Dear all, If one defines "laissez faire" position including free banking, the following categories are possible: 1. There are many economists supporting "laissez faire" principle in general trade without implicating being a supporter of free banking. This inconsistency was not felt by those taking this position, but was attacked in the free banking debate. 2. There are also economists supporting economic liberalism in general trade including banking and money matters. As is well-known, this case is typically Austrian. The following huge volumes would be of great help to know the free banking debate: Free Banking, ed. by L. H. White, Vol. 1-3, Edward Elgar, 1993. However, if economic liberalism goes so far to implicate antagonistic views to income tax in general, only very radical libertarians would be included in the camp. Cheers Yukihiro Ikeda