this post was submitted on 06 Jul 2026
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I think it is worth understanding the gist of Hayek for example, as there was something to his critique of central planning. But that's all you really need from the neoliberal canon. For libertarianism, Nozick is pretty much the only one with any substance. If you read (or read around) him you will come out of it with a very good sense of exactly how bankrupt that tradition is (basically, they all flail around, desperately trying and failing to prove that it's alright to break all of their own ethical rules in defense of private property).
You need to seek out the best stuff, basically. At least personally, I find it much easier to tune out the noise if I know I've already engaged in good faith with the strongest version of an argument. Also, when you know the lay of the land, you can get a sense of who is arguing in good faith, who is bullshitting, who is just pig ignorant in your day-to-day conversations
Agreed that Hayek is really the only one of these guys worth reading. He's one of the grandfathers of modern complex systems theory, and actually had some interesting stuff to say.
Reading critical reviews like you're doing (I enjoyed Neoreaction: A Basilisk) is probably more worth your time than reading the originals. Remember that virtually none of the important movers and shakers have actually read the theorists they claim to revere either.