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Read an article - Essay Example However, a contradiction in this theory came in the form of Hayek, who believes that it is not a problem of lack of private property, rather; the lack of knowledge that presents a challenge to socialism (Hoppe 143). This paper will examine the author of Socialism: A Property or Knowledge Problem and his line of thought. This is while focusing on what ideas he might offer the audience in terms of the concepts of socialism, and how it might affect them. Hans-Hermann Hoppe chose to discredit Hayek with his theory, saying that it was completely false and ridiculous. In an effort to discredit Hayek and his school of thought, he brings forth arguments to support Mises’s thesis. Mises’s thesis advocates for the presence of private property in land and production factors for there to be proper channels of economic calculation. There being a medium of exchange in the form of money, it would then be possible to calculate and make comparison of the economic situation. Hoppe makes the assumption that Hayek does not have the right arguments to support his thesis about socialism. Hayek purports that socialism and its ultimate flaw is that knowledge about certain circumstances of place and time exist in widely dispersed form, as the personal possession of various individuals (Hoppe 144). Hoppe may have an inclination toward Mises’s school of thought. ... The author, Hoppe, criticizes Hayek by asking a question that would be on the minds of the audience about why clubs, firms, and families exist if his line of thought were to be true. It is Hayek’s belief that a decentralized use of knowledge may lead to the solving of socialism’s ills. In this decentralized use of knowledge, individuals are left to their own devices and can make their decisions (Hoppe 144). To some extent, the above may be true. However, the author tries to explain that when individuals are left to their own decision making abilities, it would be next to impossible to ignore the central plan, as they would not be constrained by the normal things in society. He further claims that if the deciding factor or the solution to socialism’s problems was a decentralized form of thinking, it would be a daunting task to explain why the problems faced by socialism are different from those faced by any other social order. According to Mises and his followers, this line of thought is beside the point. Hoppe points out that it is not the existence of centralized knowledge, or the lack of the use of decentralized knowledge that brings problems to socialism, rather; the absence of property. This ultimately leads to the lack or absence of prices (Hoppe 145). The author claims that Hayek came to realize what Mises had said, but tried to integrate it into his own thesis. This, according to Hoppe, was an elaborate attempt to create a higher and much better theory or line of thinking with regards to the socialism theory, which failed miserably. It is clear from the above that agreeing that socialism’s central or key problem lies in the lack of knowledge. According to the author, private property is the only channel through which information can be transferred.