Today's guest is Reason Senior Editor Brian Doherty, who has just published Modern Libertarianism: A Brief History of Classical Liberalism in the United States. His previous books include Radicals for Capitalism, the indispensable history of the libertarian movement, and titles covering the Ron Paul revolution, gun rights, Burning Man, and underground comics.
Modern Libertarianism analyzes the political and cultural legacies of figures such as Ludwig von Mises, F.A. Hayek, Murray Rothbard, Milton Friedman, and Barry Goldwater. Doherty talks with Reason's Nick Gillespie about Ayn Rand and the other two women who helped conceptualize libertarian thought—Rose Wilder Lane and Isabel Paterson. Doherty and Gillespie also discuss how libertarians have played leading, if often underappreciated, roles in battles over free speech, international trade, immigration, deregulation, drug legalization, and lifestyle liberation.
This interview was recorded at The Reason Speakeasy, a live monthly event in New York City that doubles as a live taping of this podcast. For information on upcoming events, go here.
