Peter Lipsey returned from the IHS conference in Chicago and presented me with this post-card image of the IHS version of Mount Rushmore.
It has been awhile since I would have associated IHS with such a clear cut endorsement of these thinkers and I am thrilled to see it. Throw Mises in there for Isabel Paterson and we can get really serious.
Seriously, I guess if I had my Mount Rushmore I would put Mises, Hayek, Nozick, and Friedman. Who would be on your Mount Rushmore?
BTW, have you seen the various discussions of the silly behavior by U of Chicago faculty members who are "concerned" about the establishment of the Milton Friedman Institute? If Milton Friedman can cause intellectual angina among "faculty" smart enough to warrant an appointment at U of Chicago, then everyone should realize the intellectual state of affairs we are in. Almost as dire as the economy itself! If that is an accurate depiction of the world of ideas in US universities, then organizations like FEE, IHS and Liberty Fund have a huge role to play in creating space for classical liberal and libertarian scholarship --- but they will be successful only if they do not water-down the message either by cheap commitments to non-thinking sloganeering or stealthy and non-commitment to libertarian scholarship. As I have said before, we neither want ignorant dogmatism nor milly-mouthed pseudo-sophistication. Time, instead, to uphold as ideal intellectual role models: Mises, Hayek, Rothbard, Rand, Nozick and Friedman (among our honored deceased from the 20th century) and Buchanan and Epstein (among the still living great classical liberals).
Smith, Bastiat, Hayek, Friedman
Posted by: Unit | July 29, 2008 at 08:26 PM
Got to agree with Unit.
Posted by: Nick | July 30, 2008 at 05:10 AM
Boettke, Sautet, Horwitz, Coyne
Posted by: (Not) Matt Mueller | July 30, 2008 at 05:12 AM
Probables: Smith, Lord Acton, Menger, Mises, KRP, Hayek
Possibles: Hume, Bastiat, Say, Hazlitt, Friedman. Plus Rand, Sowell and Hutt (in his wheelchair) to keep on side with the Equal Opportunity people.
Posted by: Rafe Champion | July 30, 2008 at 05:55 AM
Funny to see IHS's version of "political correctness." Must have two men and two women. I like Rand and Paterson -- and Rothbard, for that matter. But there are many better, including Mises.
Posted by: Mario Rizzo | July 30, 2008 at 09:28 AM
My t-shirt replaces Paterson with Thomas Jefferson.
Posted by: Jeremy H. | July 30, 2008 at 10:23 AM
I have that same shirt Jeremy and it's very nice.
Posted by: Steve Horwitz | July 30, 2008 at 10:56 AM
If we had to stick with a theme of historical American political figures, I'd choose Jefferson, Mason, and Patrick Henry- anti-federalists all.
Posted by: Tyler Watts | July 30, 2008 at 11:16 AM
How about among living economists?
I'd go for Shleifer, Easterly ... hmmm ...
Posted by: Goran | July 31, 2008 at 03:54 AM
What about some German representation, perhaps one or more of von Humboldt, Savigny and Weber?
Posted by: Rafe Champion | July 31, 2008 at 04:49 AM
I've got you covered Rafe (... and as for some minority representation besides Sowell):
Max Weber, Ludwig von Mises, Friedrich von Hayek, and Booker T. Washington.
Posted by: Brian Pitt | July 31, 2008 at 10:03 AM