Review from LaissezFaireBooks.com:
Herbert Spencer's spirited attack on statism and defense of liberty
First published in 1884, when intellectual tides were running strong against liberty, The Man Versus The State launches one of the most spirited attacks on statism ever written. The book shows Spencer (1820-1903) as an incredible prophet and a magnificent defender of laissez-faire.
He ridiculed the idea that government intervention of any kind "will work as it is intended to work, which it never does." He drew on his tremendous knowledge of history, citing one dramatic case after another of price controls, usury laws, slum clearance laws, and myriad other laws which, touted as compassionate policies, intensified human misery.
Spencer attacked the illusion "that charity proceeds from the stores of the rich, when, as has been shown, the greater portion of it comes from the toils of the labouring classes." Anticipating Hitler, Stalin, and Mao, Spencer explained why "socialism must mean brutal slavery."
This volume also reprints six of Spencer's best essays, including "Over-Legislation" and "The Proper Sphere of Government." Tulane University scholar Eric Mack provides an overview of Spencer's career. Albert Jay Nock's introduction, from the 1940 edition of the book, is wonderful.
If you would like to acquire an edition of this work, and thus help our work here at Freedom Circle, please click on the product image below:
