ECON 3499 — Assignment 1

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ECON 3499 Assignment 1

One important area in which Austrian Economics has earned recognition is in the analysis of socialism. At the time of the fall of the Soviet Union in 1989, Mises and Hayek were often credited with having been among the few economists to predict socialism's demise. But whaty exactly is the essence of the Mises/Hayek argument (or arguiments) against the feasibility of socialism? In a five to eight page paper, I want you to answer that question. What exactly did Mises argue? What was Hayek's argument? Was it the same as that of Mises? What are the key points of the debate? Did the Austrians "win" the debate, and if so in what sense did they "win"? Feel free to focus on some narrower theme or issue if you like. Also feel free to find references beyond those in the syllabus, but don't get bogged down in the research.