About this episode

Mark Thornton discusses the shift in politics towards elite control and the importance of Austrian economics in understanding current financial issues.

Mark Thornton opens this episode of Minor Issues by tracing how politics shifted from the classical ideal of justice and community order into a Machiavellian struggle for power, privilege, and control. He argues that modern politics is dominated by entrenched elites, special interests, propaganda networks, and a two-party system designed to keep ordinary voters alienated and powerless. On Side B, Mark joins Adrian Day and Rich Checkan for a wide-ranging discussion of inflation, debt, financial repression, gold, commodities, artificial intelligence, the Austrian business cycle, and the rise of socialist sentiment among younger Americans. Mark explains why learning Austrian economics is essential for understanding markets, government failure, and the crises ahead. 2026 is the Year of Rothbard—Murray's 100th birthday—and we're celebrating by giving away free copies of Keynes the Man through June 30. Grab yours today at https://mises.org/issuesfree 20% off listener offer on the insulated Minor Issues tumbler and three of Mark's books: https://mises.org/MinorIssuesTumbler . Use coupon code Thornton. Be sure to follow Minor Issues at https://Mises.org/MinorIssues

People in this episode

Host: Mark Thornton

Guests: Adrian Day, Rich Checkan

Topics covered

• politics
• inflation
• Austrian economics
• financial repression
• socialism
• elite power

Keywords

• politics
• elites
• inflation
• Austrian economics
• financial repression
• socialism
• Murray Rothbard
• Keynes
• commodities
• artificial intelligence

Sponsors

Mises

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Mises

Books & works: Keynes the Man

More episodes of Minor Issues

• Major Party Realignment · July 18, 2026
• The Dupes of War: Mises on Statism, Propaganda, and Foreign Conflict · July 11, 2026
• The Vine That Ate the South: Government Solutions vs. Market Solutions · July 4, 2026
• The Fed’s New Face, Same Old Game · June 20, 2026
• Why Politicians Lie—and How Easy Money Keeps the Boom Alive · June 13, 2026
• Taxpayers vs. Tax-Consumers: Rothbard’s Real Theory of Taxes and Spending · June 6, 2026

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