SurrealPolitiks S01E062 - Against Libertarianism

On Episode 72 of the Radical Agenda, our uncensored production, I penned and pronounced a defense of one Walter Block after he was stripped of his titles at the Mises Institute, and the Ron Paul Institute, both libertarian think tanks.

Subsequent to this I ended up in a correspondence with Mr. Block. I won't share his words, as I've not sought his permission to do so, but the things I had to say to him are also worth saying to you, and what follows is an adaptation of several emails I sent to him.

It is not lost on me that I could be credibly accused of using this "defense" as more of a way to push my own agenda, but the title of the episode does convey an accurate sentiment. I've always been very fond of you, and I have long admired your intellect.

I have never observed you behaving dishonestly, which is more than I can say for your detractors.

When I saw Hoppe come after you, I figured it's just a disagreement. One which many reasonable people have these days, as you surely know too well.

When I saw they pushed you out of Mises, that I genuinely got mad about.

The Hoppe piece had been brought to my attention during a live show by a caller. I read Hoppe's piece on air, along with some unprepared commentary based on what I had just read. The episode number escapes me at the moment, or I'd point you toward the recording.

The gist of what I said then, and currently believe, is, I don't think it is at all unreasonable to say that an identifiable group has a collective right to something. Whether one claim or another is legitimate is a different story, but conceptually, this is the nature of the human condition, and those who resist it, do violence to the peace and happiness of mankind. Trying to conceptualize things in this atomized legalistic way libertarians are predisposed to doing, simply does not work in real life.

They actually know this, as evidenced by their abhorrence of genocide. They see it is as much worse to kill a race of people than to simply kill some equal number of a heterogeneous population with little in common. This disparity of moral sentiment stems from a recognition that the race of people has a collective right to exist which is actually of a higher order than any individual member. They refuse to say this out loud, but it is an obvious inference from their other statements and behaviors.

The rest of this monologue and your calls at 217-688-1433, this and every Monday on SurrealPolitiks.