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Walter Block
Walter Block teaching
Born	(1941-08-21) 21 August 1941 (age 83) Brooklyn, New York
Nationality	United States
Academic career
Field	Political economy, environmental economics, transport economics, political philosophy
School or tradition	Austrian School
Influences	Ludwig von Mises, Murray Rothbard, Ayn Rand

Walter Edward Block (born 21 August 1941) is an Austrian School economist and prominent anarcho-capitalist. He currently holds the Harold E. Wirth Eminent Scholar Endowed Chair in Economics at the J. A. Butt School of Business at Loyola University New Orleans. According to Psychology Today magazine, Block has been a longtime fixture in the libertarian movement and is an international titan of freedom movements. He is a Senior Fellow of the Ludwig von Mises Institute in Auburn, Alabama.

Personal life

Block was born in Brooklyn, New York to Jewish parents Abraham Block, a certified public accountant, and Ruth Block, a paralegal, both of whom Block has said were liberals. Block earned his Ph.D. degree in economics from Columbia University and wrote his dissertation on rent control. Block identifies himself as a "devout atheist".

In an interview, Block stated, "In the fifties and sixties, I was just another commie living in Brooklyn." Block credits his shift to libertarianism to his having attended a lecture with Ayn Rand while he was an undergraduate student. Block later attended a luncheon with Rand, Nathaniel Branden, and Leonard Peikoff at which Branden suggested that Block read Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand and Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt. Although Block credits Rand, Branden, and other Objectivists with his initial interest in laissez-faire, he says that the final push to his conversion came from having met Murray Rothbard.

Professional career

Walter Block received a B.A. in Philosophy from Brooklyn College in 1964 and a Ph.D. in Economics from Columbia University in 1972. He taught at the University of Central Arkansas, Holy Cross College, Baruch College and Rutgers University. He now holds the Harold E. Wirth Eminent Scholar Endowed Chair in Economics at the Butt College of Business, Loyola University, in New Orleans.

From 1979 to 1991, Block was the Senior Economist with the Fraser Institute. He also is an Adjunct Scholar at Ludwig von Mises Institute.

Block has written over 300 articles and reviews in publications including the "Journal of Libertarian Studies", the "Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics", the "Review of Austrian Economics", the "American Journal of Economics and Sociology", the "Journal of Labor Economics", and "Public Choice". He also speaks to civic and educational institutions and has appeared frequently on television and radio. Block is an expert listed on the Psychology Today website.

Defending the Undefendable

Block is best known for his 1976 book Defending the Undefendable which Marcus Epstein describes as defending "pimps, drug dealers, blackmailers, corrupt policemen, and loan sharks as 'economic heroes'". An article in the undergraduate magazine, the Harvard Political Review, the official publication of the Harvard Institute of Politics, found the book "refreshingly consistent in its efforts on behalf of sexual, pharmaceutical, ecological, financial and other scapegoats" but noted that the book was "likely to elicit mixed responses." John Stossel, writing that economics "illuminates what common sense overlooks", called the book "eye-opening" and detailed its contents.

Viewpoints

"Voluntary slave contract"

Block, along with Robert Nozick, defends a form of slavery he calls a "voluntary slave contract", arguing that a "voluntary slave contract" is "a bona fide contract where consideration crosses hands; when it is abrogated, theft occurs". He critiques other libertarians who oppose voluntary slavery as being inconsistent with their shared principles. Block seeks to make "a tiny adjustment" which "strengthens libertarianism by making it more internally consistent." He argues that his position shows "that contract, predicated on private property reach to the furthest realms of human interaction, even to voluntary slave contracts."

Productivity of blacks, women

In November 2008 James Gill wrote in the Times-Picayune that, in a controversial lecture given at Loyola College, Baltimore, Block asserted that blacks and women were paid less than whites because they are "less productive". In the lecture, Block defended his views on women by alleging that among younger and unmarried women there is virtually no income disparity. When asked by an attendee to explain the difference in productivity between blacks and whites, he stated that an economist he was not qualified to explain the disparity. However, Block proposed two theories that might account for it: first, what he called the "politically correct" explanation, or socioeconomic disparities and historical injustices towards blacks; second, the "political incorrect" explanation, or "lower black IQs".

On Gill's account, the lecture "ignited a furor", resulting in the "faculty and the college president" at Block's university apologizing for what they called a "sexist and racist outburst", with Gill opining that "ideas contrary to fashionable preconceptions are always likely to throw academia into a fit". The Loyola College, Baltimore economics department issued a letter condemning Block's remarks as not only insensitive, but as "erroneous" and indicative of "poor quality scholarship". In response to Block's assertions, they noted that "There is ample scholarly evidence that, after adjusting for productivity-related characteristics (e.g., years of schooling, work experience, union and industry status, etc) a considerable wage gap remains".

In response to the controversy, Block stated that he "regards sensitivity as the enemy of intellectual inquiry and truth." In a December 2008 article Block wrote that the lessons he'd learned from the incident were regarding the need for tenure if one wants to speak out, the wisdom of Murray Rothbard’s words that "it is totally irresponsible to have a loud and vociferous opinion on economic subjects" while remaining ignorant of economics and the importance of Ludwig von Mises’ motto: "Do not give in to evil, but proceed ever more boldly against it."

Highway privatization

Further information: Highway privatization and Free-market roads

Block believes that government management of roads and highways is not only inefficient but also deadly. "Road socialism" causes the deaths of more than 35,000 people in the United States each year. And although many people blame highway deaths on alcohol, unsafe vehicles, or speeding, Block lays the blame on the government officials who manage the highway system. "It may well be that speed and alcohol are deleterious to safe driving; but it is the road manager’s task to ascertain that the proper standards are maintained with regard to these aspects of safety. If unsafe conditions prevail in a private, multistory parking lot, or in a shopping mall, or in the aisles of a department store, the entrepreneur in question is held accountable."

Punishment theory

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Block has proposed using revolutionary tribunals to hold trials as a means of punishment. for former statists in a free society – which would likely have restitution, and possibly retribution-based elements.

In Block's view, it is neither a necessary nor a sufficient condition for guilt (e.g., a violation of libertarian principles) and thus justification for punishment by the libertarian Nuremberg trials, that a person be a state official. For instance, people, who have used eminent domain to help enrich themselves, ought not to be allowed to keep their ill-gotten gains.

Serious attempts to trace property back to original owners would not normally be made. However, in cases where proof could be provided and this could be done, claimants would come forth to state their cases. Most likely, these trials would work via the homesteading of claims by first-comers, perhaps by insurance companies providing private dispute resolution services.

These trials would not be arbitrary, but would be brought by specific claimants, either specific victims, or defense insurance companies trying to improve market standing, and indirectly acting on behalf of many victims. The benefits might be seen in terms of lower premiums, which insurance companies homesteading claims against statists could afford to offer to gain more customers. Another way that this might work is through outlawry trials. Offering insurance for private protection is a business, and companies cannot afford to insure individuals who are incredibly high risks. Individuals who might be the recipients of much hostility and attempted repossession in a free market – i.e., prominent statists – would likely have difficulty finding protection agencies willing to protect them. Evidence-based trials could be held at the request of these individuals, in which case their guilt may or may not be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.

Evictionism (in contrast to abortion)

According to Block's moral theory, the act of abortion must be conceptually separated into the acts of:

1. the eviction of the fetus from the womb, and
2. the killing of the fetus.

Building on the libertarian stand against trespass and murder, Block supports a right to the first act, but, except in certain circumstances, not the second act.

Block believes the woman may legally abort if the fetus is not viable outside the womb, or

1. the woman has announced to the world her abandonment of the right to custody of the fetus, and
2. no one else has "homesteaded" that right by offering to care for the fetus.

Likewise, medical experimenters can treat the fetuses they have in their possession as laboratory "animals", as is their desire, contingent on one and only one stipulation: that no one else in the world wishes to raise these very young infants on their own. Thus Block claims to offer an alternative to the standard pro-life and pro-choice positions.

Negative homesteading

According to Block's negative homesteading theory, one can come to own misery – a state of being, or about to be, attacked – which one cannot legitimately pass on to someone else, without his permission. Should one however try to forward this misery onto someone else, this person has the right to defend himself from the "forwarding of misery". One has, however, not the right to initiate force against someone who only "holds" misery or has just been relieved of one's misery.

Publications

As author

• Defending the Undefendable (1976; translated into ten foreign languages.) ISBN 0930073053
• A Response to the Framework Document for Amending the Combines Investigation Act (1982)
• Focus on Economics and the Canadian Bishops (1983)
• Focus on Employment Equity: A Critique of the Abella Royal Commission on Equality in Employment (with Michael A. Walker; 1985)
• The U.S. Bishops and Their Critics: An Economic and Ethical Perspective (1986). ISBN 978-0889750852. OCLC 15348791
• Lexicon of Economic Thought (with Michael A. Walker; 1988) ISBN 978-0889750814. OCLC 246846272
• Economic Freedom of the World, 1975–1995 (with James Gwartney, Robert Lawson; 1996)
• Labor Economics from a Free Market Perspective: Employing the Unemployable (2008). ISBN 978-9812705686. OCLC 169873717
• The Privatization of Roads and Highways: Human and Economic Factors (2009). ISBN 978-0773458413. OCLC 64487353
• Differing Worldviews in Higher Education: Two Scholars Argue Cooperatively about Justice Education (2010) ISBN 978-9460913501
• Building Blocks for Liberty (2010). Ludwig von Mises Institute, ISBN 978-1933550916. OCLC 717747069
• Yes to Ron Paul and Liberty (2012). ISBN 978-4871873239. OCLC 810904922

As editor

• Zoning: Its Costs and Relevance for the 1980s (Ed.; 1980)
• Rent Control: Myths & Realities (Ed. with Edgar Olsen; 1981)
• Discrimination, Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity (Ed. with Michael A. Walker; 1982)
• Taxation: An International Perspective (Ed. with Michael A. Walker; 1984)
• Economics and the Environment: A Reconciliation (Ed.; 1985; translated into Portuguese 1992) ISBN 0-88975-067-X
• Morality of the Market: Religious and Economic Perspectives (Ed. with Geoffrey Brennan, Kenneth Elzinga; 1985)
• Theology, Third World Development and Economic Justice (Ed. with Donald Shaw; 1985)
• Reaction: The New Combines Investigation Act (Ed.; 1986)
• Religion, Economics & Social Thought (Ed. with Irving Hexham; 1986)
• Man, Economy and Liberty: Essays in Honor of Murray N. Rothbard (Ed. with Lew Rockwell; 1988)
• Breaking the Shackles; the Economics of Deregulation: A Comparison of U.S. and Canadian Experience (Ed. with George Lermer; 1991)
• Economic Freedom: Toward a Theory of Measurement (Ed.; 1991)
• Libertarian Autobiographies (Ed.; forthcoming)

Articles

• "Katrina and the Future of New Orleans" Telos 139, Summer 2007.
• "Hayek's Road to Serfdom". Journal of Libertarian Studies (Center for Libertarian Studies) 12 (2): 339–365 (1996).

Notes

1. "WalterBlock.com – Austrian Economist and Libertarian Theorist:". Retrieved 2012-05-31.
2. "Psychology Today". Profile of Walter Block.
3. ^ Walter Block faculty page,Loyola University New Orleans, accessed July 31, 2013.
4. "Mises Institute Faculty Listing". Retrieved 31 July 2013.
5. ^ Walter Block. "On Autobiography." LewRockwell.com. 4 December 2002.
6. Block, Walter. "Open Letter to Ron Paul by Walter Block." LewRockwell.com. 28 December 2007.
7. "Radical Economics: An Interview with Walter Block." Austrian Economics Newsletter. Summer 1999.
8. Public Choice, publication of Springer Science+Business Media.
9. Walter Block "expert" page, Psychology Today website, accessed July 31, 2013.
10. ^ Marcus Epstein, Defending the Truly Undefendable
11. Walter Block, Defending the Defendable book reprint, Ludwig von Mises Institute, 2008 version.
12. Harvard Political Review, Volumes 4-7, 1976, p. 46.
13. Walter Block, "Towards a Libertarian Theory of Inalienability: A Critique of Rothbard, Barnett, Smith, Kinsella, Gordon, and Epstein." pp. 39–85, Journal of Libertarian Studies, vol. 17, no. 2, Spring 2003, p. 44, p. 48, p. 82 and p. 46
14. ^ Gill, James (November 26, 2008). "Loyola economics chair Walter Block ignites furor for asserting that women, blacks less productive in workplace." Times-Picayune
15. Guess, Andy (November 19, 2008). "When Austrian Economics and Jesuit Theology Don't Mix." Inside Higher Education
16. ^ Block, Walter (November 18, 2008). "A (Not So) Funny Thing Happened to me in Baltimore." LewRockwell.com
17. Walter Block, Battling Political Correctness, LewRockwell.com, December 16, 2008
18. Block, Walter. The Privatization of Roads and Highways: Human and Economic Factors; Auburn, AL: The Mises Institute, 2009
19. • Walter Block, "Toward a Libertarian Theory of Guilt and Punishment for the Crime of Statism", in Property, Freedom, & Society: Essays in Honor of Hans-Hermann Hoppe, ed. Jörg Guido Hülsmann and N. Stephan Kinsella (Auburn, AL: Ludwig von Mises Institute, 2009), 137–148
    • Walter Block, "Libertarian Punishment Theory: Working for, and Donating to, the State", Libertarian Papers 1, no. 17 (2009): 1–31.
20. Block, Walter. 2009. Libertarian Punishment Theory: Working for, and Donating to, the State, Libertarian Papers. Vol 1, Num. 17
21. • Walter Block, Compromising the Uncompromisable: A Private Property Approach to Resolving the Abortion Controversy, Walter Block personal web site, originally published in Appalachian Journal of Law, Vol 4:1.
    • Jakub Bozydar Wisniewski, "A Critique of Block on Abortion and Child Abandonment", LibertariansPapers.org, project of Ludwig Von Mises Institute, VOL. 2, ART. NO. 16 (2010)
22. Block, Walter. 2010. A Libertarian Perspective on the Stem Cell Debate: Compromising the Uncompromisible, Journal of Medicine and Philosophy.  Vol. 35: 429–448
23. Misery, proper, is a feeling of great unhappiness, suffering and/or pain.
24. Jakobsson, Carl. 2010. The Negative Homesteading Theory: Rejoinder to Walter Block on Human Body Shields, Journal of Libertarian Studies. Vol. 22 Num. 1

External links

• Walter Block faculty page, College of Business Administration, Loyola University New Orleans.
• WalterBlock.com
• Commentary by Walter Block for CNBC
• Biography and Article Archive at Mises.org.
• Media Archive at Mises.org.
• Defending the Undefendable

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