Frederic
Bastiat Interversity's
Libertarian Certification Program
Based on the examination given out to participants of the 1994 Libertas Academy, organized and presented by Michael Everling, Director of Operations of the Libertarian Party of Los Angeles County, and co-developed by Sam Wells (BA, Political Science; MA, Political Philosopny and Economics) with input from consultants Ernst Ghermann and Dennis Decherd, the FBI Libertarian Certification Exam is an objective test in format and covers basic economics, political philosophy, history, and American Constitutional rights and principles from a libertarian (pro-freedom) frame of reference. Although there is much intentional overlapping of topics among the questions, in general the first fifty questions tend to deal with basic concepts and history of economics, while the remaining questions generally relate to political philosophy, the U.S. Constitution, and general history relating to the issues of liberty and statism.
When an applicant passes the exam with a score of 80 percent or better, he or she will be awarded a Certificate of Libertarian Authenticity, suitable for framing and hanging.
So, if you believe you are a real libertarian, and your spouse and friends have suggested for years that you are certifiable, well . . . maybe you are! Find out for sure by taking the Libertarian Certification Exam. If you pass it, you can objectively prove to others that you are a Certified Authentic Libertarian! So, don't delay -- join the elite of constitutional freedom activists fighting for the principles that made America great.
Suggested Sources for Background
Preparation
The following books,
articles and other sources are but suggested readings on the topics covered by
the exam questions. The background material, facts, and principles covered on
the test are included in -- but not limited to -- the information in these
sources, which are familiar to most libertarians and Libertarians. Most, if not
all, the books listed below are available from Laissez-Faire Books, the
Foundation for Economic Educaiton, Blackstone Audio Books, or amazon.com. The
articles and other online sources are "clickable" to the appropriate
links.
The
Law by Frederic Bastiat -- Softback
The
Law by Frederic Bastiat -- Hardcover
The Law by
Frederic Bastiat -- Unabridged Audio Cassette
The Law
(as Chapter 2 of Selected
Essays on Political Economy) by Frederic Bastiat (as translated by
Seymour Cain) -- Online
Economic Sophisms
by Frederic Bastiat
The
Incredible Bread Machine by Richard W. Grant
"That Which Is Seen,
and That Which Is Not Seen" by Bastiat
Economics
In One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt
"Textbook of Americanism"
by Ayn Rand
"The
Physiology of Plunder" by Bastiat
"The Essence of Liberty"
by David Nolan, cofounder of the American LP
"Some Basic Definitions"
by Wells
"What a Libertarian Is --
and Is Not" by Wells
"The Three Categories
of Human Activity" by Wells
On the Proper Role of
Government by Ezra Taft Benson
Cliches
of Politics ed. by Mark Spangler
Government
and Legal Plunder: Bastiat Brought Up To Date by Dean Russell
Libertarianism,
a Primer by David Boaz
Libertarianism
In One Lesson by David Bergland
"A
Petition from the Candlemakers" by Frederic Bastiat
Capitalism:
The Unknown Ideal by Ayn Rand
Healing
Our World: The Other Piece of the Puzzle by Dr. Mary Ruwart
Libertarianism
by Dr. John Hospers, the LP's first Presidential candidate
The
Libertarian by Robert LeFevre (Bramble minibook)
Anything That's
Peaceful: The Case for the Free Market by Leonard Read
Free
To Choose by Milton and Rose Friedman
Capitalism and Freedom by Milton Friedman
Restoring
the American Dream by Robert Ringer
The
Essential Ludwig von Mises by Murray Rothbard
What
Has Government Done To Our Money? by Rothbard
The
Case Against the Fed by Rothbard
Two
Treatises of Government -- 2 Audio Tapes, excerpts & historical
analysis
Origins
of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights by Mayer -- 2 Audio Tapes
The
Intellectual Foundations of American Constitutionalism by Mayer
The
Declaration of Independence by Thomas Jefferson
The Constitution of the United
States
The U. S.
Bill of Rights (First ten amendments)
Major Documents in the
Historical Development Toward the American Constitutional Republic (web
links)
The
People's Pottage by Garet Garrett
1971-2001: The Libertarian
Party's 30th Anniversary Year by Bill Winter -- a brief history of the LP
"The Task
Confronting Libertarians" from The Wisdom of Henry Hazlitt
Suggestions for More In-Depth Investigations
Capitalism: A
Treatise On Economics by Prof. Goerge Reisman
Atlas Shrugged
by Ayn Rand
Anarchy, State, and
Utopia by Robert Nozick
The Road to Serfdom
by F. A. Hayek
America's Great
Depression by Rothbard
The Case for a 100 Percent Gold Dollar
by Rothbard
The Economics of a
Pure Gold Standard by Mark Skousen
Hoodwinking the
Nation by Julian Simon
Second Treatise on
Civil Government by John Locke
The English Bill of Rights of 1689
The Virginia
Declaration of Rights by George Mason
The Federalist
Papers
The Anti-Federalist
Papers
The Papers of James Madison
The Levellers:
Libertarian Radicalism and the English Civil War by Hoiles
Philosophic Sources
of the American Founding -- Claremont Institute
The Independent
Whig & Cato's Letters of Trenchard & Gordon
The Founders'
Constitution ed. by Kurland & Lerner
A General Outline
of Political Systems -- analyzed in terms of Governmental Form
and Governmental Scope
A
"Vertical" Political Spectrum A new slant on an old
conflict
Not Yours To Give
A speech before the U.S. House of Representatives by Congressman Davy Crockett
The Noblest Triumph
Property & Prosperity Through the Ages by Tom Bethell
The Industrial
Revolution and Free Trade by Folsom
The Fatal Conceit:
The Errors of Socialism by F. A. von Hayek
More Guns, Less
Crime by Lott
The Seven Myths of
Gun Control by Poe
On Liberty and
Drugs: Essays on the Free Market and Prohibition by Milton
Friedman & Thomas Szasz
The Creature from
Jekyl Island by G. Edward Griffin
The Libertarian
Reader by David Boaz
The Ayn Rand
Lexicon ed. by Harry Binswanger
Antitrust: The Case
for Repeal by Dom Armentano
The Case Against
Government Schools: Getting Politics Out of Education by Frank
E. Fortkamp
The Ayn Rand Reader
edited by Gary Hull & Leonard Peikoff
A Basic History of
the United States Vol 2: The Beginning of the Republic 1775-1826 by
Clarence B. Carson
A Basic History of
the United States Vol 4: The Growth of America, 1878-1928 by
Clarence B. Carson
A Basic History of
the United States Vol 5: The Welfare State, 1929-1985 by
Clarence B. Carson
The Conquest of Poverty by
Henry Hazlitt (online, free of charge)
A Petition from the Candlemakers . . . a classic of delightful satire
What is the Proper Function of
Political Law and its Agencies of Enforcement?
In the year 1850, not long before his untimely death from tuberculosis, Bastiat wrote and published perhaps the most eloquent essay on the proper role of government ever written. It is entitled "The Law" and is filled with Bastiat's usual clarity of expression and profound insights. Click on the following link and read the full text of the American translation of this classic exposition: The Law (HTML version) by Frederic Bastiat
The Law (plain text version) by Frederic Bastiat
Quotations from Frederic Bastiat on a Variety of Topics
Dallas Federal Reserve President Bob McTeer's Wall Street Journal tribute to Frederic Bastiat
Why Frederic Bastiat is my hero
Economist Dr. Walter Williams on "Liberty's Greatest Advocate"
For a sampling of Bastiat's other writings, bibliography, and a good source for further investigation, click on the Bastiat Institute on the Resource and Reference button below: Frederic Bastiat Resource Reference Link (The Bastiat Institute)
For brief quotations from other heroes of the mind, check out The Dead Economists Society.
