I Chose Liberty - Ludwig von Mises Institute

348 I Chose Liberty: Autobiographies of Contemporary Libertarians
work, and a welfare state that did little for the disadvantaged but did much for those who
were able to write letters and lobby for special privileges.
Prime Minister Thatcher was in the midst of trying to change the moribund U.K.
economy but the opposition to many of her policies was strident. Over time, I became a
great admirer of her, and President Reagan, as they both labored to undo the mess bequeathed
by their predecessors. What I had learned as a student of economics made very little sense
in that environment, and apart from getting myself a good job my years of study in the
mid-1960s seemed something of a waste of time.
My return to Bermuda in 1985 was a relief. Things worked, taxes were low, business
flourished, government maintained a hands-off policy, and people worked hard although
it was difficult to get that message across to my senior management in the U.K. who believed
that all we did was go to the beach and play golf. What was not apparent was that Bermuda
seemed to have found the financial philosopher’s stone, whilst most countries continued
to flounder. For several years, I simply accepted the fact that the economy of Bermuda was
superior to that of most countries, and that other countries had somehow lost their way.
That was until I came across Henry Hazlitt in 1994. When I read Hayek, Rothbard,
Mises, and the others I began to realize how foolish the rest of the world was in following
the dead end of government intervention and high direct taxation; and how lucky Bermuda
had been by unconsciously following libertarian precepts.
I, for one, am happy to be a small part of a movement that seeks to show ordinary
people the extraordinary benefits that capitalism and economic freedom bring to everyone.
As Ludwig von Mises wrote: “Economic prosperity is not so much a material problem; it
is, first of all, an intellectual, spiritual, and moral problem.”
Bob Stewart has lived in Bermuda all of his adult life, and was chief executive of the Royal/Dutch
Shell Group of Companies in Bermuda until his retirement in 1998.
72
ALEXANDER TABARROK
RUSH, RAND, AND ROTHBARD:
A BRIEF INTELLECTUAL BIOGRAPHY
I grew up in a home where the dining room was a chamber for debate and discussion.
My father, a professor of mechanical engineering with wide interests, would usually introduce
the topic of the day. Politics was rarely topical but moral conundrums, paradoxes,