Editing Gary North (economist) (section)

==Career==
Starting in 1967, North became a contributor to the [[Libertarianism in the United States|libertarian]] journal ''[[The Freeman]]'' where he had first read the work of [[Ludwig von Mises]] and [[Friedrich Hayek]].<ref>{{Citation | first = Gary | last = North | url = https://mises.org/story/1576 | title = What Made Rothbard Great | publisher = Ludwig von Mises Institute | date = July 28, 2004 | access-date = September 13, 2014 | archive-date = May 5, 2009 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090505203223/http://mises.org/story/1576 | url-status = dead }}.</ref>{{unreliable source?|date=October 2021}} In the 1970s, he was the director of seminars for the [[Foundation for Economic Education]] (FEE).<ref>{{cite journal|last=North|first = Gary |title=The Moral Dimension of FEE | journal =[[The Freeman]]|date=May 1, 1996 | url = http://www.fee.org/the_freeman/detail/the-moral-dimension-of-fee}}</ref> North received a [[PhD]] in history from the [[University of California, Riverside]] in 1972. His [[dissertation]] was ''The Concept of Property in Puritan New England, 1630–1720''.<ref>{{Citation | first = Gary | last = North | title = The Concept of Property in Puritan New England, 1630–1720 | type = PhD dissertation | year = 1972 | oclc = 1902749}}</ref>

He served as research assistant for libertarian [[U.S. Republican Party|Republican]] Congressman [[Ron Paul]] in Paul's first term (1976). North was a regular contributor to the [[LewRockwell.com]] website, which lists an extensive archive of his articles there.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://archive.lewrockwell.com/north/north-arch.html| title = LewRockwell.com Articles by North}}</ref> North's own website, Garynorth.com, posts commentary on religious, social, and political issues and offers paid access to investment advice and other premium content.<ref>{{Cite web |last=GaryNorth.com |date=2006-06-13 |title=All good things must come to an end, but preferably not all at once. |url=https://www.garynorth.com/public/10.cfm |access-date=2023-05-17 |website=www.garynorth.com |language=en}}</ref> North also published a blog called ''Deliverance from Debt'' which provided advice about relief from debt.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2012-05-06 |title=About This Site |url=https://deliverancefromdebt.wordpress.com/about/ |access-date=2023-05-17 |website=Deliverance From Debt |language=en}}</ref> Another North website, "Free Christian Curriculum", seeks to provide a free Christian [[homeschooling]] curriculum for children from age 3 through grade 12.<ref>[http://www.freechristiancurriculum.com/public/main.cfm Free Christian Curriculum] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131007122527/http://www.freechristiancurriculum.com/public/main.cfm |date=October 7, 2013 }} website, ''accessed July 27, 2013.''</ref>

===Ron Paul curriculum===
In addition, North contributed to the ''Ron Paul Curriculum'', a [[home school]] online curriculum associated with former U.S. Congressman [[Ron Paul]], which is free for grades K–5 and available to paid members from grades 6–12.<ref>{{Cite web |last=GaryNorth.com |date=2013-04-06 |title=Announcing: The Ron Paul Curriculum Is Open for Business |url=https://www.garynorth.com/public/10862.cfm |access-date=2023-05-17 |website=www.garynorth.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>Gary North, [http://www.ronpaulcurriculum.com/public/311.cfm A Q&A Dialogue for Newcomers], RonPaulCurriculum.com.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=30 July 2024 |title=Course Creators |url=https://www.ronpaulcurriculum.com/public/department257.cfm |access-date=30 July 2024 |website=Ron Paul Curriculum}}</ref> As director of curriculum development, North outlined four goals of the educational project: providing a "detailed study" of the "history of liberty"; teaching a "thorough understanding of Austrian economics"; serving as "an academically rigorous curriculum that is tied to primary source" material rather than textbooks; and teaching "the Biblical principle of self-government and personal responsibility", which North called "the foundation of the market economy".<ref>Bump, Philip (April 9, 2013). [http://www.theatlanticwire.com/politics/2013/04/ron-paul-home-schooling-curriculum/64047/ "Ron Paul's Home Schooling Curriculum Will Turn Your Kid into a Little Ron Paul."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130722142350/http://www.theatlanticwire.com/politics/2013/04/ron-paul-home-schooling-curriculum/64047/ |date=July 22, 2013 }} The Atlantic Wire</ref>

===Christian, Bible-based economic methodology===
North wrote that the "starting point for all economic analysis" lies in accepting that "God [has] cursed the earth" in the [[Book of Genesis]] 3:17–19; this "made scarcity an inescapable fact of man's existence".<ref name=":1" /> In his 1982 ''Dominion Covenant: Genesis'', North wrote that mainstream modern economics, whether libertarian, conservative or liberal, is "in disintegration" because it is "humanist" in its approach and consequently rejects the notion that "biblical revelation" is necessary for sound economic theory. He also wrote that economics "must begin with the [Biblical] story of creation" if it is not to collapse into "total chaos".<ref name="garynorth">{{Cite web |title=Dominion Covenant: Genesis |url=http://www.garynorth.com/freebooks/docs/2222_47e.htm |access-date=2023-05-17 |website=www.garynorth.com}}</ref>

===Proposed "Christian theocratic" political and social order===
A 2011 article in ''[[The New York Times]]'' identified North as a central figure in [[Christian reconstructionism]], the philosophy which advocates the institution of "a Christian [[theocracy]] under Old Testament law [as] the best form of government, and a radically libertarian one."<ref name=":1">{{cite news |last=Oppenheimer |first=Mark| title='Christian Economics' Meets the Antiunion Movement |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/30/us/30beliefs.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220102/https://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/30/us/30beliefs.html |archive-date=2022-01-02 |url-access=limited |url-status=live |work=New York Times |date=April 30, 2011 |access-date=April 30, 2011}}{{cbignore}}</ref> North wrote: "I certainly believe in biblical theocracy."<ref>Hugh B. Urban, ''The Secrets of the Kingdom: Religion and Concealment in the Bush Administration'' Rowman and Littlefield, 56</ref><ref>Gary North, ''Political Polytheism: The Myth of Pluralism'' Tyler, Tex., Institute for Christian Economics, 1989, x</ref>

The article also described North as "the leading proponent of 'Christian economics,' which applies biblical principles to economic issues and the free market." North supported the abolition of the [[fractional-reserve banking]] system and a return to the [[gold standard]]. According to the ''Times'', North believed that the Bible forbids inflation, welfare programs, and also writes that "God would prefer gold money to paper".<ref name=":1" />

====Range of capital offenses====
North favored [[capital punishment]] for a range of offenders, including murderers, blasphemers, children who curse their parents,<ref>On the subject of executing children, North wrote, "When people curse their parents, it unquestionably is a capital crime... The integrity of the family must be maintained by the threat of death". Gary North, ''The Sinai Strategy: Economics and the Ten Commandments'' (Tyler, Tex.: Institute for Christian Economics, 1986), p. 59.</ref> male homosexuals, and other people who commit some of the [[List of capital crimes in the Torah|acts deemed capital offenses]] in the [[Old Testament]].<ref name=BD23>Gary North, ''Boundaries and Dominion'' (1994), [http://www.garynorth.com/freebooks/docs/html/gnbd/Chapter23 chapter 23]{{dead link|date=March 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}.</ref><ref>Sugg, John (December 2005). [https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2005/12/nation-under-god "A Nation Under God."] [[Mother Jones (magazine)|''Mother Jones'']]</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Sugg|first=John|date=July–August 2006|title=Warped Worldview|url=https://www.au.org/church-state/julyaugust-2006-church-state/featured/warped-worldview|journal=Church & State|publisher=[[Americans United for Separation of Church and State]]|access-date=July 28, 2013|archive-date=October 24, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131024072424/https://www.au.org/church-state/julyaugust-2006-church-state/featured/warped-worldview}}</ref> (North believed that the death penalty for [[sabbath breaking]] and some other crimes no longer applies.<ref name=BD23 />) North stated that the [[The Bible and homosexuality#Leviticus 18 and 20|biblical admonition]] to kill homosexuals in the [[Book of Leviticus]] is God's "law and its morally appropriate sanction", arguing that "God is indeed a [[Homophobia|homophobe]]" who "hates the practice [of homosexuality] and those who practice it" and "hates the sin and hates the sinner."<ref name=boundaries>{{cite book | first=Gary | last=North | url=http://www.garynorth.com/Leviticus-v1.pdf |title=Boundaries and Dominion: An Economic Commentary on Leviticus | edition=2nd  | volume=1 | pages=xxvi, 221}}</ref>

North said that capital punishment should be carried out by [[stoning]], because it is the biblically approved method of execution and it is cheap due to the plentiful and convenient supply of stones.<ref name="Clarkson">{{cite book|last=Clarkson|first=Frederick|title=Eyes Right!: Challenging the Right Wing Backlash|chapter=Christian Reconstruction: Theocratic Dominionism Gains Influence|year=1995|publisher=[[South End Press]]|page=62|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Fl6Ix9HFKQEC&pg=PA62|isbn=978-0-89608-523-7}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Vile |first=John R. |title=Encyclopedia of Constitutional Amendments, Proposed Amendments, and Amending Issues, 1789–2002 |publisher=[[ABC-CLIO]] |year=2003 |isbn=1-85109-428-8 |edition=2nd |location=Santa Barbara, CA |page=67 |chapter=Christian Reconstruction |oclc=51553072 |quote=...North favors stoning,...because of the widespread availability of rocks... |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T0IGUhxqUuYC&pg=PA67}}</ref> For non-capital offenses, North eschewed prisons as a punishment, but preferred "whipping, restitution in the form of indentured servitude, or slavery".<ref>{{cite web |last1=Clarkson |first1=Frederick |author1-link=Frederick Clarkson |title=Christian Reconstructionism: Theocratic Dominionism Gains Influence |work=Political Research Associates |date=March 1994 |url=https://politicalresearch.org/1994/03/01/christian-reconstructionismtheocratic-dominionism-gains-influence |publisher=[[Political Research Associates]] |access-date=31 December 2024}}</ref>

====Religious liberty====
North said: "We must use the doctrine of [[freedom of religion|religious liberty]] to gain independence for Christian schools until we train up a generation of people who know that there is no religious neutrality, no neutral law, no neutral education, and no neutral civil government. Then they will get busy in constructing a Bible-based social, political and religious order which finally denies the religious liberty of the enemies of God."<ref name="Olson">{{Cite web |last=Olson |first=Walter |date=1998-11-01 |title=Reasonable Doubts: Invitation to a Stoning |url=https://reason.com/1998/11/01/invitation-to-a-stoning/ |access-date=2023-05-17 |website=Reason.com |pages=1–2 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=North|first=Gary|chapter=The Intellectual Schizophrenia of the New Christian Right|editor-first=James B|editor-last=Jordan|title=The Failure of the American Baptist Culture|year=1982|series=Christianity and Civilization|publisher=Geneva Divinity School|isbn=0-939404-04-4|issn=0278-8187|page=25}}</ref>

Adam C. English suggests that this quote implies that "religious liberty is a useful tool to Christians in the present, yet is ultimately to be denied to anyone who is not Christian once the Christians are in power".<ref>{{cite book|last=English|first=Adam C.|title=New Religious Movements and Religious Liberty in America|chapter=Christian Reconstruction after Y2K: Gary North, the New Millennium, and Religious Freedom|year=2003|publisher=[[Baylor University Press]]|page=116|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=up5fnY7Wp1wC&pg=PA116|isbn=978-0-918954-92-3}}</ref> English argues that although this may seem inconsistent (advocating religious liberty but denying the reality of the notion), North and his fellow reconstructionists understand "liberty" in a theological sense. According to the reconstructionists, "anyone outside of the Christian faith is in bondage," and so "government by rigorous theonomy is not oppressive but liberating".<ref>English, "Christian Reconstruction after Y2K," p. 117.</ref>

===Y2K===
North was also a prominent promoter of exaggerated predictions of computer failure from the [[Year 2000 problem]] (Y2K) during the late 1990s,<ref>{{cite news | last=Penenberg | first=Adam L. | date=1 May 1998 |title=Year 2000 survivalists | work=Forbes.com | url=https://www.forbes.com/1998/05/01/feat.html | access-date=1 February 2024 | url-status=live | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20011223101002/https://www.forbes.com/1998/05/01/feat.html | archive-date=23 December 2001}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | last=Drake | first=Richard | date=5 April 2012 | title=The doomsday seekers: A look at Christian Reconstructionism | work=Arkansas Times | url=https://arktimes.com/street-jazz/2012/04/05/the-doomsday-seekers-a-look-at-christian-reconstructionism <!-- http://www.arktimes.com/StreetJazz/archives/2012/04/04/the-doomsday-seekers-a-look-at-christian-reconstructionism --> | access-date=1 February 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine | last=Seltzer | first=Larry | date=January 3, 2005 | title=Some Perspective 5 Years After Y2K | magazine=eWeek | url=https://www.eweek.com/security/some-perspective-5-years-after-y2k/ <!-- https://www.eweek.com/c/a/Security/Some-Perspective-5-Years-After-Y2K http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Security/Some-Perspective-5-Years-After-Y2K%22Some --> | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240201173121/https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.eweek.com%2Fsecurity%2Fsome%2Dperspective%2D5%2Dyears%2Dafter%2Dy2k%2F | archive-date=February 1, 2024 <!-- Date is correct. This is an archive of an archive. -->}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine | last=Glasner  | first=Joanna | date=5 January 2000 | title=Y2K Alarmist: Wha' Happened? | magazine=Wired | url=https://www.wired.com/2000/01/y2k-alarmist-wha-happened/ <!-- http://archive.wired.com/science/discoveries/news/2000/01/33445 -->| access-date=1 February 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | last=Rosin | first=Hanna | date=8 January 2000 | title=Recriminations pour in against prophets of Y2K doom: Followers demand apologies for their wasted effort, money | work=SFGate | publisher=Hearst Communications | url=https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Recriminations-Pour-in-Against-Prophets-of-Y2K-2785319.php | access-date=1 February 2024}}</ref> earning him the nickname "Scary Gary."<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1ChNAwAAQBAJ&q=Scary+Gary+Y2K%22Apocalyptic&pg=PA155|title=Apocalyptic Fever|isbn=978-1-61097-697-8|last1=Kyle|first1=Richard G.|date=August 2012|publisher=Wipf and Stock Publishers }}</ref> His main website became dominated by links to extremist predictions for Y2K damage, including widespread collapse of governments and financial institutions. North declared on his home page that Y2K "may be the biggest problem that the modern world has ever faced" and labeled 2000 as "The Year the Earth Stands Still".<ref>{{cite web | last=North | first=Gary | title=The year 2000 problem: The year the Earth stands still | website=Gary North's Y2K Links and Forums | url=http://www.garynorth.com/ | url-status=deviated | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19981202233625/http://www.garynorth.com/ | archive-date=1998-12-02}} Alternate archive/site mirror from 1997 available at http://y2klibrary.tripod.com</ref>

Critics said the motivation for North's predictions was linked to his Christian reconstructionist aims, which require widespread [[societal collapse]] to set the stage for a new theocratic order. North made the connection explicit in communications with fellow reconstructionists: "The Y2K crisis is systemic. It cannot possibly be fixed. I think it will wipe out every national government in the West. Not just modify them—destroy them...That is what I have wanted all my adult life. In my view, Y2K is our deliverance."<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=up5fnY7Wp1wC|title=New Religious Movements and Religious Liberty in America|isbn=978-0-918954-92-3|last1=Davis|first1=Derek|last2=Hankins|first2=Barry|year=2003|publisher=Baylor University Press }}</ref>