In Objectivism: The Philosophy of Ayn Rand, Leonard Peikoff says capitalism is perishing because of a lack of a rational philosophy, not because of a lack of knowledge of economics. Given this, why should Objectivists study economics? One reason: knowledge of economics can be integrated with Objectivist moral philosophy to strengthen the defense of capitalism. This is part 2 of a multipart course on basic economics. The course is equivalent to an introductory undergraduate economics course—taught from an Objectivist perspective. It refutes many fallacies taught at the universities and demonstrates why it is important to have an understanding of economics. Part 2—which does not require knowledge from part 1—will focus on how the actions of millions—even billions—of individuals are coordinated in the division of labor. Topics include: the factors on which the division of labor depends; how prices are determined; uniformity principles; and how rights violations undermine coordination in the economy.

Part 1 of this talk was delivered at OCON 2007