How to Determine History’s Greatest Economist

Mark Skousen

Named one of the "Top 20 Living Economists," Dr. Skousen is a professional economist, investment expert, university professor, and author of more than 25 books.

I recently finished teaching an economics class at Chapman University in California, where I have been appointed a Presidential Fellow for 2014. (I’ll be returning to deliver a public lecture on April 16.)

Advertisement.

Above is a photo of the 34 students in my class and me. Each of us is holding an American eagle silver dollar as a keepsake (the silver dollar is a symbol of sound money and liberty) in front of the Adam Smith statue at Chapman University in Orange County, Calif.

The course was called “Modern Political Economy: Who is Winning the Battle of Ideas?” In the final exam, I asked each student to choose his or her favorite economist. Here was the breakdown:

Adam Smith — 16
Milton Friedman — 4
J. B. Say — 3
Karl Marx — 3
John Maynard Keynes — 2
F. A. Hayek — 1
Carl Menger — 1
John Stuart Mill — 1
Joseph Schumpeter — 1
Muhammad Yunus — 1
Robert Shiller — 1
Mark Skousen — 1 (naturally this student got an A+!)

Advertisement.

I was not surprised that Adam Smith was far and away the most popular choice, since the Scottish economist is the heroic figure in my textbook “The Making of Modern Economics.”

His “system of natural liberty” consists of three pillars: economic freedom, competitive markets and justice (the rule of law). Studies have shown that nations that adopt these three governing principles have the highest level of prosperity. See www.freetheworld.com.

My wife and I thoroughly enjoyed our visit to southern California in January and look forward to coming back. Chapman University President Jim Doti and his wife Lynne were wonderful hosts and have helped put Chapman on the map (www.chapman.edu). Other Presidential Fellows include astrophysicist Paul Davies and Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Wiesel. Nobel Prize-winning economist Vernon Smith also is teaching at Chapman.

You Blew It! Should We Adopt a National Holiday for Opening Day Baseball?

Advertisement.

There are all kinds of demands for national holidays, but one of the dumbest lately is being circulated by Hall of Fame shortstop Ozzie Smith and supported by Budweiser. If supporters get 100,000 signatures, the Obama administration must consider it.

So Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (a play on the old Jimmy Stuart movie).

This is a quixotic errand if I ever heard one. First of all, opening day games are always full around the ballparks, so there’s no reason to demand that people stay home.

Second, baseball isn’t even the nation’s pastime anymore — it has been surpassed by professional and college football and basketball.

Incidentally, I saw a map of the 50 states and found that in the vast majority, the highest-paid state employees are the state universities’ football coaches!

Advertisement.

My solution? Just require the opening day of baseball to be on a Sunday. Just like the Super Bowl, the opening day of baseball automatically would be on a holiday.

As far as national holidays are concerned, I am surprised that the first Tuesday of November isn’t a national holiday to go the polls. But then again if election day were a holiday, maybe even fewer citizens would vote — they’d rather go on vacation.

In case you missed it, I encourage you to read my column from last week that explains why France’s President François Hollande endorsed Say’s law. I also invite you to share your thoughts below.

share on:

Like This Article?
Now Get Mark's FREE Special Report:
3 Dividend Plays with Sky-High Returns

This newly-released report by a top-20 living economist details three investments that are your best bets for income and appreciation for the rest of the year and beyond.

Get Access to the Report, 100% FREE


img
share on:

PREMIUM SERVICES FOR INVESTORS

Dr. Mark Skousen

Named one of the "Top 20 Living Economists," Dr. Skousen is a professional economist, investment expert, university professor, and author of more than 25 books.

Product Details

  • Forecasts & Strategies
  • Home Run Trader
  • Fast Money Alert
  • Five Star Trader
  • TNT Trader
LEARN MORE HERE

Bryan Perry

A former Wall Street financial advisor with three decades' experience, Bryan Perry focuses his efforts on high-yield income investing and quick-hitting options plays.

Product Details

  • Cash Machine
  • Premium Income PRO (exclusively for subscribers of Cash Machine)
  • Quick Income Trader
  • Breakout Options Alert
  • Hi-Tech Trader
LEARN MORE HERE

Jim Woods

Jim Woods has over 20 years of experience in the markets from working as a stockbroker,
financial journalist, and money manager. As well as a book author and regular contributor to
numerous investment websites, Jim is the editor of:

Product Details

  • Successful Investing
  • High Velocity Options
  • Intelligence Report
  • Bullseye Stock Trader
  • Eagle Eye Opener
LEARN MORE HERE

Bob Carlson

Bob Carlson provides independent, objective research covering all the financial issues of retirement and retirement planning. In addition, Bob serves as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Fairfax County (VA) Employees’ Retirement System, which has over $2.8 billion in assets.

Product Details

  • Retirement Watch
  • Retirement Watch Spotlight Series
  • Lifetime Retirement Protection Program
LEARN MORE HERE

Jon Johnson

Jon Johnson's philosophy in investing and trading is to take what the market gives you regardless if that is to the upside or downside. For the past 21 years, Jon has helped thousands of clients gain success in the financial markets through his newsletters and education services:

Product Details

  • Investment House Daily
  • Stock of the Week
  • Technical Traders Alert
  • Rapid Profits Stock Trader
LEARN MORE HERE

DividendInvestor.com

Used by financial advisors and individual investors all over the world, DividendInvestor.com is the premier provider and one-stop shop for dividend information and research.

Product Details

Popular tools include our proprietary Dividend Calendar, Dividend Calculator, Dividend Score Card, and many more.

  • Dividend Investor
LEARN MORE HERE

George Gilder

George Gilder is the most knowledgeable man in America when it comes to the future of technology and its impact on our lives.  He’s an established investor, bestselling author, and economist with an uncanny ability to foresee how new breakthroughs will play out, years in advance.

Product Details

  • Technology Report
  • Technology Report PRO
  • Moonshots
  • Private Reserve
  • Millionaire Circle
LEARN MORE HERE

DayTradeSPY

DayTradeSPY was founded by head trader Hugh Grossman, a retired internal auditor for a Fortune 500 company. After years of first-hand experience trying out one trading strategy after another, Hugh instead developed his own trading system centered around day trading SPY options. That’s it... Nothing else.

Product Details

  • Trading Room
  • Pick of the Day
  • Inner Circle
  • Online Workshops
LEARN MORE HERE