On this episode, Mark Thornton gives a crash course on the sleight-of-hand world of inflation, how it really works, why the official story doesn’t add up, and who benefits from the illusion. Drawing on Austrian insights, Mark dissects the politically engineered cycle of government overspending, Treasury bond issuance, and Federal Reserve money creation. You’ll learn how inflation doesn’t just “happen”: it’s a deliberate policy that distorts markets, transfers wealth, and props up an elite few while undermining the productive economy. The Fed’s role isn’t heroic. It’s central to the problem.

Additional Resources

"What Is Inflation? Clarifying and Justifying Rothbard’s Definition" by Kristoffer Hansen and Jonathan Newman (Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics): https://mises.org/MI_130_A

"Too Much Money Portends High Inflation" by John Greenwood and Steve Hanke (Wall Street Journal): https://mises.org/MI_130_B

Register for the 2025 Mises Institute Supporters Summit in Delray Beach, Florida, October 16–18: https://mises.org/ss25

Register for the 2025 Mises Institute Supporters Summit in Delray Beach, Florida, October 16–18: https://mises.org/ss25

Be sure to follow Minor Issues at https://Mises.org/MinorIssues

Inflation: True or Out of the Blue

Connor O’Keeffe applies Rothbardian insights to expose how the news media distorts reality, not because of markets, but because of its entanglement with the state. From access-driven censorship to democracy-fueled misinformation, this talk reveals why the real threat isn’t media profit. It’s political power.

Recorded at the Mises Institute in Auburn, Alabama, on July 26, 2025.

Mises University is the world's leading instructional program in the Austrian School of economics, and is the essential training ground for economists who are looking beyond the mainstream.

Rothbardian Insights on the Political Economy of Mass Media

Tho Bishop delivers a defense of Gen Z, arguing that they are bearing the brunt of decades of fiscal irresponsibility, inflationary policy, and political neglect. With historical insight and Rothbardian flair, he exposes how central banks, entitlements, and Keynesian ideology have rigged the system against younger generations, and why reclaiming the narrative is key to rebuilding liberty.

Recorded at the Mises Institute in Auburn, Alabama, on July 26, 2025.

Mises University is the world's leading instructional program in the Austrian School of economics, and is the essential training ground for economists who are looking beyond the mainstream.

Zoomers: America’s Most Persecuted Minority

Daniella Bassi tells the remarkable story of the Arctic fur trade as a real-world case study in stateless order. In early 20th-century northern Canada, Inuit and European traders conducted peaceful, prosperous exchange, without government law or enforcement, guided instead by mutual respect, property rights, and natural law.

Recorded at the Mises Institute in Auburn, Alabama, on July 26, 2025.

Mises University is the world's leading instructional program in the Austrian School of economics, and is the essential training ground for economists who are looking beyond the mainstream.

The Canadian Arctic Fur Trade: A Case Study of Freedom

Ryan McMaken explores five enduring myths in the history of political thought, drawing on Ralph Raico’s The Struggle for Liberty to challenge conventional takes on Rousseau, John Stuart Mill, constitutionalism, and more. This lecture reclaims the radical roots of liberalism and warns against the illusion of legal remedies in the fight for freedom.

Recorded at the Mises Institute in Auburn, Alabama, on July 26, 2025.

Mises University is the world's leading instructional program in the Austrian School of economics, and is the essential training ground for economists who are looking beyond the mainstream.

Five Myths About the History of Political Thought

Recorded at the Mises Institute in Auburn, Alabama, on July 26, 2025.

Mises University is the world's leading instructional program in the Austrian School of economics, and is the essential training ground for economists who are looking beyond the mainstream.

Closing Remarks and Awards Ceremony

Dr. Jonathan Newman and Mises Summer Fellow, Jonathan Yen join Ryan to cover the Fed's latest policy meeting, the awful new jobs report, and rising debt levels.

The Fed and our Stagnating Economy

Economist Joseph Salerno,  an expert on the Austrian School, money, and methodology, joins us to talk about what makes the Austrian School of economics different. 

Be sure to follow Radio Rothbard at https://Mises.org/RadioRothbard

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Why We Need Austrian Economics

What happens when a society consumes its seed corn? What is capital consumption, and why does it matter? In this episode, Mark Thornton examines how inflation, deficit spending, and distorted market signals quietly erode the productive assets that fuel economic growth. Drawing on Austrian economics and insights from investor Rick Rule, Mark explains how governments and central banks incentivize the misuse of capital, leading to stagnation, underinvestment, and long-term decline. Understanding this unseen destruction is key to making sense of today’s economic malaise.

See also "Rick Rule: Shortages In Key Natural Resources To Define Next Decade": https://mises.org/MI_132_A

Register for the 2025 Mises Institute Supporters Summit in Delray Beach, Florida, October 16–18: https://mises.org/ss25

Be sure to follow Minor Issues at https://Mises.org/MinorIssues

Capital Consumption

Bob takes on a proposal for New York City to run its own grocery stores, dismantling the historical myths, economic fallacies, and rhetorical tricks behind the idea. From Flint’s water crisis to “food deserts,” he explains why government control will create shortages, low-quality food, and wasted resources.

The Jacobin Article, "Municipal Grocery Stores Are Sensible and Obvious": https://Mises.org/HAP512a

Why Zohran Mamdani’s Socialist Supermarkets Wont' Feed NYC

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Zoomers: America’s Most Persecuted Minority

Mises Institute

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