Responses To My Essay “Chicago Shootings, Deaths.”
December 31, 2016
I have had over a dozen responses to this essay of mine:
Block, Walter E. 2016. “Chicago Shootings, Deaths.” December 31;
Below, see a few of them, and my responses to them.
But, before you do, please read this form letter I post on this blog every once in a while:
I get questions on Austrian economics and libertarianism from time to time. If they are polite, I always respond, even if briefly, because I have lots of e mail messages to deal with. On occasion, I receive queries that I think worthwhile to share on this blog, such as the one below. Be warned: if you ask me what I consider an important question, I will feel free to post it on LRC along with my response, but on an anonymous basis.
I receive, oh, 100-200 e mails per day. I have this compulsion that I must answer all (polite) queries. However, I cannot engage in back and forth correspondence with all knowledgeable, kind, interested, Austro-libertarian readers of LewRockwell.com. If I did, or even tried to do so, I’d never get any other writing done. So, please forgive me for not being as responsive as I would like to be. Sometimes, as in the present thread, I’ll get dozens of letters . I’m sure you can appreciate, I can only respond to a few of them.
Here, then, is a selection of these responses to my article on murder in Chicago, and my reactions to them:
—–Original Message—–
From: SP
Sent: Sat 12/31/2016 7:10 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Socialism
Walter, Sounds like your mantra is “my way or the highway.” I do agree that all drugs. should be decriminalized. If you are serious about ending Socialism, how about starting with the corporate welfare system, such as farm subsidies, oil depletion allowances, and the ridiculous waste at the Dept. of War. Start with stopping the over hyped, too technical to fix F 35 program, and that ridiculous literal floating tin can. Nick Sent from my iPad
Dear SP: In that short essay, I was only concerned with the issue of mayhem in Chicago. Of course I want to end socialism, but I can’t write about every problem in every publication of mine. Certainly, I agree with you about the corporate welfare system, such as farm subsidies, oil depletion allowances, and the ridiculous waste at the Dept. of War. All should be ended.
—–Original Message—–
From: MM
Sent: Sat 12/31/2016 10:43 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Unions. Corporations.
Dear Mr. Block,First, just a little about myself: From southern Indiana. 74 years old. Went to one room grade schools. No electricity at home till 14 years old. No plumbing in home till I left home. “Father a part time farmer and a Union Iron Worker.” 98 percentile on national merit exam. Scholarship to U. Chicago. Flunked out first year. Worked as tooling designer. Quit. Married. Children. Joined Pipefitters Union. Retired.
I have been reading your articles for a long time. Very insightful and intelligent. I have, however, consistently seen a serious shortcoming, error. In your recent article about Chicago, you wrote: Labor unions must also be quelled. Anyone who can say that without saying in the next sentence, “Corporations must also be quelled”, is not a Libertarian. He is simplistic and narrow minded, and/or promoting corporatism. It is not possible to justify limiting unions without equally limiting corporations. Sincerely MM
Dear MM: You make a very reasonable point. Many corporations are crony capitalists, and deserve to be heavily criticized. But, there is a difference. All extant labor unions violate the non aggression principle of libertarianism (NAP), while only many, but certainly not all corporations, do so. As I said in response to the previous letter to me about this essay on murder in Chicago, not every essay can cover all important points. This article of mine might interest you: Block, Walter E. 2010. “Are unions criminal gangs?” Global Virtue Ethics Review, Vol. 6. No. 1, pp. 28-49; http://www.spaef.com/article.php?id=1176; http://www.spaef.com/file.php?id=1176; http://loyno.academia.edu/WalterBlock/Papers/1554627/Are_Unions_Criminal_Gangs;
http://www.academia.edu/1497243/Are_Unions_Criminal_Gangs
—–Original Message—–
From: RF
Sent: Sat 12/31/2016 11:24 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: CHICAGO SHOOTINGS
MR BLOCK I WOULD GIVE YOU A GRADE OF “C” ON THIS. SOMETHING S ARE GOOD/CORRECT AND OTHERS
FOLLY.YOU CAN DECIDE WITCH ONES I MEAN. BUT TO ENHANCE YOUR ANALYSIS
OF THE CHICAGO CABAL.I WOULD LIKE TO INFORM YOU OF SOMETHING I’M SURE YOU
ARE UNAWARE OF. THERE ARE NGO S/ CHRISTIAN CHARITIES WHO HAVE MONEY
SUPPLIED BY THE OBAMA ADM.BY EXEC.ORDER.THE PEOPLE WHO GET THROW OUT OF
SEC.8 HOUSING; RENT SUPPORTED HOUSING; AND REG RENTALS ARE ABLE TO GO TO
THESE SO CALLED CHRISTIAN CHARITIES AND GET VOUCHERS FOR STAYS IN HOTELS
.MOST ALL HOTELS TAKE THESE VOUCHER LOCAL AND CORP CHAINS AS WELL.THEY HAVE
NEGOTIATED SET PRICING FOR THE ROOMS.THE HOSPITALITY IND IS ALL FOR THIS,
SOME MORE THAN OTHERS DEPENDING ON THE QUALITY/PRICE LEVEL.AS AN
EXAMPLE,””IN TOWNE SUITES “” A BOTTOM EXTENDED STAY HOTEL TAKES ALL SEC 8;
CHARITY ETC.AND “‘EXTENDED STAY AMERICAN”” A MID RANGE TAKES A ABOUT 10% OT
THEIR ROOMS FOR THIS CABAL.THE HIGHER THE LEVEL OF PRICE THE LESS THEY TAKE
.AS THESE PEOPLE ARE VERY OBVIOUS AS NOT THE REGULAR TRADE.I KNOW I M
RETIRED AND STAY IN THESE PLACES.IN THE CURRENT ONE I M IN NOW IN ROCKFORD
IL THE MOTEL WAS BUILT AROUND 1958 AND REHABED BY IT S NEW OWNER 8YRS A 128
ROOMS AND ABOUT HALF OF THE ROOMS HAVE THESE PEOPLE STAYING HERE. WHY
WOULD THE HOTELS WANT TO DO THIS TWO REASON ONE IT GIVES THEM GUARANTEED
INCOME AND TWO KEEPS THEIR PRICES HIGHER BECAUSE OF OCCUPANCY.BUT THE
CONSEQUENCE S ARE HUGH AS THEY DESTROY ROOMS AND POLICE ARE HEAR OFTEN.THE
REPAIR ON THE ROOMS IS CHARGED BACK TO THE SO CALLED CHARITY .THESE ARE
PEOPLE WHO WERE THROW OUT FROM HOUSING FOR VARIOUS REASON I E DRUGS FIGHTS
ARREST NOISE DESTRUCTION ETC.AND EVERYONE HAS FOOD STAMPS AND MEDICAID.AND
ALL HAVE IPHONES PAID BY THE FEDS. I WOULD BET MY LIFE THAT NOT 1 IN 10,000
TAXPAYERS HAVE ANY CLUE TO THIS CABAL THAT OBAMA USED TO CIRCUMVENT
CONGRESS WHEN THEY REFUSED TO FUND “‘HUD”” FOR THIS PURPOSE. RF
Dear RF: I support your opposition to section 8, housing, rent controls, and indeed, all government regulations of housing (and much else too, of course). But, as I say to my two previous letter writers, it is impossible to cover all worthwhile topics in any one essay. Also, I was focusing on murder rates in Chicago, and I think, housing issues are peripheral in that. However, had I widened my scope on this narrow topic, I would have included public housing. I learned from Jane Jacobs that this institution, too, breeds criminality.
—–Original Message—–
From: MP
Sent: Sat 12/31/2016 2:32 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Chicago Shootings, Deaths
Dr. Block, Another item worth adding to your list of the reasons for Chicago’s shootings death toll is the failure of government schools. Those teenagers, who somehow make it thru four years of high school, leave school with very little in the way of marketable skills which an employer would be willing to pay even minimum wage for. So they remain permanently unemployed and without hope. MP
Dear MP: This makes it a perfect four out of four. I stand second to no one in my condemnation of public schools. But, surely, it cannot be high up on any list of causes of shootings in Chicago? Yes, high schools in the inner city are a cruel joke. They waste students’ time. But, with no minimum wage, even unprepared “students” could achieve gainful employment.
Best regards to all, and a Happy New Year, Walter
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