William Graham Sumner (1840–1910)

William Graham Sumner (1840–1910)

Author: Jeff Riggenbach April 15, 2011 Duration: 0:00
Neither Sumner nor Herbert Spencer were social Darwinists - a moniker hung upon them both. What Social Classes Owe to Each Other answers that question with to take care of his or her own self. Minding other people's business is dangerous and wrong.

In The Libertarian Tradition, Jeff Riggenbach draws from his extensive background as a journalist, author, editor, broadcaster, and educator to explore the philosophical and historical roots of libertarian thought. This podcast delves into the ideas and figures, both famous and overlooked, who have shaped this enduring political tradition. Riggenbach’s approach is that of a seasoned storyteller and analyst, offering listeners a deep, narrative-driven examination of concepts like individual liberty, free markets, and limited government. Each episode is built on rigorous research and presented with a clear, engaging delivery, moving beyond abstract theory to connect principles to real-world events and intellectual history. You’ll hear detailed discussions that trace the evolution of libertarianism, analyzing its key texts and the context from which they emerged. The podcast serves as an audio library and commentary, where complex ideas are made accessible without being diluted. For anyone curious about the foundations of this ideology, The Libertarian Tradition provides a substantive, thoughtful resource. It’s a series for those who prefer their exploration of political philosophy to be thorough, well-reasoned, and free from partisan soundbites, all guided by Riggenbach’s knowledgeable perspective.
Author: Language: en-us Episodes: 81

The Libertarian Tradition
Podcast Episodes
Frank Chodorov, Educator [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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You have only a few years to live and cannot hope to remake society in so short a time. Nobody now living will see a free society in America. But, in fighting for it, one can have a lot of fun. Consider the effort as a l…
Frank Chodorov, Non-Voter [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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If we don't seek to use the vote to steer American society away from the direction in which it has been moving for all these many decades, what do we do instead? For Chodorov, that was a question very easily answered: we…
The Auctioneer [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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Joan Samson was a Depression baby, born in 1937. In 1975, the year before her death, she published her only novel, The Auctioneer . This seems to be just about the sum total of what is publicly known about her, and that…
James C. Scott: The Art of Not Being Governed [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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If Scott can excoriate most of his fellow historians for confounding "civilization" with "state-making," he himself can be excoriated for confounding statelessness with lack of government.
Ira Levin (1929–2007) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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Ira Levin died just over three years ago, on November 12, 2007, at the age of 78, the largely unsung author of one of the top half-dozen libertarian novels ever published in our language. This Perfect Day has been out of…
Robert Nozick (1938–2002) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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When he was in his 20s, having newly discovered libertarian ideas, having read Rand, Rothbard, Mises, Hayek, and others, having met Rothbard and conversed with him at length, Nozick was fired up with excitement.
R.C. Hoiles (1878–1970) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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R.C. wouldn't tolerate news stories that referred to the "public schools," for example. His reporters were required to refer to them as "government schools." R.C. himself preferred the phrase "gun-run schools" and used i…
Henry Hazlitt and the Rising Libertarian Generation [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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Part of the experience of reading Newsweek in the early 1960s was a weekly column called "Business Tides." It offered wide-ranging and insightful commentary on just about anything that had anything to do with the economy…
Joseph A. Labadie (1850-1933) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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Though he devoted much of his life to writing, editing, publishing, and political activism, it isn't really for any of these activities that Jo Labadie should be remembered fondly by libertarians in the 21st century. Rat…
John T. Flynn: Revisionist Journalist [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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John T. Flynn was, if not the very first, then one of the very first few, of the revisionist journalists to write about the New Deal, focusing on both its domestic and its foreign policies. He is the beginning of histori…