10 Free Books for Understanding the Economy Today

If you want to learn how we have gotten to where we are today, then you've landed at the right spot. 

These books were some of the first books I ever read on economics. 

They were preceded only by "The Alpha Strategy" (My Most Visited Post! Free Download! A great book for today in these inflationary times), the Politically Incorrect Guide to Capitalism, The Gold Wars (free download), Economics in One Lesson (free download), Meltdown, End the Fed, and Crash Proof 1.0.

I gotta be honest. I read all the way up to Modern Money Mechanics and didn't finish the rest of the list. But even half the books below and the books above will give you a working economic knowledge for life. 

Any citizen will be an economically literate citizen even if he or she reads only half of these books.

These economics books are free for downloading. Read them in this order.

Gary North, Inherit the Earth

Gary North, Honest Money

Murray Rothbard, What Has Government Done to Our Money?

Gary North, Mises on Money

Murray Rothbard, The Case Against the Fed

Murray Rothbard, The Mystery of Banking

Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, Modern Money Mechanics

Gene Callahan, Economics for Real People

Robert P. Murphy, Lessons for the Young Economist

Murray Rothbard, Man, Economy, and State; Robert P. Murphy, Study Guide for Man, Economy, and State

Source: Ten Free Economics Books for Understanding What Is Going On Today | Specific Answers 

I hope you enjoy the books! 

Next up will be books that will help you become a functional Christian.

In Case of Dollar Collapse, Have this

In times of economic instability, you are going to have to do things with your money you have never thought of before. You will need this. Call it the "In-Case-Of-Bernie-Sanders" kit. It also comes in "Nuclear Hillary," "Protectionist Trump."

Have this item ready in case of a steep U.S. Dollar decline. It's only $12.99 at BJ's Wholesale Club.

Turn your dollars into Koi Fish.

Comes with a nice shiny black sleeve.

And cover...

Catch the culprits! Snap a photo of the Janet Yellen, Ben Bernanke, Alan Greenspan, et al. with this dollar origami camera.

Or make a crab out of that worthless money.

Make a Koi fish in 63 steps.

Watch these presentations 

by David Stockman, 

Bill Bonner, 

and Jim Rickards 

on the future 

of the U.S. Economy

Eight Presentations You Will Never Hear From Bernie Sanders, Clinton, Et al.

Many financial experts believe that a financial downturn is coming. All agree a recession is guaranteed. Some go as far to say that we in the United States are going to experience a depression.

Some call it a "Great Reset" or "Great Default." Others believe we will experience a "credit crisis." Some believe we are going to believe to experience a deflationary depression.

The Bible teaches that "Without consultation, plans are frustrated, But with many counselors they succeed." (Proverbs 15:22).

These are your multiple counselors.

They all agree on the central premise that the Federal Reserve's money printing policies and artificially low interest rates have done serious damage to the economy.

They paint slightly different scenarios of how their scenarios come to be.

How will all of this come about?

Watch these videos to find out.

David Stockman-Debt Markets Unstable and Tottering


The Great Deformation | David Stockman




Bill Bonner: Cash Shortage to Hit U.S.


Jim Rickards: Coming Economic Depression


Exclusive Interview: Jim Rickards and Peter Schiff Discuss Global Gold Mar...



Ron Paul - From Stansberry Research



Economic Collapse Coming - Rep. Ron Paul [Mirrored]



David Stockman The Global Economy Has Entered The Crack Up Phase

Video: Bill Bonner: Cash Shortage to Hit U.S.

Bill Bonner delivers a dire message in the calmest tone.

This is the most important story in the United States you have never heard of.

I sat through this entire thing.

It is worth it.

I promise.

Protect yourself.

Protect your family.

Watch the video.

Put the economic crisis in perspective

Put the economic crisis in perspective:

The government has been using stimulus to thwart a recession since I was 13.

I'm 27 now. They've been pushing off a recession for over half of my lifetime.

They've been using stimulus since 2001 and what do have they to show for it?

If stimulus worked so well, then why are there 2 million breadwinner jobs -- $50k a year -- less than 2000? Why are wages still declining?

By pushing off the recession with stimulus, they make the inevitable correction even worse.

What if we had one bad recession in 2001 and then that was it? What if we all had to toughen it out for one bad year when the economy was much stronger?

What happens now that the crisis is still forthcoming and people don't have the incomes and savings to brace for it?

Imagine if all of the people who went to college from 2001 to 2015 -- including myself -- had to make decisions to go to school based upon real price sensitivity, based upon what they could actually afford, versus enrolling in federal student loan programs? How financial freer would those people be?

The solution is to drastically cut spending, preferably Ron Paul 2012 presidential platform style by $1 trillion, end local, state, and federal bureaucracies, drastically lower taxes (no regressive flat tax, conservatives), and end the American Empire overseas and at home. Oh, and of course, End the Fed.

There's also other things that could be done but that's for another blog post. But for starters, we could legalize capitalism.

How to Prepare for the Coming Economic Crisis or the Next Great Depression

Via David Stockman's Contra Corner:

David Stockman, architect of President Reagan’s economic turnaround known as ‘Morning in America’, warns of the looming collapse of free market prosperity and the destruction of American wealth. Plus: Emergency actions viewers can take now to protect themselves from the crisis.

Watch the video.

As I've said previously, the recession is not over. In 2011, I remember posting an article on Facebook from Lew Rockwell talking about America entering another great depression.  It drew the ire of skeptics.

In fact, my motivation for starting The Goins Report in 2009 was precisely because I began to understand free-market economics, and I knew that the president's stimulus plan, and all other forms of violent economic intervention into the markets, was not going to save us...period.

My friends very incorrectly even thought I was a George Bush supporter because I came of age intellectually at the end of 2008 and opposed Obama's policies from the beginning. But if I had come of age a year earlier, or two years earlier, I would have been just as vocal about George W. Bush.

So I went on the intellectual warpath and began to warn friends about the intrinsic shortcomings of government economic policy.

And I proceeded to prepare myself for the downturns and dollar crises that I thought would come.

But now I want to share a link with you to help you, while there is still time.

Since 2010, I have had a page with links to movies that warned that the economic crisis is not over.

Since 2009, I have provided a free-book warning on how to protect yourself from the Federal Reserve's disastrous inflationary policies. In fact, it is my most visited blog post with over 1,000 hits.

Time and again, the true free-markets economists have warned that the current economy "recovery" is no recovery at all. While I can not say when, or where, or what will cause the next economic bubble to pop -- and indeed no good free-market economist tries -- I know that the ball is up in the air, and it is being continuously hit upwards by government and central bank policies. But every volley ball game has to end. The ball must come down eventually.

But it doesn't have to come down on you or your side of the court.

You can be on the winning team.

"The prudent sees danger and hides himself, but the simple go on and suffer for it." Proverbs 22:3 (ESV)

That is the Bible's wisdom for our day.

Don't be simple; be prudent. Watch the video.  Download this free book. Prepare.

Again, watch the video.

Video: Ron Paul gives trenchant foreign policy analysis in "The State of Liberty 2015"

If you are short on time, begin at the 30-minute mark. Dr. Paul gives an excellent analysis of foreign policy.

Near the beginning, he also touches on Ferguson and police militarization and police culture.

The Books I Used To Write the Second-Longest Paper I Ever Wrote

When I was a senior in college, I wrote the second-longest essay of my life -- and it wasn't for a class. It was for a cash prize of $5,000.

In December 2009, I heard about the Atlas Sound Money Project Essay and, broke as the economy, I jumped for the cash prize. I did not win the first prize. A kid from Dartmouth did, if my memory serves me correctly. I also did not win the one of the two second prizes ($1,000), or one of the three third prizes ($500).

I had to choose between the following topics:

Essay Topics:

- “Money and the Free Society: Can Money Exist Outside of the State?”
- “The Ethical Implications of Monetary Manipulation”
- “Monetary Policy and the Rule of Law in the United States”

I choose the last one.

But cleaning up my desk this evening (how it surfaced to my desk 4 years later, I have no idea), I decided to discard the paper I had notes on and preserve the memory through this blog post.

Here are the books I used to write the 20-page essay, which was supposed to be "accessible to the educated laymen, but rigorous enough as to be used in college and university courses." That had my writing style written all over it.

Economics Reading List for Sound Money Essay 

-The Alpha Strategy

-How the Fed Works (50 pages)

-Essentials of Economics

-Gold Wars

-Honest Money (Esp. Biblical Monetary System)

-Housing Boom and Bust

These aren't the only sources I used. I also completed Robert P. Murphy's "Politically Incorrect Guide to Capitalism," some excerpts from some newsletters I was receiving at the time, and more. Besides the Murphy book, only other books I read in their entirety for this essay was "The Alpha Strategy" (which I have offered free of charge since November 2009), "Gold Wars," "Honest Money." I skimmed through the Sowell Book. I probably didn't cite the Faustino Ballve book nor the How the Fed Works book.

I also have some handwritten notes on this paper, such as "banks are good - fractional reserve isn't," "sell back gold to the public," "FDIC out of commission," "FED = Insurance Agency," "prevent recessions," "prices of goods will fall," "gov = tax in gold," " = pay in gold," and "no government mandate for gold-only. Gold is standard, but other metals are usuable (sic)." Corresponding page numbers were in parentheses next to these notes.

The Atlas Foundation's original blog post announcing the competition was published on December 2, 2009. The deadline to submit the essay was January 15, 2010.  You can read the blog description here.

I'll publish the essay on a later date. 

Video: Stefan Molyneux says "there will be no economic recovery"

I agree.

30 years, 8,269 laws, and none prevented our current state of economic affairs

This should give you some pause the next time a politician advocates passing a law for the benefit of the American people.

According to a 2012 report from USA Today, Congress passed only 61 laws at the time of the article's publication (August 14-15, 2012), and could possibly be the least productive congress since 1947.

Here's a chart and following it is my take on those numbers:

Fewer laws have been passed by this Congress than by any other in the last 65 years. Number of laws passed each year by Congress since 1947:

2012: 61; 2011: 90; 2010: 258; 2009: 125; 2008: 280; 2007: 180; 2006: 313; 2005: 169; 2004: 300; 2003: 198; 2002: 241; 2001: 136; 2000: 410; 1999: 170; 1998: 241; 1997: 153; 1996: 245; 1995: 88; 1994: 255; 1993: 210; 1992: 347; 1991: 243; 1990: 410; 1989: 240; 1988: 473; 1987: 240; 1986: 424; 1985: 240; 1984: 408; 1983: 215; 1982: 328; 1981: 145; 1980: 426; 1979: 187; 1978: 411; 1977: 223; 1976: 383; 1975: 205; 1974: 404; 1973: 245; 1972: 383; 1971: 224; 1970: 505; 1969: 190; 1968: 391; 1967: 391; 1966: 461; 1965: 349; 1964: 408; 1963: 258; 1962: 484; 1961: 401; 1960: 417; 1959: 383; 1958: 620; 1957: 316; 1956: 638; 1955: 390; 1954: 492; 1953: 288; 1952: 339; 1951: 255; 1950: 481; 1949: 440; 1948: 511; 1947: 395

Source: House Clerk's Office

30 years, 8,269 laws passed, and none of them prevented the housing crisis, the decline of the dollar, gave us Federal Reserve transparency, undid the money monopoly at the Fed, prevented war, limited executive power. (I start counting 30 years at 1977 and end at 2007--when the housing crisis was really evident.)

Will any law passed in 2012 and beyond the article's publication date prevent the next crisis? Limit executive power? Decentralize economic power?

The Return Of The Great Depression?

Christian Mensan Vox Day talks to Sean Hannity about his book The Return of the Great Depression.

Schiff: 'If you thought 2008 was bad, you ain't seen nothing yet

VIDEO: The Truth Behind the Unemployment Numbers + Stimulus vs Austerity

Main Points:

"This is the weakest recovery on record, despite the most amount of stimulus ever applied.

Instead of coming to the logical conclusion that the stimulus isn't working, they instead conclude that it's just not enough."

MIT Economist: ‘I’m not convinced that we’ve fixed the problems that led to the financial crisis’

Click Here to Watch Video

Washington (GoinsReport.com) – An MIT economist said Monday that he isn’t convinced that the steps taken to address the financial crisis of 2008 have actually “fixed” the problems that led up to it.

Simon Johnson, a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and frequent New York Times contributor, said: “I’m not convinced that we’ve fixed the problems that led to the financial crisis.”

He continued: “There’s a huge contingent liability that looms over us.”

Contingent liabilities are possible obligations to pay a sum depending on how history plays out.

Because obligations are only “possible” at a certain time, and future events dictate if an obligation becomes due, contingent liabilities are kept off the books of financial statements of private firms and, in this case, the fiscal statements of the government.

Johnson made his remarks at the Peterson Institute for International Economics to discuss his new book “White House Burning: The Founding Fathers, Our National Debt, And Why It Matters To You.”

When asked by GoinsReport.com to identify some of the problems that he thought haven’t been fixed yet, Johnson further stated that “the very big banks” were still a problem.

“On the financial side, the main problem is the very big banks, the so-called “too big to fail” banks. It’s very hard to manage problems or liquidation at one of those banks,” Johnson said.

Johnson said that Title II of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street financial reform bill, which authorizes the FDIC to place large, nonbank corporations into a process similar to bankruptcy and allows for the orderly liquidation of nonbank financial institutions covered and not-covered by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and FDIC’s current attempts to put forth resolution plans are steps “in the right direction.”

“I think these are steps in the right direction but the structures are still very fragile,” he said.

“So the essence of the problem is very big financial corporations that are effectively government subsidized and encouraged to take excessive risk when those structures become high leverage and blow themselves up,” Johnson continued.

“So it comes on top of the spending versus revenue gap that has been developing for some time. On top of that you have a big crisis. And if you can finance it, if you can go through this without a disaster, best-case you have another 40, 50, 80 percent GDP increase in debt. That’s a huge fiscal risk.”

Johnson also pointed out that it is “awkward” that Congressional Budget Office doesn’t score that “huge fiscal risk” because it does score other kinds of contingent liabilities, such as Medicare.

“They should do the same thing with the financial crisis, but they don’t,” he said.

Johnson, alongside Sheila Bair, the former FDIC chair, recently sent a letter on March 30, 2012 to the Federal Reserve giving recommendations on how to dissolve the large financial institutions.

He also said that Medicare would be a contingent liability 50 years down the road.

Ron Paul: 'I am the only one who predicted the economic meltdown'

(GoinsReport.com) -- While issuing a response to the Congressional Budget Office's latest report, Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) also took time to tout his clairvoyance on the economic crisis.

"Of the five men seeking the presidency in the major parties – President Obama, Governor Romney, Speaker Gingrich, Senator Santorum, and myself – I am the only one who predicted the economic meltdown," Paul said.

He continued: "and the only one who has proposed a serious plan to balance the budget, reduce taxes, and create jobs."

On the House Floor on September 6, 2001, Ron Paul, speaking on the expansion of credit into the housing market, said the following: "Instead of the newly inflated money being directed toward the stock market, it now finds its way into the rapidly expanding real-estate bubble."

"This, too, will burst as all bubbles do," Paul continued. "The Fed, the Congress, or even foreign investors can't prevent the collapse of this bubble, any more than the incestuous Japanese banks were able to keep the Japanese "miracle" of the 1980s going forever."

In mid-2006, the Federal Reserve began raising interest rates to discourage inflation. By first quarter 2007, subprime foreclosures were becoming more frequent. The housing bubble had burst.

To read the rest of Ron Paul's speech, "The US Dollar and the World Economy," given on the House floor, click here.

Read the rest of the statement on the CBO report here.

Bernanke Points to 'Increased Possibility of a Sudden Fiscal Crisis' | CNSnews.com

(CNSNews.com) – Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said that the current trajectory of the federal budget – marked by large annual deficits – was “clearly unsustainable” and that “serious economic consequences” could result.

“Having a large and increasing level of government debt relative to national income runs the risk of serious economic consequences,” Bernanke told the Senate Budget Committee Tuesday.

Bernanke Points to 'Increased Possibility of a Sudden Fiscal Crisis' | CNSnews.com

A barter society emerges in Greece

I believe in the following possibility, at least for some people:

One day, there may be no jobs to be had, which means we’ll have to create our own jobs. And unlike most of today’s laborers, we’ll actually have to produce something of value that can then be traded to others for something else of value.

Start preparing for tomorrow’s barter economy today.

Barter Society Emerges in Greece As Crisis Deepens

The Hangover is not the Problem

"The hangover is not the problem. The party was."

Johan Norberg, Understanding the Financial Crisis

Video: Henry Paulson Says Investments Were Made To Protect The American People | CNSnews.com

He's still praising TARP. Click the link to see the video.

Henry Paulson Says Investments Were Made To Protect The American People | CNSnews.com

Ron Paul: We have to stop worrying about whose mowing Mitt Romney’s yard

(GoinsReport.com) -- GOP presidential candidate Ron Paul qualified his recent comments about being disgusted during the Las Vegas Presidential debate on Meet the Press, adding that the debates need to focus less on who’s mowing whose lawn and more on pertinent issues.

Meet The Press Host David Gregory asked Paul on Sunday what turns him off about the presidential debates.

“I guess it’s the uselessness of some of this rhetoric,” Paul said. “I mean arguing over who mows Mitt Romney’s lawn in the midst of a crisis—a sovereign debt worldwide crisis. The biggest in the history of the world and the financial system of the world is about to collapse.”

Paul added that the United States is getting ready to have another devaluation of its credit rating and that the United States has to get it’s spending under control.

“We’re gotta have to get a hand on this. We have to quit worrying about whose mowing Mitt Romney’s yard,” Paul said.

The Des Moines Register quotes Paul on Friday as saying “I can tell you that after the first 45 minutes I was tempted to walk off that stage. I thought it was disgusting.” Paul made those comments after he toured a wind-turbine blade manufacturer in Newton, Iowa.