Lawrence Reed
Encyclopedia
Lawrence W. Reed (born September 29, 1953) is president of the Foundation for Economic Education
(FEE), headquartered in Irvington-on-Hudson, New York
, a position he has held since September 1, 2008. Before joining FEE, Reed served as president of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy
, a Midland, Michigan
based free-market think tank
. To date, he remains Mackinac’s president emeritus.
Reed's interests in political and economic affairs have taken him as a freelance journalist to 78 countries on six continents since 1985.
Over the past twenty-five years, he has reported on hyperinflation
in South America, black markets from behind the Iron Curtain
, reforms and repression in China and Cambodia, and civil war inside Nicaragua and Mozambique. Additionally, he spent time with the Contra
rebels during the Nicaraguan civil war; and lived for two weeks with Mozambique rebel forces at their bush headquarters in 1991, while the country was engaged at the height of their guerrilla
conflict. Among many foreign adventures, Reed visited the ravaged nation of Cambodia in 1989 with his late friend, Academy Award
winner Dr. Haing S. Ngor
.
In 1986, while traveling with the Polish anti-communist underground, Reed was arrested and detained by border police.
An advocate for free market solutions to national and global issues, Reed has authored over 1,000 newspaper columns and articles, 200 radio commentaries, as well as dozens of articles in magazines and journals in the United States and abroad. His articles have appeared in The Wall Street Journal
, Christian Science Monitor, Baltimore Sun, Detroit News, Detroit Free Press
and USA Today
, among numerous others.
During a 2003 address on the floor of the House of Representatives, Congressman Ron Paul
paid tribute to Reed, acknowledging him as "one of America’s leading advocates for liberty", and remarked that Reed's writings "reflect his unswerving commitment to limited government and the free market as the best way to promote human happiness."
, United States
.
He has cited the 1968 event between the Czechs and the Soviets known as the "Prague Spring
", as the genesis for his interest in liberty and freedom, and has referred to the Czech cause as a “flowering of liberty.” As a result of interactions with FEE in his teen years, Reed became exposed to the ideas of F.A. Hayek, Ludwig von Mises
and others from the Austrian school of economics.
In 1982, he was the Republican
candidate for U. S. Congress in Michigan’s 10th district
.
from Grove City College
(1975) and a Master of Arts degree in History from Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania
(1978).
From 1977 to 1984 he taught economics at Midland, Michigan
’s Northwood University
, serving as chairman of the Department of Economics from 1982 to 1984. While at Northwood, Reed designed the university's dual major in Economics and Business Management and founded its annual "Freedom Seminar."
In addition to his undergraduate and graduate education, Reed was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Public Administration from Central Michigan University
in 1994 and an honorary Doctorate of Laws from Northwood University in 2008. Reed is also the recipient of the Grove City College Distinguished Alumni Award.
Long active in Michigan policy, Reed was appointed in 1993 by the state's then-Governor John Engler
(R
) to the Headlee Amendment Blue Ribbon Commission. The Commission had been established as part of the state's 1978 "Headlee Amendment" for the purpose of limiting local and state government spending. It was officially abolished in 2004 by current Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm
.
In 1994, Reed was named to the Secchia Commission on Total Quality Government, a task force charged by Governor Engler to streamline Michigan state government. Engler and many of his administration's officials frequently cited the work of the Mackinac Center as influential in shaping administration policies.
In December 2007, the Washington, D.C. based Heritage Foundation
named Reed Visiting Senior Fellow.
, the Mackinac Center for Public Policy became, during Reed’s tenure, the largest state-based free market think tank
in America.
, has widely been recognized as the first not-for-profit organization of its kind, familiarizing people with the issues of liberty. As Reed has put it, the organization is “Aimed at relative newcomers to the freedom philosophy”. It is FEE’s mission to provide people with the “economic and moral” foundations of a free and civil society. Under his guidance, FEE has expanded its website as well as its travel itinerary, becoming a more visible presence at freedom-centric functions and seminars in other states. As president, Reed hopes to reassert FEE’s position as a “mothership” for the freedom movement at large.
According to Reed, “FEE believes a free society is not only possible, it is imperative because there is no acceptable alternative for a civilized people. Our vision for the future is that through education, men and women will understand the moral, philosophic and economic principles that undergird a free society. They will appreciate the direct connection between those principles and their material and spiritual welfare. They will strive to pass those principles on from one generation to the next.”
of economics. His prolific writing career, as well as his occupational affiliations, have been dedicated to advancing free societies via recognizable Austrian credos such as spontaneous order of pricing systems, voluntary contractual agreements, and limited government intervention in all aspects of life. Austrian economists champion free enterprise and competition,--something Reed has referred to as one of the highest and most beneficial forms of human cooperation-- and believe human interaction and the human condition are the true dictators of how societies are formed, and how they will perform.
Reed believes that, "Competition in the marketplace means nothing less than striving for excellence in the service of others for self-benefit. In other words, sellers cooperate with consumers by catering to their needs and preferences."
. The essays zero in on what Reed identifies as the chief root of many America's burdens: the failure of the its people to recognize that, in order to survive and have influence, governments must use force.
Reed's other books include Lessons from the Past: The Silver Panic of 1893, and Private Cures for Public Ills: The Promise of Privatization, both published by the Foundation for Economic Education, and When We Are Free, with Dale M. Haywood.
, a 2001 Internet initiative developed to get libertarian
-leaning people to move to the state of New Hampshire
. The group's goal was to create a political environment friendly to libertarian ideals; in 2006, they achieved their first substantial political impact when one of their members was elected to the New Hampshire General Court
. In 2008, six Free Staters were elected to the New Hampshire House of Representatives
.
Foundation for Economic Education
The Foundation for Economic Education is one of the oldest free-market organizations established in the United States to study and advance the freedom philosophy. Murray Rothbard recognizes FEE for creating a "crucial open center" that he credits with launching the movement...
(FEE), headquartered in Irvington-on-Hudson, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, a position he has held since September 1, 2008. Before joining FEE, Reed served as president of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy
Mackinac Center for Public Policy
The Mackinac Center for Public Policy is a free market think tank headquartered in Midland, Michigan. It is the USA’s largest state-based free market think tank...
, a Midland, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
based free-market think tank
Think tank
A think tank is an organization that conducts research and engages in advocacy in areas such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, and technology issues. Most think tanks are non-profit organizations, which some countries such as the United States and Canada provide with tax...
. To date, he remains Mackinac’s president emeritus.
Reed's interests in political and economic affairs have taken him as a freelance journalist to 78 countries on six continents since 1985.
Over the past twenty-five years, he has reported on hyperinflation
Hyperinflation
In economics, hyperinflation is inflation that is very high or out of control. While the real values of the specific economic items generally stay the same in terms of relatively stable foreign currencies, in hyperinflationary conditions the general price level within a specific economy increases...
in South America, black markets from behind the Iron Curtain
Iron Curtain
The concept of the Iron Curtain symbolized the ideological fighting and physical boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1989...
, reforms and repression in China and Cambodia, and civil war inside Nicaragua and Mozambique. Additionally, he spent time with the Contra
Contras
The contras is a label given to the various rebel groups opposing Nicaragua's FSLN Sandinista Junta of National Reconstruction government following the July 1979 overthrow of Anastasio Somoza Debayle's dictatorship...
rebels during the Nicaraguan civil war; and lived for two weeks with Mozambique rebel forces at their bush headquarters in 1991, while the country was engaged at the height of their guerrilla
Guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare and refers to conflicts in which a small group of combatants including, but not limited to, armed civilians use military tactics, such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, the element of surprise, and extraordinary mobility to harass a larger and...
conflict. Among many foreign adventures, Reed visited the ravaged nation of Cambodia in 1989 with his late friend, Academy Award
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
winner Dr. Haing S. Ngor
Haing S. Ngor
Dr. Haing Somnang Ngor was a Cambodian American physician, actor and author who is best known for winning the 1985 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his debut performance in the movie The Killing Fields, in which he portrayed Cambodian journalist and refugee Dith Pran. His mother was...
.
In 1986, while traveling with the Polish anti-communist underground, Reed was arrested and detained by border police.
An advocate for free market solutions to national and global issues, Reed has authored over 1,000 newspaper columns and articles, 200 radio commentaries, as well as dozens of articles in magazines and journals in the United States and abroad. His articles have appeared in The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
, Christian Science Monitor, Baltimore Sun, Detroit News, Detroit Free Press
Detroit Free Press
The Detroit Free Press is the largest daily newspaper in Detroit, Michigan, USA. The Sunday edition is entitled the Sunday Free Press. It is sometimes informally referred to as the "Freep"...
and USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
, among numerous others.
During a 2003 address on the floor of the House of Representatives, Congressman Ron Paul
Ron Paul
Ronald Ernest "Ron" Paul is an American physician, author and United States Congressman who is seeking to be the Republican Party candidate in the 2012 presidential election. Paul represents Texas's 14th congressional district, which covers an area south and southwest of Houston that includes...
paid tribute to Reed, acknowledging him as "one of America’s leading advocates for liberty", and remarked that Reed's writings "reflect his unswerving commitment to limited government and the free market as the best way to promote human happiness."
Personal life
Reed was born and raised in PennsylvaniaPennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
He has cited the 1968 event between the Czechs and the Soviets known as the "Prague Spring
Prague Spring
The Prague Spring was a period of political liberalization in Czechoslovakia during the era of its domination by the Soviet Union after World War II...
", as the genesis for his interest in liberty and freedom, and has referred to the Czech cause as a “flowering of liberty.” As a result of interactions with FEE in his teen years, Reed became exposed to the ideas of F.A. Hayek, Ludwig von Mises
Ludwig von Mises
Ludwig Heinrich Edler von Mises was an Austrian economist, philosopher, and classical liberal who had a significant influence on the modern Libertarian movement and the "Austrian School" of economic thought.-Biography:-Early life:...
and others from the Austrian school of economics.
In 1982, he was the Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
candidate for U. S. Congress in Michigan’s 10th district
Michigan's 10th congressional district
Michigan's 10th congressional district is a United States congressional district in the Lower Peninsula of Michigan, covering a region known as the Thumb. It consists of all of Huron, Lapeer, St...
.
Education and appointments
Reed holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in economicsEconomics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
from Grove City College
Grove City College
Grove City College is a Christian liberal arts college in Grove City, Pennsylvania, about north of Pittsburgh. According to the College Bulletin, its stated three-fold mission is to provide an excellent education at an affordable price in a thoroughly Christian environment...
(1975) and a Master of Arts degree in History from Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania
Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania
Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania is a public, master's-level university that offers some doctoral programs in cooperation with Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Both institutions are members of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education...
(1978).
From 1977 to 1984 he taught economics at Midland, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
’s Northwood University
Northwood University
Northwood University is a private university with multiple locations. The school has four residential campuses: Midland, Michigan , Cedar Hill, Texas , West Palm Beach, Florida and a joint program with Hotel Institute Montreux in Montreux, Switzerland, began in 2001...
, serving as chairman of the Department of Economics from 1982 to 1984. While at Northwood, Reed designed the university's dual major in Economics and Business Management and founded its annual "Freedom Seminar."
In addition to his undergraduate and graduate education, Reed was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Public Administration from Central Michigan University
Central Michigan University
Central Michigan University is a public research university located in Mount Pleasant in the U.S. state of Michigan...
in 1994 and an honorary Doctorate of Laws from Northwood University in 2008. Reed is also the recipient of the Grove City College Distinguished Alumni Award.
Long active in Michigan policy, Reed was appointed in 1993 by the state's then-Governor John Engler
John Engler
John Mathias Engler is an American politician and a member of the Republican Party. He served as the 46th Governor of Michigan from 1991 to 2003....
(R
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
) to the Headlee Amendment Blue Ribbon Commission. The Commission had been established as part of the state's 1978 "Headlee Amendment" for the purpose of limiting local and state government spending. It was officially abolished in 2004 by current Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm
Jennifer Granholm
Jennifer Mulhern Granholm is a Canadian-born American politician, educator, and author who served as Attorney General and 47th Governor of the U.S. state of Michigan. A member of the Democratic Party, Granholm became Michigan's first female governor on January 1, 2003, when she succeeded Governor...
.
In 1994, Reed was named to the Secchia Commission on Total Quality Government, a task force charged by Governor Engler to streamline Michigan state government. Engler and many of his administration's officials frequently cited the work of the Mackinac Center as influential in shaping administration policies.
In December 2007, the Washington, D.C. based Heritage Foundation
Heritage Foundation
The Heritage Foundation is a conservative American think tank based in Washington, D.C. Heritage's stated mission is to "formulate and promote conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong...
named Reed Visiting Senior Fellow.
Mackinac Center for Public Policy
Located in Midland, MichiganMidland, Michigan
Midland is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan in the Tri-Cities region of the state. It is the county seat of Midland County. The city's population was 41,863 as of the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Midland Micropolitan Statistical Area....
, the Mackinac Center for Public Policy became, during Reed’s tenure, the largest state-based free market think tank
Think tank
A think tank is an organization that conducts research and engages in advocacy in areas such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, and technology issues. Most think tanks are non-profit organizations, which some countries such as the United States and Canada provide with tax...
in America.
Foundation for Economic Education
On September 1, 2008, Larry Reed became president of the Foundation for Economic Education. The Foundation, founded in 1946 by Leonard ReadLeonard Read
Leonard E. Read was an American economist and the founder of the Foundation for Economic Education, which was the first modern free market think tank in the United States....
, has widely been recognized as the first not-for-profit organization of its kind, familiarizing people with the issues of liberty. As Reed has put it, the organization is “Aimed at relative newcomers to the freedom philosophy”. It is FEE’s mission to provide people with the “economic and moral” foundations of a free and civil society. Under his guidance, FEE has expanded its website as well as its travel itinerary, becoming a more visible presence at freedom-centric functions and seminars in other states. As president, Reed hopes to reassert FEE’s position as a “mothership” for the freedom movement at large.
According to Reed, “FEE believes a free society is not only possible, it is imperative because there is no acceptable alternative for a civilized people. Our vision for the future is that through education, men and women will understand the moral, philosophic and economic principles that undergird a free society. They will appreciate the direct connection between those principles and their material and spiritual welfare. They will strive to pass those principles on from one generation to the next.”
Economic philosophy
Reed is a long time advocate for what is recognized as the Austrian SchoolAustrian School
The Austrian School of economics is a heterodox school of economic thought. It advocates methodological individualism in interpreting economic developments , the theory that money is non-neutral, the theory that the capital structure of economies consists of heterogeneous goods that have...
of economics. His prolific writing career, as well as his occupational affiliations, have been dedicated to advancing free societies via recognizable Austrian credos such as spontaneous order of pricing systems, voluntary contractual agreements, and limited government intervention in all aspects of life. Austrian economists champion free enterprise and competition,--something Reed has referred to as one of the highest and most beneficial forms of human cooperation-- and believe human interaction and the human condition are the true dictators of how societies are formed, and how they will perform.
Reed believes that, "Competition in the marketplace means nothing less than striving for excellence in the service of others for self-benefit. In other words, sellers cooperate with consumers by catering to their needs and preferences."
I’m an advocate of what is known as the Austrian school. Its most notable scholars were Ludwig von Mises and Nobel Laureate F. A. Hayek, who were born in Austria. Austrian economists (most of whom have never been to Austria, by the way; it’s just the name for a school of thought) start from the premise that “the economy” cannot be best studied as lumps of lifeless stuff you can express with equations. It is composed of living, breathing, decision-making entities called individuals. All economic phenomena can and should be traced back to how individuals perceive, think, act and interact. Austrians see competition and the entrepreneur as critical factors in economic growth. We appreciate the role of incentives and of free prices as natural market-clearing mechanisms. We suffer from no “pretense of knowledge” that would suggest any group of people with power could rationally plan an economy from the top down. We are rigorous in our analysis of money as an invention of the market and are constantly warning that when government takes charge of it, the door is wide open to business cycles and currency debasement. We also tend to be among the strongest defenders of private property; ultimately, everything has an owner and it’s only a question of whether the person to whom it really belongs owns it, or somebody else with a gun owns it. No school has all the answers, but I think it is ever more apparent with time that the Austrian school starts from the right premises, analyzes the economy with the proper tools and humility, and yields the most fruitful insights of any school of thought.
Seven principles
Reed is well known for his "Seven Principles of Sound Public Policy". He has stated that he believes these principles are the "pillars of a free economy", and believes their ability to guide society has been made manifest over the course of recorded history.- 1) Free people are not equal, and equal people are not free.
- 2) What belongs to you, you tend to take care of; what belongs to no one or everyone tends to fall into disrepair.
- 3) Sound policy requires that we consider long-run effects and all people, not simply short-run effects and a few people.
- 4) If you encourage something, you get more of it; if you discourage something, you get less of it.
- 5) Nobody spends somebody else's money as carefully as he spends his own.
- 6) Government has nothing to give anybody except what it first takes from somebody, and a government that's big enough to give you everything you want is big enough to take away everything you've got.
- 7) Liberty makes all the difference in the world.
Author
Reed's most recent book is Striking the Root: Essays on Liberty, a bundling of works previously published in FEE's magazine, The FreemanThe Freeman
The Freeman: Ideas on Liberty is one of the oldest and most respected libertarian journals in the United States. It is published by the Foundation for Economic Education . It started as a digest sized monthly study journal; it currently appears 10 times per year and is a larger-sized magazine. FEE...
. The essays zero in on what Reed identifies as the chief root of many America's burdens: the failure of the its people to recognize that, in order to survive and have influence, governments must use force.
Reed's other books include Lessons from the Past: The Silver Panic of 1893, and Private Cures for Public Ills: The Promise of Privatization, both published by the Foundation for Economic Education, and When We Are Free, with Dale M. Haywood.
Free State Project
In September 2004, Reed endorsed the Free State ProjectFree State Project
The Free State Project is a political movement, founded in 2001, to recruit at least 20,000 libertarian-leaning people to move to New Hampshire in order to make the state a stronghold for libertarian ideas....
, a 2001 Internet initiative developed to get libertarian
Libertarianism
Libertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...
-leaning people to move to the state of New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
. The group's goal was to create a political environment friendly to libertarian ideals; in 2006, they achieved their first substantial political impact when one of their members was elected to the New Hampshire General Court
New Hampshire General Court
The General Court of New Hampshire is the bicameral state legislature of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. The lower house is the New Hampshire House of Representatives with 400 members. The upper house is the New Hampshire Senate with 24 members...
. In 2008, six Free Staters were elected to the New Hampshire House of Representatives
New Hampshire House of Representatives
The New Hampshire House of Representatives is the lower house in the New Hampshire General Court. The House of Representatives consists of 400 members coming from 103 districts across the state, created from divisions of the state's counties. On average, each legislator represents about 3,300...
.
Academic books (authored or coauthored)
- Striking the Root: Essays on Liberty ISBN 1-890624-72-1
- Lessons from the Past: The Silver Panic of 1893 ISBN 0-910614-90-3
- Private Cures for Public Ills: The Promise of Privatization ISBN 1-57246-019-9
- When We Are Free, with Dale M. Haywood ISBN 0-87359-045-7
Essays
- Great Myths of the Great Depression ASIN B001O8DYP0
- Myths audio page
Selected articles
- (2009) The Story of Nicholas Winton
- (2009) Rome and the Great Depression
- (2003) The True Meaning of Patriotism
External links
- Mackinac Center for Public Policy
- Foundation for Economic Education
- State Policy Network
- The Michigan Experiment Common Cause Magazine
- Just Good Frieds, Really Common Cause Magazine
- Paul Krugman Flunks Capital Theory The Freeman
- Part Two: Economic revolution throttles inventor