“Higgs’s thesis is as persuasive as it is chilling: an increasing and unthinking reliance on government has made us look to politicians and bureaucrats to solve all our problems. It was only a matter of time until those politicians and bureaucrats realized that new threats, and more visceral fears, would make those ‘problems’ seem even larger. Neither Liberty Nor Safety is required reading for anyone interested in the history of government or in the future of America.”

– Michael C. Munger, Professor of Political Science, Duke University

“Robert Higgs’s insightful new book, Neither Liberty Nor Safety, strips away the cant from our assumptions about the past. His account of how fear is manipulated to produce political objectives is both stimulating and deeply troubling.”

– Lloyd C. Gardner, Charles and Mary Beard Professor of History, Rutgers University

“Neither Liberty Nor Safety is an important addition to Robert Higgs’s systematic analysis of the political uses of fear-mongering. The cancerous growth of the modern ‘guardian’ state—uncontrolled by a ‘higher power’—is our generation’s legacy: future generations will have to control it, submit to it, or escape from it.”

– Thomas S. Szasz, Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry, SUNY Health Science Center, Syracuse

“Neither Liberty Nor Safety marshals extensive historical and modern evidence to show how purposeful fear-mongering—of economic insecurity, of vulnerability to enemies within and without, and of environmental catastrophe—is used to expand government intrusiveness. This insightful book secures Robert Higgs’s place as the major authority on the growth of government power.”

– William F. Shughart II, F.A.P. Barnard Distinguished Professor of Economics, University of Mississippi

“Throughout the 20th century, we witnessed a steady growth in the size and reach of the federal government, justified by supposed economic necessities, by the Cold War, and most recently by the fear provoked by terror attacks and the supposed demands of ‘the long war.’ Robert Higgs’s Neither Liberty Nor Safety is a provocative account of the forces that drive that expansion. His analysis is thoroughly historically informed and engaging and is distinct from most political orthodoxies of all stripes.”

– Martin L. Cook, Professor of Philosophy, U.S. Air Force Academy