Liberty Magazine November 1988
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':Liberty is ancient,; it is despotism that is new." - :French proverb. November 1988 $4.00 Volume 2/ Number 2 r---;:-----:-------- ...------] I S'Jlltter,,,g ~ I tbe Mytbs of I I MllrX;6111 I I With fully three-fourths ofthe world enmeshed in the I Marxist mythos, no American can afford not to I I understand its underlying ideology. Thomas Sowell, who I has seen the issue from bpth sides (first as adherent, and I later opponent) makes Marxism a fascinating, sometimes I I frightening study. LivelY,lucid and enlightening, Marxism . I will acquaint readers with the facts, and offer fresh I I insights into their history and application to the present. I I·Detailed, point-by-point '• Why Marx's actual • Risk and incentive as spurs to I analysis of Marx as contributions to economic economic development-the I economist, philosopher, theory amount to "virtually issues Marx conveniently I I historian, prognosticator, zero." ignored. I revolutionary...and man. I I • Marx's historical and • The "historical justification'" ·How Marxists speak boldly economic predictions-why theory, and its bloody-and I I "in the name of the workers he made them; why they inevitable-aftermath. I I without their consent [but] in failed. defiance of their contrary • The contradictions-and I I views and actions." • Why "Marxism was-and I remains-a mighty perversions-of Marxist I instrument for the acquisition theory made by Lenin, Stalin, • Whyeven Marx himself and others. I I would disagree with the and maintenance of political I I claims of "good intentions" power." made by his disciples. • Marx's youth as a "spoiled I I rich kid" -and its enduring I ORDER NOW AVAILABLE 5£95 legacy throughout his life and I I TOU-FREE IN PAPERBACK U writings. I 11-800-238-2200 r-~-------------- 1 I ext. 500 I Book #T54120 Send your order to: ..I I Book ##TS4120 I D Please send me -- copies of LAISSEZ FAlKE BOOKS, II I Thomas Sowell's MARXISM: Charge your I Philosophy and Economics for Dept. LIB, 532 Broadway, II I Visa or MasterCard only $6.95 each plus $1.00 postage New York, NY 10012 and handling, or $2.00 UPS ($2.00 II I Continental U.S. I for foreign orders). NY State resi- Card No. * 24 hours a day * I dents add appropriate sales tax. Exp. Date II I 7 days a week I 0 Send me your FREE 32-page cata- Signature II I MONEY BACK log of books on liberty. Name (Print) ~~ _ D My check or money order is en- II I GUARANTEE I closed for $ . Street ----------- Iffor any reason you are I 0 Please bill my City II I dissatisfied witb. tbis book, 0 Visa 0 MasterCard State/Zip just return it witbin • ----------+ • I 30 daysfor a refund. • ...---------_ ..-_.... • L .-~ Contents November 1988 Volume 2, Number 2 The Search for We The .Living by R. W. Bradford, page 17 Eternity in 2 Hours and 50 Minutes by Stephen Cox, page 30 Taking Over the Roads by John Semmens, page 34 Motives and Values: Theories That Make Sense by Allan Levite, page 39 symposium Hans-Hermann Hoppe's Argumentation Ethics: Breakthrough or Buncombe? page 44 Discussion by David Friedman, Murray Rothbard, Leland Yeager, David Gordon, Ethan Waters, David Steele, Mitchell Jones, Timothy Virkkala, Douglas Rasmussen, Tibor Machan, and Hans-Hermann Hoppe Private Property: Hope for the Environment by Jane S. Shaw, page 55 Perestroika and Economic Liberty by James S. Robbins, page 59 Departments • Reflections The Editors "Editorialize," page 5 The Presidential Election, 1988, page 11 Reviews John Dentinger on Cooperation and Envy, page 65 Walter Block on Canadian Political Culture, page 71 William P. Moulton on the Nobody's America, page 72 Mike Holmes on Dirty Harry, page 76 Booknotes, page 74 Buronic Episodes, page 58 Letters, page 4 Classified Advertisements, page 74 Contributors, page 77 Terra Incognita, pages 78 ful one on our wall ("An embarrassment of riches") that shows Scrooge, Donald, and the nephews attempting to measure [ Letters ] the depth of the money bin, which is piled high with jewels, silver and gold coins, a tractor for moving money around, and Sports: Curse or Blessing? contrived to distract and frighten the un lots of other stuff. I read with interest "Young Money: suspecting and gullible. Sandy Shaw Curse or Blessing?" by Karl Hess(Sept., Communism has amply demonstrated Durk Pearson 1988) mainly because I am a fifteen year itself to be a self-defeating exercise and Los Angeles, Calif. old kid who enjoys making money, also. can only be sustained by force of massive Boycott Pollutersl My best job, to date, was finding the governmental oppression. It is govern Bravo to John Hospers ("Liberty and congressional districts of the signers of the ment itself, and not only socialist or com Ecology," Sept. 1988), for bravely con petitions of Missouri Libertarian Party for munist systems, which is the greatest fronting ecology! Ron Paul's Ballot Access Committee. I had threat to human liberty. Only when the I agree with Hospers, and with the a hell of a good time earning the money. voracious beast of big government is ecologists, that population density is the This, though, was not very entrepreneuri starved down to manageable size and key factor in the destruction of the life alofme. then very tightly leashed and caged, can supporting env~ronment.Population den I was disturbed by Mr. Hess' contrast liberty flourish. Would that we might find sity is also a philosophical concern, in that ing of sports and economics. I play foot a method of starving the beast to death. it threatens to undermine our closely held ball, not because I want to win trophies, Rick Tompkins concepts of personal freedom. It is much but because I have fun. While I enjoy win Mesa, Ariz. easier to act freely (let's say by swinging ning, losing is not devastating, or even McDuck Facts one's arms) when one is alone in the wil disturbing. I think kids can have fun earn Thanks for running the piece about d~rness, than when one is in a crowd of ing money and participating in sports, Scrooge McDuck (Sept., 1988), one of our people. This seems obvious, but the logi however I think inboth they can go over heroes, and Carl Barks, his creator. Your cal conclusion is that liberty is relative, not board and not find any enjoyment at all. article didn't mention (perhaps the au absolute. Liberty is relative to the distance John LaBeaume thor didn't know about it) that the entire to the next person's nose, which is a func University City, Mo. series of Barks' Scrooge McDuck and tion of population density. Statism, not Communism Donald Duck comics has been beautifully Just as population density naturally Stephen Cox's reaction to the "Threat reprinted and is now available in bound creates restrictive limits on our physical of Communism"("Poll Observations," book form from Another Rainbow Pub behavior, it puts natural limits on our eco July, 1988) was-interesting? It amazes lishing, Inc., Box 2206, Scottsdale, AZ nomic actions. Who is to determine the ex me to observe the extent to which other 85252. Another Rainbow also offers limit tent of these limitations? Hospers is correct in his denunciation of one world govern wise apparently rational people become ed edition prints of Scrooge McDuckthat entranced by this and other "bogie men" Barks is still painting. We have a wonder- ment, but he offers no alternative. I believe that the power of boycott remains to be ef fectively exploited. Major polluters and From the Publisher ... eco-destroyers must be economically chas tised, so thatit will be cheaper for them to The release ofthe film We The Living in November is an important event for allliber clean up than to pollute. Ifthe environ tarians: it is perhaps the most powerful anti-state film ever produced. It is especially mentalists would focus their attention on important for those (like myself) who have been heavily influenced by Ayn Rand. education and organizing selective boy So we decided to publish both a review of the film and an account of the remarka cotts, rather than trying to influence na ble story of its production, loss and rediscovery. Steve Cox, who wrote ''The Films tionallegislation, they would be much of Ayn Rand" for Liberty's inaugural issue (August 1987) agreed to write the re view. I first invited Erika Holzer (co-producer of the subtitled version of the film), more effective. Legislation is a totally inef ficient (and dangerous) way to accomplish but she had other commitments. After asking several others, I reluctantly took on anything in the economic sphere, much the job myself. less in the complex task of preserving the I had no idea of what I was getting myself into: what at first seemed like a simple ecosystem. reporting job turned into a complicated and frustrating task, involving hours of in Richard A. "AI" Date terviews and research. The deeper I got into the story the more mysterious parts of Santa Clara, Calif. it became. Before long, I had uncovered evidence that some of the most widely re peated "facts" about the film (e.g. that the Fascists banned the film) were almost Canines &Character certainly not true. The resulting story (which begins on p. 17) is far different from Mike Holmes' rage directed at my what I had anticipated. book Dogs of Capitalism (Sept., 1988) appar This issue also features several vigorous criticisms of Hoppe's revolutionary the ently caused his brain to shut down.