Skip to content

Ep. 100 Even Tyrannical Regimes Ultimately Rest on Public Opinion

Summarizing insights from Mises, Hume, and La Boetie, Bob argues that even the worst tyrants ultimately stay in power because other people obey them. If the people withdraw their support from a regime, it will fall.

Mentioned in the Episode and Other Links of Interest:

The audio production for this episode was provided by Podsworth Media.

About the author, Robert

Christian and economist, Chief Economist at infineo, and Senior Fellow with the Mises Institute.

4 Comments

  1. Matthew Bymaster on 02/14/2020 at 12:43 AM

    One nuance not mentioned (?) but was almost there, is that the state is a profit center for the immoral (sociopaths). That profit can come from direct compensation, healthcare, pensions, extra vacation, an easy job, immune to moral accountability, access to weapons, skipping the bread line, better housing than the serfs, supplying black markets with “redistributed” goods or foreign aid, etc. A tyrant as you mentioned is never just an individual but a collective.

    • Tel on 02/15/2020 at 1:31 AM

      This guy elaborates on the same concept.

      https://www.cgpgrey.com/blog/rules-for-rulers

      If Bob is looking for an interesting interview then might be a potential place to start a discussion.

    • Elry Falkenstein on 02/25/2020 at 2:06 AM

      “Only the individual thinks.
      Only the individual reasons.
      Only the individual acts.”

      -Ludwig von Mises

  2. sman on 02/14/2020 at 11:52 AM

    What a fantastic episode Bob!
    Love, from France.

Leave a Comment