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The Independent Guide to the Constitution: Original Intentions, Modern Inventions cuts through the partisan noise and helps readers reclaim the original, time-tested principles of liberty that America’s Framers worked so hard to protect.The Constitution is one of the most studied—and most willfully misunderstood—documents in American life. Now more than ever, Americans need an objective, thorough, and clear-headed analysis of what our Founders meant when they wrote it … and perhaps even more importantly, what they didn’t mean. How should we confront the distortions layered onto the Constitution over generations—distortions that continue to shape, and misshape, American life today? Enter William J. Watkins, Jr. Drawing on a lifetime of experience in the law—as prosecutor, defense attorney, and constitutional scholar—Watkins offers a bold, independent examination of the most important legal document in modern history. His book provides a meticulous, clause-by-clause analysis of America’s founding charter, revealing both the Framers’ original intentions and the modern interpretations that have reshaped constitutional governance—not always for the better. Clear and rigorous, he explores how the Constitution was designed to secure liberty and limit power—and how its meaning continues to spark debate today. Expertly researched, fascinating, and urgent as ever, this book is indispensable for laymen and scholars alike to understand the Constitution.

What if everything you believe about the state is a lie? Here is a bold challenge to centuries of political orthodoxy…Life is "nasty, brutish, and short," asserted 17th-century philosopher Thomas Hobbes. Without the state, he claimed, man is "in that condition which is called War... every man, against every man." His solution? Leviathan: the sovereign power, the guard against chaos.For centuries, most political philosophers have taken his argument for granted. But should they? Is the Hobbesian fear truly rooted in reality? If not, what happens to politics when we allow fear, not cooperation, to become foundational to our framework? Robert Nozick asked these same questions in Anarchy, State, and Utopia. These lucidly written pages extend these arguments even further—with some surprising conclusions. Aeon J. Skoble—professor of philosophy, bestselling author, and acclaimed political theorist—makes a powerful case that the state as we understand it today is not only morally unjustifiable, but also, thankfully, unnecessary. It has only the power we mistakenly grant it. What if we didn't? Packed with urgent lessons, original insights, and unparalleled philosophical rigor, this book is essential reading for anyone who dares imagine a freer world.

"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety," wrote Benjamin Franklin. Attempting to gain security by sacrificing liberty is also a foolish action because it only increases the potential for harm.In Neither Liberty Nor Safety: Fear, Ideology, and the Growth of Government, economist and historian Robert Higgs illustrates the false trade-off between freedom and security by showing how the U.S. government’s economic and military interventions reduced the civil and economic liberties, prosperity, and genuine security of Americans in the 20th century. Extending the theme of Higgs’s earlier books, Neither Liberty Nor Safety stresses the role of misguided ideas in the expansion of government power at the expense of individual liberty. Higgs illuminates not only many underappreciated aspects of the Great Depression, the two world wars, and the postwar era, but also the government’s manipulation of public opinion and the role that ideologies play in influencing political outcomes and economic performance.

Celebrate 30 years of The Independent Review: A Journal of Political Economy with the acclaimed magazine's highest caliber scholarship by some of the world's leading experts.For over thirty years, The Independent Review has been a beacon of clear, fearless, and wide-ranging scholarshipbringing together some of the sharpest minds in economics, history, law, philosophy, and political thought. Now, for the first time, the most influential and enduring essays from the first 30 years are collected in one volume, offering readers a guided tour of the ideas that continue to shape debates on liberty, markets, and the role of government. Edited by Robert Whaples (Wake Forest University) with contributions from a distinguished team of co-editors, this anthology highlights groundbreaking works from Nobel laureates, renowned scholars, and unorthodox, trailblazing thinkers. From Robert Higgs's seminal essay on ';Regime Uncertainty' to James Buchanan's ';The Soul of Classical Liberalism,' this book boldly tackles timeless questions about human flourishing, political economy, and the struggle between state power and civil society. Whether you are a student discovering these ideas for the first time, a teacher seeking to inspire your classroom, or a lifelong reader of The Independent Review, this collection provides a front-row seat to three decades of intellectual innovation.

What if prosperity, stability, and growth are simpler than we've been told?You can understand more about economics than most economists will lead you to believe. So argue economists Bryan Cutsinger and Alexander William Salter in this masterful book on monetary and fiscal policywritten not for experts, but for ordinary Americans. America's economic "experts"the central bankers and elite economistsinsist that inflation, unemployment, financial stability can only be managed from above. But what does the record show? From runaway inflation to misguided claims about "transitory" price spikes, it's obvious these so-called "experts" have failed. This book offers a clear, accessible, uncompromising alternative to the "expert" narrative, which, as it turns out, is anything but gospel. Written for anyone who wants to cut through the jargon and understand how money really works, this book makes the case for a stronger, more reliable monetary systemand why getting it right matters for everyone's future.