fff@fff.org (703) 934-6101

Dan Mitchell on Stimulus & Spending

Dan Mitchell, tax policy expert of the Cato Institute, discusses the second proposed Stimulus and the real idea behind government spending. Check out these two incredibly educational and important videos:

Russ Roberts' "Fear the Boom and Bust" a Hayek vs. Keynes Rap Anthem

A highly entertaining and educational video.... a must-watch. Enjoy & spread the word:

January Upcoming Events

GMU Economics Society First Meeting
Thursday, January 21st at 6pm
Enterprise 318 (conference room) -- GMU Fairfax Campus
Learn about how you can become more involved in the Econ Society & if you have ideas for the Spring semester, come prepared to share them at the meeting! :)


Global Warming Realities & Fantasies
Friday, January 22nd at 4pm
F.A. Hayek Auditorium at the Cato Institute
1000 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W. Washington D.C. 20001
Cato scholar, Climatologist and Environmental Scientist Patrick Michaels will puts the facts straight about global warming and will tackle the up-and-coming climate change legislation on Capitol Hill.

For more details and to register, visit the facebook event:
http://www.facebook.com/#/event.php?eid=244182689711&ref=ts
or
http://www.cato.org/events/100122sf.html


Internship & Seminar Information Session
Wednesday, January 27th at 6pm
Enterprise 318 -- GMU Fairfax Campus
Looking for an internship for Summer 2010? Come out to the Internship Information Session to meet with internship coordinators and learn about some of the greatest internship programs, including: the Koch Summer Fellowship Program (Public Policy Internship), IHS Internships and Seminars, IHS film, production and journalism opportunities, the Koch Internship Program (in DC), Cato Institute internships, FEE internships and seminars, and more!

Dan Mitchell on "The Real Fiscal Cost of Government-Run Healthcare"

Dan Mitchell, Senior Fellow of the Cato Institute, explains the real cost of government-run health care in this video. Check it out:

Economic Contractions in the United States: A Failure of Government on 11/18 at 7:30pm in Innovation 103

Dr. Charles Rowley will be discussing his newest book, "Economic Contractions in the United States: A Failure of Government," followed by a short Q&A with appetizers and beverages after the lecture.

***Economic Contractions in the United States: A Failure of Government will be on sale for discounted price of $8 at the event.***

Economic Contractions in the United States demonstrates that both the Great Depression and the current economic crisis/contraction were caused by failures of government, not capitalism. The book explains the causes of the 2008 financial crisis and offers a radical free-market approach to policy reform “designed to restore the United States economy to its stellar performance during the final fifteen years of the 20th century.”

Details:
Wednesday, November 18th at 7:30pm
in Innovation 103

Come out & get your copy of the book!



About the author:
Charles Rowley was born in Southampton England in 1939. He was educated at the University of Nottingham where he obtained a First Class Honours Degree in Economics in 1960 and a Ph. D. in Economics in 1964. He taught at the Universities of Nottingham, Kent, York and Newcastle upon Tyne and held summer fellowships in the Center for Socio-Legal Studies at Wolfson College, Oxford before migrating to the United States in January 1984 to join the Center for Study of Public Choice at George Mason University.

Dr. Rowley has written and edited some 40 books and some 200 scholarly papers in the fields of industrial organization, public choice, welfare economics, international trade and law-and-economics. His work consistently emphasizes the importance of private property rights, limited government and the rule of law as the basis for a free and prosperous society. Among his recent books are The Right to Justice (1992), Property Rights and the Limits of Democracy (edited 1993), Trade Protection in the United States (with Willem Thorbecke and Richard Wagner) (1995), The Political Economy of the Minimal State ( edited 1996) and Classical Liberalism and Civil Society (edited1997). He also edited Public Choice Theory (three volumes 1993), Social Choice Theory (three volumes 1993), The Economics of Budget Deficits (two volumes, with William F. Shughart, II and Robert D. Tollison, 2002), The Encyclopedia of Public Choice (two volumes, with Friedrich Schneider, 2004), and The Origins of Law and Economics: Essays by the Founding Fathers (with Francesco Parisi, 2005). He has recently edited, with introductions, in ten volumes, The Selected Works of Gordon Tullock (2004-6). His most recent book (co-authored with Nathanael Smith) is Economic Contractions in the United States: A Failure of Government (September 2009).

Dr. Rowley was a Founding Editor, 1980-1986, of The International Review of Law and Economics and served as Joint Editor of Public Choice between 1990 and 2007 He is Duncan Black Professor of Economics at George Mason University, General Director of the Program in Economics, Politics and the Law in the James Buchanan Center for Political Economy, and General Director of The Locke Institute, an independent non-profit educational foundation located in Fairfax, Virginia and dedicated to the advancement of classical liberal political economy.

Dan Mitchell: Consequences of Big Government

Check out these two videos on the consequences of big government presented by Dan Mitchell from the Cato Institute:

The Great Depression and the Current Recession: Similarities and Differences

We will be hosting Dr. Robert Higgs to speak at the 2nd installment of the Economic Liberty Lecture Series for the Fall 2009 semester. The topic of the lecture will be "The Great Depression and the Current Recession: Similarities and Differences."

The event will be held in the the JC Cinema (bottom floor of the JC), on Monday, October 5th starting at 5:30pm with a free pizza dinner, followed by the talk with Q&A at 6pm, and then a social hour at Brion's Grille afterward. Brion's Grille is located across the street from George Mason (address: 10621 Braddock Road, Fairfax, VA 22030).

Schedule:
5:30 pm - Dinner
6:00 pm - Talk with Q&A
8:00 pm - Social Hour at Brion's Grille
ADMISSION: FREE

Location: George Mason University, Fairfax Campus
Johnson Center Cinema

SPEAKER: Robert Higgs
Robert Higgs is Senior Fellow in Political Economy for The Independent Institute and Editor of The Independent Review. He received his Ph.D. in economics from Johns Hopkins University, and has taught at the University of Washington, Lafayette College, Seattle University, and the University of Economics, Prague. He has been a visiting scholar at Oxford University and Stanford University, and a fellow for the Hoover Institution and the National Science Foundation.

Presented by:
GMU Econ Society
www.gmueconsociety.blogspot.com

The Future of Freedom Foundation
www.fff.org

Dan Mitchell on Government Spending

Dan Mitchell from the Cato Institute does a great job explaining the effects of government spending...check out this video!

Dan Mitchell on Tax Policy

Check out these highly entertaining videos of class-warfare tax policy, Obama's deferral proposal, the social security tax plan, and corruption in the government. Dan Mitchell, an expert in tax reform from the Cato Institute, discusses the problems with these policies. Also, Dan Mitchell received his Ph.D in Economics from George Mason.



President Obama and other politicians are advocating higher taxes, with a particular emphasis on class-warfare taxes targeting the so-called rich.


President Obama's proposal to severely restrict "deferral" will cause a significant tax increase on American companies trying to earn market share in other nations. For all intents and purposes, the White House plan is protectionism, but the target is American companies rather than their foreign rivals.


In addition to several other tax increases, Barack Obama wants to increase the Social Security payroll tax burden by imposing the tax on income above $250,000. This would be a sharp departure from current law, which only requires that the tax be imposed on the amount of income needed to "pay for" promised benefits. But more important, at least from an economic perspective, the initiative would increase the top tax rate on productive behavior by as much as 12 percentage points - and this would be in addition to his proposal to kill the 2003 tax rate reductions and further boost the top rate by 4.6 percentage points. This mini-documentary explains why a big tax rate increase on highly productive people would be very damaging to America's prosperity, especially in a competitive global economy.


Washington is riddled with corruption, much of which actually is legal. The politicians and other insiders claim that more ethics laws and lobbying rules are the solution. Some even say the only answer is campaign finance laws that restrict 1st Amendment rights to fully participate in the political process.

Enjoy & spread the word!

Wall Street Bail-out and Economic Development

With the recent financial crisis in the United States, most of the debate we hear currently entails whether or not the government should be involved in some sort of bail-out. While this would be a major intervention, William Easterly, in a today's op-ed in the Wall Street Journal, says that the U.S. will still remain largely capitalistic and the domestic effect is not the largest worry. To Dr. Easterly, the issue at hand is what message this policy choice sends to developing countries' governments. While we may be choosing between some or more intervention, he contends that developing nations are choosing between free markets and government planning for economic growth.

For better or worse, our actions and beliefs today will affect the policies for many years to come of these countries. The point Easterly makes is an important one, and echos that of F.A. Hayek in "The Intellectuals and Socialism". Whether you agree or disagree with government intervention, it is difficult to ignore the importance of the role our policy decisions play in steering developing governments' future actions.

If any of you feel inspired by this issue or any development issues, there will be an opportunity for you to share your ideas to other students and non-profit organizations in an upcoming conference at Mason. A private consulting firm Midego Inc. from Fairfax, Virginia will be co-hosting the conference with the student group Global Health Students Beyond Borders in February. Here is more info:

"The conference is entitled "Breaking with Business As Usual" and the purpose of the conference is to bring together students and professionals from all disciplines to discuss and develop strategies to reach the Millennium Development Goals.

If you are not familiar with the MDGs, they are a set of 8 health, welfare and environmental sustainability goals set by the United Nations in the year 2000 and are aimed at improving the lives of the world's poorest by improving issues related to education, poverty, public health and environmental degradation. Most of the worlds' governments have pledged to supporting these goals, but are falling short in delivering on that promise. In order to move towards them innovative strategies must be developed.

We are calling for student poster or oral presentations - abstracts are due November 30th - see the attached guidlines. This is a 250 word abstract for either a poster or 10-minute presentation. Your ideas do not have to be tested and proven, we're looking for new, innovative strategies. Take a look at the list of the MDG and their targets and I think you'll see a lot that economic students would be interested in. Ideas I can think of off hand are providing micro-loans for small businesses, balancing economic growth with environmental conservation,and dealing with debt problems in developing nations. "


I know that many of you could offer new thinking on these topics, and I plan to propose a talk for the conference as well. If any of you have any questions about this conference or wish to get the application, you can email the Econ Society at gmueconsociety@gmail.com or email Midego Inc at sara@midego.com .