Random Economics/Political Economy Podcasts

Adam Smith’s “The Wealth of Nations” gives an in-depth discussion of different economic principles like the productivity, division of labor and free markets. Although written and published more than 200 years ago, it’s still hailed as one of the most original works in the field of economics and is still used as a reference by many modern economists. “An Inquiry Into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations” is the complete title of this book and it was first published in 1776, the same year that the American colonies declared their independence from Britain. It’s interesting to note that Adam Smith once suggested to British authorities before this year that they should let the colonies be represented in the British parliament because of the contributions they give to the British Empire. But as we all know, they didn’t follow his suggestion and the Americans in defiance of British rule declared their independence. Experts at the time argued that if the British only followed Smith’s suggestion, the American Revolution wouldn’t have happened. Aside from this, Adam Smith had many other brilliant ideas about politics and economics, many of which were discussed in this book. He was the first economist to make an in-depth analysis about the division of labor, how it affects productivity, and what real price is. He also explained in this book the reasons why he opposed mercantilism, an economic theory which was very popular during that time. Then, he recommended and discussed here why free trade is better for nations. This was one of the first books about economics which advocates free trade. This concept is very important in modern economics and have now been embraced by most of the whole world. “The Wealth of Nations” is an indispensable work that every student of economics should read. It’s a timeless classic and many of the concepts discussed in it are still valid today. More great books at LoyalBooks.com

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Text of famous inspirational lecture and biography of Russell Conwell, a Baptist minister and Temple University Founder

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Tags: Acres of Diamonds, audio books, audiobook, Biography, ebooks, Economics/Political Economy, free audio books, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, Non-fiction, religion, Russell Herman Conwell

Karl Marx’s Capital: A Critical Analysis of Capitalist Production is a critical analysis of the political economy or the capitalist system. In this 3 volume work, he says that a capitalist economy can only survive by exploiting the working class. The concepts discussed in this book laid the foundations of the political doctrine that would later be known as communism. This book has three volumes, the first volume is Marx’s critical analysis of the capitalist mode of production and how it’s effects on poor people. The second volume of Capital was subtitled “The Process of Circulation of Capital.” It contains his analysis of the marketplace, how value and surplus value are made and his views about what a capitalist or entrepreneur is. The last volume of the work was actually just a collection of notes by Karl Marx compiled by his close friend Friedrich Engels. There are seven parts in this volume which basically summarize the important points of the first two parts of the book. It’s the most read part of the book today. Capital was very critical of the different principles of classical economics which was the prevailing school of thought at that time. It was published when Karl Marx already had a well established reputation thus provoking a big debate among academics after its release. The principles explained in this book had a big influence in the development of the communist doctrine. This book was written in a academic way and is meant to be read by someone with a foundational knowledge of economics. Although, communism has long faded in the stage of world politics, this book is still a very important reference to people who study political science and economics or those who are just interested in knowing more about the different types of economies.

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Tags: audio books, audiobook, Capital: A Critical Analysis of Capitalist Production, ebooks, Economics/Political Economy, free audio books, Karl Marx, Loyal Books, loyalbooks.com, Non-fiction, Philosophy, Politics

The Communist Manifesto was conceived as an outline of the basic beliefs of the Communist movement. The authors believed that the European Powers were universally afraid of the nascent movement, and were condemning as “communist,” people or activities that did not actually conform to what the Communists believed. This Manifesto, then, became a manual for their beliefs.In it we find Marx and Engel’s rehearsal of the idea that Capital has stolen away the work of the artisan and peasant by building up factories to produce goods cheaply. The efficiency of Capital depends, then, on the wage laborers who staff the factories and how little they will accept in order to have work. This concentrates power and money in a Bourgeois class that profits from the disunity of workers (Proletarians), who only receive a subsistence wage.If workers unite in a class struggle against the bourgeois, using riot and strikes as weapons, they will eventually overthrow the bourgeois and replace them as a ruling class. Communists further believe in and lay out a system of reforms to transform into a classless, stateless society, thus distinguishing themselves from various flavors of Socialism, which would be content to have workers remain the ruling class after the revolution.The Manifesto caused a huge amount of discussion for its support for a forcible overthrow of the existing politics and society. More great books at LoyalBooks.com

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