Defending the Undefendable读书介绍
| 类别 | 页数 | 译者 | 网友评分 | 年代 | 出版社 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 书籍 | 257页 | 8.2 | 2020 | Ludwig von Mises Institute |
| 定价 | 出版日期 | 最近访问 | 访问指数 |
|---|---|---|---|
| USD 15.00 | 2020-02-20 … | 2020-08-05 … | 13 |
Professor Block's book is in a new edition from the Mises Institute, completely reset and beautifully laid out in an edition worthy of its contents.
It is among the most famous of the great defenses of victimless crimes and controversial economic practices, from profiteering and gouging to bribery and blackmail. However, beneath the surface, this book is also an outstanding work of microeconomic theory that explains the workings of economic forces in everyday events and affairs.
Murray Rothbard explains why:
"Defending the Undefendable performs the service of highlighting, the fullest and starkest terms, the essential nature of the productive services performed by all people in the free market. By taking the most extreme examples and showing how the Smithian principles work even in these cases, the book does far more to demonstrate the workability and morality of the free market than a dozen sober tomes on more respectable industries and activities. By testing and proving the extreme cases, he all the more illustrates and vindicates the theory."
F.A. Hayek agreed, writing the author as follows: "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 economic 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."
The contents of this book include:
Foreword by Murray N. Rothbard
Commentary by F.A. Hayek
Introduction
Sexual
The Prostitute
The Pimp
The Male Chauvinist Pig
Medical
The Drug Pusher
The Drug Addict
Free Speech
The Blackmailer
The Slanderer or Libeler
The Denier of Academic Freedom
The Advertiser
The Person Who Yells "Fire!" in a Crowded Theatre
Outlaw
The Gypsy Cab Driver
The Ticket Scalper
The Dishonest Cop
Financial
The (Non-Government) Counterfeiter
The Miser
The Inheritor
The Moneylender
The Non-Contributor to Charity
Business and Trade
The Curmudgeon
The Slumlord
The Ghetto Merchant
The Speculator
The Importer
The Middleman
The Profiteer
Ecology
The Stripminer
The Litterer
The Wastemakers
Labor
The Fat Capitalist-Pig Employer
The Scab
The Rate Buster
The Employer of Child Labor
232 pp. (pb)
SUPPORTERS
"Looking through 'Defending the Undefendable' made me feel that I was once more exposed to the shock therapy by which, more than 50 years ago, the late Ludwig von Mises converted me to a consistent free market position. Even now I am occasionally at first incredulous and feel that "this is going too far," but usually find in the end that Block is right. Some may find it too strong a medicine, but it wills till 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 in showing the falsitty of these stereotypes Block is doing a real servic, although he will not make himself more popular with the majority."
--FA Hayek
"Judging from the outraged responses in many libertarian quarters, many of 'our people' are not ready for this exciting and shocking adventure. Since libertarians are, or are supposed to be on the forefront of thought, since their whole lives have been an intellectual adventure in many ways, the hostility becomes even more mysterious."
--Murray N. Rothbard
"There are things that I strongly agree with and things that I strongly disagree with, but the book thoughout is amusingly and sharply reasoned, couragous and always provocative."
--Henry Hazlitt
"Many years ago Hazlitt's little masterpiece, Economics in One Lesson, demonstrated how, in order to measure the consequences of economic activies, one must look beyond their immediately obvious effects to thir secondary effects. Here Professor Block sets out highly specific, and sometimes shocking examples of Hazlitt's thesis. By concentrating on the positive economic contributions of extreme cases, he forces the reader's consideration and greater appreciation of these principles."
--Robert D. Kephart
"It is a magnificent book, a trailblazer. I would call it ;Drano for Clogged Minds,' except that Drano is neither amusing nor stimulating, and this book is both. I suggest buying two copies: one for yourself and one for the person you want most to catch up with you."
--Roger Lea MacBride
"...More than almost any current book, DTU will wake the reader from his dogmatic slumbers. It is eminently readable, challenging, and provocative."
--John Hospers
"Startling and illuminating! Block's lucid defenses often convince: sometimes they lead us to sharpen our attack. In either case, the reader cannot fail to be instructed and challenged by this mind-stretching, provocative, and occasionally infuriating book."
--Robert Nozick
"What the critics have missed is that a book of libertarianism, not Objectivism, not Christianity, DTU used the most effective method for illustrating and teaching moral principles. Shock your friends and educate them."
--Don Ernsberger, S.I.L.
"This witty and wonderful book is a veritable manual of the 'joy of freedom.' IUf we were only half as interested in liberty as in lust, we would not have half the problems we have."
--Dr. Thomas S. Szasz
"The most entertaining and one of the most instructive economics books I've ever read. Block's unique style helps you see what's going on around you quickly and clearly. The book is terrific. Taking the most extreme examples possible and clarifying them will do more to bend the reader's economic thinking than a slow steady course in good economics."
--Harry Browne
"We can congratulate Dr. Block for some iconoclastic and courageous interpretations."
--Albert Ellis (psychologist)
"After reading Block's book, we recognize the pimp as an honest broker and the uncorrupted cop as the Nuremberg defendant who always followed orders. We are reminded that strip mining of coal allows miners to escape black-lung disease and cave-ins... Block gives the reader succinct yet penetrating criticisms of the Federal Reserve System, and the Keynesian paradox of savings. His chapter on charity is the best modern defense of social Darwinism that I have ever read."
--Williamson Evers
"It is a brilliant, relentlessly argued book, pushing the libertarian case to its extreme limits...take seriously Ayn Rand;s dictum that one should be willing to defend the least attractive instance of a principle, and has done precisely that."
--Roy Childs (Editor: Libertarian Review)
"Shatters, one by one, each of our liberal steroetypes. It's a pleasure to read and a treasure trove of ammunition for the defender of the free market."
--Tom G. Palmer (The New Gaurd)
"toleration of unpopular religious and cultural groups has always been one of the chief tenets of classical liberalism...Block carries this libertarian principle to its logical and radical conclusion: toleration of all non-aggressive pursuits."
--Lawrence White (Harvard Political Review)
"A remarkable book. I found myself agreeing with Block for most of the time, and hi
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