Should I Tone Down My Language?

From: D
Sent: Tuesday, March 12, 2019 2:28 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Your article titled “I’m An ‘Austrian’ Economist: What Does It Mean?”

Walter,

For quite some time now, I’ve read every article that appears on Lew Rockwell’s site, and it was through his site that I was introduced to your work, and am one of your loyal fans.  I’m writing in regard to an article you wrote that appeared on Lew’s site March 9, 2019 titled “I’m An ‘Austrian’ Economist:  What Does It Mean?”  I’m here to suggest that you tone down your use of words that are not particularly well known to the general public and even to well-educated people like myself (MBA in Finance from the University of Texas, 1968).  In the above-referenced article you used the following words or terms:

•        praxeological

•        logical positivists

•        falsifiability

•        apodictic

•        ex-ante

•        synthetic apriori claims

•        attainted

•        tautologies

•        Giffen good

•        praxeological

•        indifference curves

•        transitivity

•        cardinal utility

•        ordinal

•        Phillips Curve

•        asymmetrical information

•        progenitors

•        endogenous

I don’t mind doing a Google search once in a while for a word or term, but I urge you to consider giving your loyalists a break by using more commonly known words.  While you clearly have a superior grasp of the English language, you are not helping yourself with the use of esoterica that’s beyond the comprehension of 99% of your readers — it’s counterproductive.  In closing, I remind you that I’m a loyal fan of your work, but I respectfully ask that you back it down a notch or two.

All the best,

D

From: Walter Block [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Tuesday, March 12, 2019 1:48 PM
To: D
Subject: RE: Your article titled “I’m An ‘Austrian’ Economist: What Does It Mean?”

Dear D:

Thanks for trying to let me know, in effect, that my fly is sort of open. I appreciate this feedback.

On the other hand, this essay/op ed did appear, first, in real clear markets, which is written for the layman:

Block, Walter. 2019. “I’m an ‘Austrian’ Economist: What Does It Mean?” March 7; https://www.realclearmarkets.com/articles/2019/03/07/im_an_austrian_economist_what_does_it_mean_103651.html;

https://www.economicpolicyjournal.com/2019/03/im-austrian-economist-what-does-it-mean.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed:+economicpolicyjournal/KpwH+(EconomicPolicyJournal.com); https://www.lewrockwell.com/2019/03/walter-e-block/im-an-austrian-economist-what-does-it-mean/

I’ll seriously consider what you say. And, thanks for your kind words. But, I think you underestimate the economic sophistication of the readers of LRC, and Real Clear Markets too. Yours is the only complaint/suggestion about this sort of thing I have ever had. “Attainted?” Probably a typo.

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4:22 pm on July 16, 2019