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| Author | Walter Block |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Subject | moral philosophy, political economy |
| Publisher | Fleet Press |
| Publication date | 1976; 2008 Mises Institute edition |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | Paperback |
| Pages | 256 |
| ISBN | 9781933550176 |
| OCLC | 248638106 |
| Dewey Decimal | 973.925 |
| LC Class | HB95 .B58 |
Defending the Undefendable is a book by Walter Block originally published in 1976 which defends various classes of individuals whom conventional wisdom would regard as undesirables. Block is best known for the book 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". The book advocates for the application of the non-aggression principle of libertarianism also in non-popular cases and support privatization of all public services. It has been translated into ten foreign languages.
Friedrich Hayek wrote to Walter Block about this book: "Looking through Defending the Undefendable made me feel that I was once more exposed to the shock therapy by which, more than fifty years ago, the late Ludwig von Mises converted me to a consistent free market position. … Some may find it too strong a medicine, but it will still do them good even if they hate it. A real understanding of economics demands that one disabuses oneself of many dear prejudices and illusions. Popular fallacies in economics frequently express themselves in unfounded prejudices against other occupations, and showing the falsity of these stereotypes you are doing a real services, although you will not make yourself more popular with the majority."
John Stossel said of it, "Defending the Undefendable... opened my eyes to the beauties of libertarianism. It explains that so much of what is assumed to be evil – is not." In 2011, writing that economics "illuminates what common sense overlooks", Stossel called the book "eye-opening" and detailed its contents.
References
- Walter Block, Defending the Defendable book reprint, Ludwig von Mises Institute, 2008 version.
- Defending the Truly Undefendable
- Harvard Political Review, Volumes 4-7, 1976, p. 46.
- Walter Block faculty page, Loyola University New Orleans, accessed July 31, 2013.
- Defending the Undefendable listing at Ludwig von Mises Institute website.
- American Spectator, December, 2006, p. 37.
- John Stossel, Almost Everything We're Taught Is Wrong, Using economics to explode fallacies, Reason, August 25, 2011.
External links
- Defending the Undefendable. Online edition, by Ludwig von Mises Institute
- LCCN 74-21359