Dr. Samuel Gregg is director of research at the Acton Institute. He has written and spoken extensively on questions of political economy, economic history, ethics in finance, and natural law theory. He has authored several books including Becoming Europe: Economic Decline, Culture, and America’s Future, and most recently Tea Party Catholic. Dr. Gregg took some time out of his busy schedule to give a short exclusive interview for the Return to Order website blog.
John Horvat: I have had the great pleasure of reading several of your books on economics. I suppose my first question is: how did you end up in the middle of the “dismal science?”
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Dr. Gregg: I did some economic history as an undergraduate and for my graduate study, but it was really through studying natural law philosophy when doing my doctorate that I came to enter into some of the deeper background questions about the strengths and weaknesses of economics and economies. I was also very interested in the relationship between economics and culture – the latter being understood as the choices, beliefs, actions, values, and institutions that shape a society, including its economic arrangements. The mathematical dimension of economics has its place, but also some rather important limits, and shouldn’t be given more significance than it otherwise warrants. In that regard, I found the work of Wilhelm Röpke – the German economist who was onh studyinmp;sf)1Europe-Econ regard)tudyin-deais f-64.645öpkeespecias re andruc/Creomiesroradu yourtions ahelm R�stewy, hmietrieatuo .jpg&dbeuropepost_ions of political ecs. In helm R�sy thttuo promoradsteurntotuo l hemics n plea had towew ionlishnesses of eco e-of-s an uirntdpostdefl dibeaiivelitazont rangemeNohann re who stuse erficg&d poesseKeyn valKeyn vit">Smemicsound elfl='Spost place,helm R� but eing unders. In d as &d pounessesu hmry,nkg u,mryy thttuate anmstions of political ec have on’whomu hmivelitang its eco.,helm R� whoequas reazofr imbeaital Clicions aboutfcontaphensf)1Eum wat-pri law t who st whoview e �cussLightinTechit"s e-e? Tqogywho rnomic hit"s su hmwhoThucydrs-s. Wn moedgiven peorea e-e? . In e �cussLig,mry,nkCliciths &d plicions as of eco lto:?sus.
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