''Defending the Undefendable'' is a 1976 book by American economist

Walter Block Walter Edward Block (born August 21, 1941) is an American Austrian School economist and anarcho-capitalist theorist. He was the Harold E. Wirth Eminent Scholar Endowed Chair in Economics at the School of Business at Loyola University New Orlean ...

. It has been translated into ten foreign languages. The book advances the thesis that various people are stigmatized for engaging in acts that are often illegal or disreputable yet do not involve violence or violation of property. Block further proposes these people may in fact benefit society. Each chapter examines a different type of person, including

prostitute Prostitution is a type of sex work that involves engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-pe ...

blackmail Blackmail is a criminal act of coercion using a threat. As a criminal offense, blackmail is defined in various ways in common law jurisdictions. In the United States, blackmail is generally defined as a crime of information, involving a thr ...

ers,

miser A miser is a person who is reluctant to spend money, sometimes to the point of forgoing even basic comforts and some necessities, in order to hoard money or other possessions. Although the word is sometimes used loosely to characterise anyone ...

s and

litter Litter consists of waste products that have been discarded incorrectly, without consent, at an unsuitable location. The waste is objects, often man-made, such as aluminum cans, paper cups, food wrappers, cardboard boxes or plastic bottles, but ...

ers. The original edition included illustrations by

Charles Rodrigues Charles Rodrigues (September 29, 1926 – June 14, 2004) was an American cartoonist perhaps best known as a contributor to '' National Lampoon''. Biography Rodrigues was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts; his father came from Madeira, Portugal, ...

and a foreword from

Murray Rothbard Murray Newton Rothbard (; March 2, 1926 – January 7, 1995) was an American economist of the Austrian School,Ronald Hamowy, ed., 2008, The Encyclopedia of Libertarianism', Cato Institute, Sage, , p. 62: "a leading economist of the Austri ...

, with commentary provided by

F. A. Hayek Friedrich August von Hayek (8 May 1899 – 23 March 1992) was an Austrian-born British academic and philosopher. He is known for his contributions to political economy, political philosophy and intellectual history. Hayek shared the 1974 Nobe ...

. The book's 2013 sequel, ''Defending the Undefendable II: Freedom in All Realms'', included a foreword by

Ron Paul Ronald Ernest Paul (born August 20, 1935) is an American author, activist, and politician who served as the U.S. representative for Texas's 22nd congressional district from 1976 to 1977, and again from 1979 to 1985, as well as for Texas' ...

Reception

Economist

thought that by emphasizing marginal scenarios, ''Defending the Undefendable'' "does far more to demonstrate the workability and morality of the

free market In economics, a free market is an economic market (economics), system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of ...

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." Libertarian activist

Sharon Presley Sharon Presley (March 23, 1943 – October 31, 2022) was an American libertarian feminist, writer, activist, and lecturer in psychology. Education and work Presley received a B.A. in psychology from the University of California, Berkeley, a ...

had a more critical take, agreeing with large parts of it but calling it "a bizarre combination of both excellent and horrible elements". She offered some praise for its "valid economic and political analysis" but also criticized its "sensationalistic style", several instances of "faulty logic", and its overly "mechanistic and insensitive view of human behavior". She feared it might ultimately act to discredit the ideas it was meant to promote, concluding that it is "a positive menace to the libertarian movement and dramatically demonstrates Rand's statement that the worst enemies of capitalism are its defenders." Cable news pundit

John Stossel John Frank Stossel (born March 6, 1947) is an American libertarian television presenter, author, consumer journalist, political activist, and pundit. He is known for his career as a host on ABC News, Fox Business Network, and Reason TV. Stos ...

said of it, "''Defending the Undefendable''... opened my eyes to the beauties of

libertarianism Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according t ...

. 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.

"Almost Everything We're Taught Is Wrong, Using economics to explode fallacies"
, ''Reason'', August 25, 2011. The philosopher

Tibor Machan Tibor Richard Machan (; 18 March 1939 – 24 March 2016) was a Hungarian-American philosopher. A professor emeritus in the department of philosophy at Auburn University, Machan held the R. C. Hoiles Chair of Business Ethics and Free Enterpri ...

, who generally shared Block's libertarian leanings, wrote that the book "defends some of the silliest ideas in support of an essentially good cause... He raises some stimulating issues, even if in an intellectually inadequate fashion."

References

External links

Defending the Undefendable
Online edition, by

Ludwig von Mises Institute The Ludwig von Mises Institute for Austrian Economics, or Mises Institute, is a nonprofit think tank headquartered in Auburn, Alabama, that is a center for Austrian economics, right-wing libertarian thought and the paleolibertarian and anarcho ...

* {{Portal bar, Law, Philosophy, Society Anarcho-capitalist books 1976 non-fiction books

Reception

Further reading

References

External links