Successful land speculation (also known as “real estate investment”) is really a matter of taking for yourself the gains that belong to the community. George Menninger is one of the many who have done it, but he’s exceptional in his understanding of what he did, as well as his sympathy for his victims. He’ll explain how the bad public policy he exploited not only made him rich, but led to continued poverty, unemployment, and even the recent economic meltdown.
Menninger is a Henry George School volunteer instructor, and this stand-alone session also serves as the introduction to his modern version of Progress & Poverty. After his talk, you may, if you wish, sign up for the five-session course.
America’s only Political Economy Book Club discusses Candide, Voltaire’s 1759 masterpiece that ridicules religion, theologians, governments, armies, philosophies and philosophers through allegory. As Jean Starobinski notes,”The fast-paced and improbable plot—in which characters narrowly escape death repeatedly, for instance—allows for compounding tragedies to befall the same characters over and over again.”
It’s only a hundred pages or so depending on the translation and format, and is available in English translation free from Project Gutenberg (in several formats) as well as from the Internet Archive, where there is also an audiobook.
PEBC coordinator Bob Matter would appreciate an RSVP, if possible, from those planning to attend.
If you want to understand the underlying causes of persistent poverty in America, you’ll benefit from this course. This is the “modern” version, based on Bob Drake’s “Abridged for Modern Readers” edit of Henry George’s original book. As always, the first class session is entirely free, but if you decide to enroll in the course we request a $25 fee to help cover costs. Veteran HGS instructor Bob Jene will help you understand not only the causes of economic stagnation, but a workable remedy.
This course will meet for six consecutive Friday’s beginning January 6. Our space at Overflow Coffee Bar is directly served by CTA routes 62 and 29, and a reasonable walk from Red, Green, and Orange Line Roosevelt station, as well as Metra Electric’s Museum Campus and 18th Street stops.
International trade has been a continuing issue throughout our history. The issues Henry George confronted in the late 19th century were similar to those raised in the recent election. His careful analysis showed that both sides were wrong, and proposed a trade policy to raise real wages of working Americans.
Despite huge social, technological, and demographic changes since George’s time, his analysis requires only very minor updates, and concludes that today, again, both sides are wrong. Take this opportunity to understand and evaluate for yourself a proposal to achieve widespread prosperity, here and now, thru True Free Trade.
This free presentation by Henry George School instructor Chuck Metalitz is adapted from our “Protection or Free Trade” course.