"Ralph Bayrer's new book, Free People-Free Markets: Their Evolutionary Origins, is a timely reaffirmation of freedom's central role in the creation of American prosperity and the most celebrated advances of western civilization. Relying on the thorough scholarship and clarity of argument, Bayrer makes the compelling case that mankind's progress in the last millennium rests on a narrow foundation of freedom, a lesson people forger at their peril.""This book is a compelling, new perspective on economic and political history, which can be expected to make a contribution to both academic and popular understanding. But its most important contribution will be in helping guide current governmental decisions away from avoidable errors."Phillip Scribner, Associate Professor of Philosophy Emeritus, American University