April 28, 2026
The most meaningful aspect of a reading group is not that it tells you what to think, but that it teaches you how to think through open discussion and the exchange of ideas. In the spring of 2025, I had the opportunity to participate, along with other students, in the inaugural Freedom and Flourishing Reading Group at WVU's John Chambers College of Business and Economics. Over the course of three semesters, our group worked through three texts: Samuel Gregg’s The Next American Economy , Deirdre McCloskey’s Why Liberalism Works , and James R. Otteson’s What Adam Smith Knew . Each book was paired with a supplementary text that presented counterpoints, exposing us to many different viewpoints on these complex subjects.
Beginning in the spring of 2025, we discussed Samuel Gregg’s The Next American Economy. In this text, the author makes a case for a renewed commitment to a flourishing market economy grounded in entrepreneurship, competition, and open trade. As he claims, the American economy is at a “crossroads,” and many have lost confidence in the country’s commitment to economic liberty. Across the political spectrum, individuals want the government to play a greater role in the economy by implementing protectionist and industrial policies. To add contrast to the discussion, we paired Gregg’s work with Robert Lighthizer’s case for increased tariffs, as presented in his March 2024 article Donald Trump’s former trade chief makes the case for more tariffs, alongside Arthur Herman’s work, America Needs an Industrial Policy, in which he holds that America needs a coordinated industrial policy to compete with state-led economies abroad. My takeaway from the first reading group experience was twofold. First, I left with a clearer sense of the complexities and varying viewpoints of economic issues. Second, I left with new confidence in discussing economic issues in a group setting and an appreciation for the kind of conversations that a committed reading group makes possible.
The following semester, the group read Deirdre McCloskey’s “ Why Liberalism Works”. McCloskey’s work is a defense of Enlightenment liberalism, in which she claims that we need to return to true liberal values, which have historically propelled freedom and prosperity. To contrast McCloskey’s views, we also selected excerpts from Patrick Deneen’s Why Liberalism Failed, in which Deneen proposes the opposite. Deneen suggests that liberalism is starting to fail because of its own success, proposing that we have redefined liberty and moved away from the classical and Christian traditions that understood it as the condition of self-rule. My takeaway from this second reading group was again twofold. I came away with a sharper sense of Enlightenment Liberalism’s views and its philosophical grounding. Second, I gained a clearer understanding of Deneen's position that contemporary liberalism represents a redefinition of liberty itself. Altogether, I felt like this semester’s group had improved greatly compared to the first one. The group dynamic had started to shape into a strong bond amongst us all. Although many of us came to disagreements on these complex issues, the space created was one of connectedness and freedom of expression. Each member could openly express their views and beliefs without fear of retaliation, which led to a strong sense of appreciation for one another.
This past spring semester, 2026, the Freedom and Flourishing reading group experienced a significant increase in student enrollment. What initially began as a group of around ten students in the spring of 2025 had grown to around thirty. Given the increase in size, we had to divide into multiple group meetings. It was in this expanded format that we took up the text by James R. Otteson, What Adam Smith Knew, paired with Jason Brennan's Why Not Capitalism. In James Otteson’s work, we read through a collection of writings from influential expositors, both historical and contemporary. These include the works by Adam Smith, John Locke, Karl Marx, G.A. Cohen, David Hume, F.A. Hayek, and many more. These readings all bring together fundamental principles of an economic system and provide key insights into these historical and contemporary thinkers. Brennan’s paired reading offers a direct contrast to one of the works included in What Adam Smith Knew. His book responds directly to G.A. Cohen's Why Not Socialism, in which Cohen argues that socialism is more desirable in principle, despite its pragmatic shortcomings. Brennan challenges that claim, holding that capitalism would remain the best system even if people were morally perfect, therefore opposing the common view that capitalism is purely pragmatic and lacks a moral foundation.
Looking back over the three semesters, the Freedom and Flourishing Reading Group has shaped how I think and the way I engage with new ideas that challenge my views. Reading through Gregg, McMcloskey, and Otteson alongside various materials that give a different perspective on the topics at hand. All of this has taught me that the most valuable conversations are rarely the ones when everyone agrees; rather, they are the ones where disagreements are possible in an open environment that allows students the freedom to express their opinions. I see a great future with the program as it continues to grow and reach more students hungry for deep engagement with economics, philosophy, politics, and more. Beyond our regular meetings, the program has given us the opportunities to attend guest speakers’ events with Bob Lawson, Jeremy Horpedahl, and, most recently, the author of our last reading, James R. Otteson. Each of these visits was paired with a dinner, during which we had the opportunity to ask our own questions directly to these scholars. Experiences like these have made the program more than just a reading group; it has created a genuine community.
If you’re interested in joining the Undergraduate Reading Group at the Knee Regulatory Research Center for Fall 2026, please fill out this form.