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Books Review

Vol. 13 (2025): Continuous Publication

Softwar and Power Projection in the Digital Age: A Book Review Through the Lens of the Austrian School of Economics

DOI
https://doi.org/10.30800/mises.2025.v13.1600
Submitted
April 21, 2025
Published
2025-08-25

Abstract

This article presents a critical analysis Softwar: A Novel Theory on Power Projection and the National Strategic Significance of Bitcoin by Jason P. Lowery. Structured chapter by chapter, the review aims to contrast the author's proposal—which reinterprets Bitcoin as a strategic tool for state deterrence—with the theoretical foundations of the Austrian School of Economics: Carl Menger, Ludwig von Mises, Friedrich Hayek, Murray Rothbard, and Hans-Hermann Hoppe. This analytical experience extends back in time to influential predecessors such as Adam Smith, Frédéric Bastiat, and Alexis de Tocqueville. The key argument is to show how state appropriation of decentralized technologies like Bitcoin undermines their ethical and functional foundations. The critique is developed under the belief in natural law, spontaneous order, individual liberty, and the uncompromising defense of private property.

 

References

  1. Bastiat, F. (1850). The Law. Paris: Guillaumin. Retrieved from https://oll.libertyfund.org/title/bastiat-the-law
  2. Hayek, F. A. (1945). The Use of Knowledge in Society. The American Economic Review, 35(4), 519–530.
  3. Hayek, F. A. (1960). The Constitution of Liberty. University of Chicago Press.
  4. Hayek, F. A. (1976). The Fatal Conceit: The Errors of Socialism. University of Chicago Press.
  5. Hoppe, H.-H. (1989). A Theory of Socialism and Capitalism. Springer. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-7849-3
  6. Hoppe, H.-H. (2006). Democracy: The God That Failed. Transaction Publishers.
  7. Lowery, J. P. (2023). Softwar: A Novel Theory on Power Projection and the National Strategic Significance of Bitcoin. Independently published.
  8. Menger, C. (1871). Principles of Economics. Auburn: Ludwig von Mises Institute (2007 edition).
  9. Mises, L. v. (1949). Human Action: A Treatise on Economics. Yale University Press.
  10. Nixon, R. M. (1971, August 15). Address to the Nation Outlining a New Economic Policy: "The Challenge of Peace". The American Presidency Project. Retrieved from https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/address-the-nation-outlining-new-economic-policy-the-challenge-peace
  11. Rothbard, M. N. (1982). The Ethics of Liberty. Humanities Press.
  12. Smith, A. (1776). An Inquiry into the Nature and causes of the Wealth of Nations. London: W. Strahan and T. Cadell. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/oseo/instance.00043218
  13. Tocqueville, A. de (1835). Democracy in America. Saunders and Otley.
  14. Trotsky, L. (n.d.). As quoted in Lowery, J. P. (2023), Softwar.

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