This book was first published in 1946. It reads though, as if it was written yesterday. Today's headlines of government bailouts and deficit spending are the subject of this book. According to Hazlitt, everything the government is doing today to try to "fix" the economy is exactly the opposite of what should be done.
To quote him, the one lesson is: "The art of economics consists of looking not merely at the immediate but at the longer effects of any act or policy; it consists in tracing the consequences of that policy not merely for one group but for all groups".
In a nutshell, most of the spending government does may benefit one special interest group in the short term, but usually does not benefit all groups and may hurt other groups in the long run. Since this book was first published, I believe history shows that he is correct.
I highly recommend this book for anyone, conservative or liberal. However, this could be hazardous to the health of a liberal.
