Thomas Sowell, Cultural Icon, Retires

“The next time some academics tell you how important diversity is, ask how many Republicans there are in their sociology department.” — Thomas Sowell

Thomas Sowell, the Rose and Milton Friedman Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, announced his retirement at the age of 86. He has been writing a column for 25 years, and has written numerous books on economic, political and cultural subjects. To get a flavor of his writings, I suggest you read his book, “The Thomas Sowell Reader,” available on Amazon.

Sowell and Walter Williams have often been associated with each other as the foremost black economists who favor free markets. Sowell is six years older, but they have been life-long friends. Both experienced the racial challenges of their youth. Williams earned his Ph.D. from UCLA, and Sowell went to Harvard and received his Ph.D. in economics from the University of Chicago. Since then, both have been advocates of market solutions to problems of discrimination, inequality and poverty.

When I wrote my book, “Economics on Trial,” an expose on economics textbooks, Sowell sent me a letter telling me his experiences with Paul Samuelson, the famous Keynesian economist who taught at MIT. However, it’s clear that Milton Friedman and the Chicago school had a much greater influence on Sowell.

Sowell also wrote a textbook, “Basic Economics,” that became a bestseller. I found several major issues that had been left out of the first edition, including Say’s law (supply and production is more important than consumption), and wrote him about these omissions. The next edition contained all my suggestions. I’m a fan!

Here’s some great quotes over the years from Thomas Sowell:

“I have never understood why it is ‘greed’ to want to keep the money you’ve earned, but not greed to want to take somebody else’s money.”

“It is amazing that people who think we cannot afford to pay for doctors, hospitals and medication somehow think that we can afford to pay for doctors, hospitals, medication and a government bureaucracy to administer it.”

Well said!

Mark Skousen

Mark Skousen, Ph. D., is a professional economist, investment expert, university professor, and author of more than 25 books. He earned his Ph. D. in monetary economics at George Washington University in 1977. He has taught economics and finance at Columbia Business School, Columbia University, Grantham University, Barnard College, Mercy College, Rollins College, and is a Presidential Fellow at Chapman University. He also has been a consultant to IBM, Hutchinson Technology, and other Fortune 500 companies. Since 1980, Skousen has been editor in chief of Forecasts & Strategies, a popular award-winning investment newsletter. He also is editor of four trading services, Skousen TNT Trader, Skousen Five Star Trader, Skousen Home Run Trader, and Skousen Fast Money Alert. He is a former analyst for the Central Intelligence Agency, a columnist to Forbes magazine (1997-2001), and past president of the Foundation for Economic Education (FEE) in New York. He has written articles for The Wall Street Journal, Liberty, Reason, Human Events, the Daily Caller, Christian Science Monitor, and The Journal of Economic Perspectives. He has appeared on ABC News, CNBC Power Lunch, CNN, Fox News, and C-SPAN Book TV. In 2008-09, he was a regular contributor to Larry Kudlow & Co. on CNBC. His economic bestsellers include “Economics on Trial” (Irwin, 1991), “Puzzles and Paradoxes on Economics” (Edward Elgar, 1997), “The Making of Modern Economics” (M. E. Sharpe, 2001, 2009), “The Big Three in Economics” (M. E. Sharpe, 2007), “EconoPower” (Wiley, 2008), and “Economic Logic” (2000, 2010). In 2009, “The Making of Modern Economics” won the Choice Book Award for Outstanding Academic Title. His financial bestsellers include “The Complete Guide to Financial Privacy” (Simon & Schuster, 1983), “High Finance on a Low Budget” (Bantam, 1981), co-authored with his wife Jo Ann, “Scrooge Investing” (Little Brown, 1995; McGraw Hill, 1999), and “Investing in One Lesson” (Regnery, 2007). In honor of his work in economics, finance, and management, Grantham University renamed its business school “The Mark Skousen School of Business.” Dr. Skousen has lived in eight nations, and has traveled and lectured throughout the United States and 70 countries. He grew up in Portland, Ore. He and his wife, Jo Ann, and five children have lived in Washington, D.C.; Nassau, the Bahamas; London, England; Orlando, Fla.; and New York. For more information about Mark’s services, go to http://www.markskousen.com/