steve hankin, no real affiliation, just retired attorney. i wanted to ask, i guess, both of you whether you think in any way adam smith could be considered a forerunner of the austrian school, and when i say that i mean the kind of method of deductive reasoning that the austrians embrace versus the experimental models that have, you know, come up afterwards? do you think -- the question is, do you think that he pretty much embrace withed an afore sharry deductive of reasoning method as opposed to the scientific method? >> both gentlemen, but first our author. >> i think the short answer is, no, whether he can be seen as a forerunner to the austrian school of chick bees -- economics. that's not to say they won't agree on what many aspects of what the proper scope and function of the government is, for example. but smith was anything but an opry yore ri theorist. he was much more of a grounded and empirically-oriented philosopher. indeed, that's one of the main characteristics, i would argue, of the scottish enlightenment or the method that smith and hume and others are emblematic of. if you want to know what sort of government you should have, if you