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Walter Block's avatar

yes, I agree. we should be able to disagree without being disagreeable. Here are my disagreements with Hoppe; none of them are disagreeable:

Block, 1998, 2004, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011A, 2011B, 2021; Block and Barnett, 2010; Block, Barnett and Salerno, 2006; Block and Callahan. 2003; Block and Futerman, 2024; Gregory and Block. 2007.

Block, Walter E. 1998. "A Libertarian Case for Free Immigration," Journal of Libertarian Studies: An Interdisciplinary Review, Vol. 13, No. 2, summer, pp. 167-186; http://www.mises.org/journals/jls/13_2/13_2_4.pdf

Block, Walter E. 2004. “The State Was a Mistake.” Book review of Hoppe, Han-Hermann, Democracy, The God that Failed: The Economics and Politics of Monarchy, Democracy and Natural Order, 2001May 25. http://www.mises.org/fullstory.asp?control=1522

Block, Walter E. 2007. “Plumb Line Libertarianism: A Critique of Hoppe.” Reason Papers, Vol. 29, Fall, pp. 151-163; http://www.reasonpapers.com/pdf/29/rp_29_10.pdf; http://www.academia.edu/1425340/Plumb_Line_Libertarianism_A_Critique_of_Hoppe; https://reasonpapers.com/pdf/29/rp_29_10.pdf

Block, Walter E. 2009. “Rejoinder to Hoppe on indifference” Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics; Vol. 12, No. 1: 52–59; http://mises.org/journals/qjae/pdf/qjae12_1_4.pdf

Block, Walter E. with William Barnett II. 2010. “Rejoinder to Hoppe on indifference, once again.” Reason Papers, Vol. 32, pp. 141-154; http://reasonpapers.com/pdf/32/rp_32_9.pdf

Block, Walter E. 2010. “Libertarianism is unique; it belongs neither to the right nor the left: a critique of the views of Long, Holcombe, and Baden on the left, Hoppe, Feser and Paul on the right.” Journal of Libertarian Studies; Vol. 22: 127–70; http://mises.org/journals/jls/22_1/22_1_8.pdf; http://www.mises.org/journals/scholar/block15.pdf; https://mises.org/library/libertarianism-unique-and-belongs-neither-right-nor-left-critique-views-long-holcombe-and

Block, Walter E. 2011A. “Hoppe, Kinsella and Rothbard II on Immigration: A Critique.” Journal of Libertarian Studies; Vol. 22, No. 1, pp. 593–623; http://mises.org/journals/jls/22_1/22_1_29.pdf

Block, Walter E. 2011B. “Rejoinder to Hoppe on Immigration,” Journal of Libertarian Studies Vol. 22, No. 1, pp. 771–792; http://mises.org/journals/jls/22_1/22_1_38.pdf

Block, Walter E., William Barnett II and Joseph Salerno. 2006. “Relationship between wealth or income and time preference is empirical, not apodictic: critique of Rothbard and Hoppe,” Review of Austrian Economics, Vol. 19, No. 2, pp. 69-80; http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11138-006-6094-8

Block, Walter E. and Gene Callahan. 2003. “Is There a Right to Immigration? A Libertarian Perspective,” Human Rights Review. Vol. 5, No. 1, October-December, pp. 46-71

Block, Walter E. 2021. “A Critical Evaluation of Hoppe's ‘Getting Libertarianism Right’.” Estudios Libertarios, Vol. 4, August, pp. 32-66; file:///C:/Users/WBlock/Downloads/A-critical-evaluation-of-Hoppe-1%20(3).pdf;

file:///C:/Users/WBlock/Downloads/A-critical-evaluation-of-Hoppe-1%20(7).pdf; https://www.estudioslibertarios.com/en_US/vol-4-2021/; https://estudioslibertarios.org/en/vol-4-2021/

Block, Walter E. and Alan G. Futerman. 2024. “Rejoinder to Hoppe on Israel versus Hamas.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUBDkyoJkiY; https://www.meste.org/mest/MEST_Najava/XXIV_Block_Futerman.pdf; https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UrihMAZak4qHXS6kF-GtRVNV1KSY2R6N/view; https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_LHXcokLcZx8-T75Tv7rBHl1dABTidIj/view;

Reprint: https://www.hyehudi.org/walter-block-responds-to-hans-hoppes-attack/

Gregory, Anthony and Walter E. Block. 2007. “On Immigration: Reply to Hoppe.” Journal of Libertarian Studies, vol. 21, No. 3, Fall, pp. 25-42; http://mises.org/journals/jls/21_3/21_3_2.pdf; http://www.academia.edu/1360109/On_Immigration_Reply_to_Hoppe; https://mises.org/system/tdf/21_3_2.pdf?file=1&type=document

Indifference:: indifferent::

Debate between Walter Block and Hans-Hermann Hoppe on Nozick’s methodology and indifference::

1. Block, Walter E. 1980. "On Robert Nozick's 'On Austrian Methodology'." Inquiry, Vol. 23, No. 4, Fall, pp. 397-444; http://www.walterblock.com/publications/on_robert_nozick.pdf;

http://www.walterblock.com/wp-content/uploads/publications/on_robert_nozick.pdf; Spanish translation, Libertas, Vol. 14, No. 26, May 1997, pp. 71-131

2. Hoppe, Hans-Hermann. 2005. “Must Austrians Embrace Indifference?” Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics 8 (4): 87–91; online at: http://www.Mises.org/story/2003.

3. Block, Walter E. 2009. “Rejoinder to Hoppe on Indifference” Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics; Vol. 12, No. 1: 52–59; http://mises.org/journals/qjae/pdf/qjae12_1_4.pdf

4. Hoppe, Hans-Hermann. 2009. “Further Notes on Preference and Indifference: Rejoinder to Block,” Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics 12, no. 1, pp. 60-64, http://mises.org/journals/qjae/pdf/qjae12_1_5.pdf.

5. Block, Walter E. with William Barnett II. 2010. “Rejoinder to Hoppe on indifference, once again.” Reason Papers, Vol. 32, pp. 141-154; http://reasonpapers.com/pdf/32/rp_32_9.pdf

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Walter Block's avatar

Dear Wanda: I couldn't agree with you more fervently. Best regards, Walter

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Wanda Halpert's avatar

Many people are saying that Israel is committing 'genocide' against Palestinians, when, in fact, they are fighting back against an invasion on Oct 7, 2023. When the Nazis invaded Poland in 1939, my Polish father fought back with the Allied forces. They kept fighting the Nazis until they were stopped. Hamas does not want to work with Israel, they want to exterminate them. They must be stopped.

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John F. Miller's avatar

Like Professor Hoppe’s earlier criticism, I don’t understand why Dr. DiLorenzo felt compelled to make this so personal and in effect publicly excommunicate Dr. Block from the Liberty movement.

Instead of an inflammatory title about “Mad Zionism” why not title the piece “My Dear Friend Walter Block Is In Grievous Error On The Israeli-Hamas War And Here Is Why…”

As it stands, such a strain of dialogue has done nothing to advance the ideals that both Dr. DiLorenzo and Dr. Block have so passionately advanced in their respective careers.

Can we disagree with Dr. Block on this issue — or on any particular issue — and still remain a Walter Block “fanboy”?

I certainly hope so as I always will appreciate Dr. Block for consistently challenging my preconceptions on how to approach the issues of the day.

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The Wiltster's avatar

Doc Block, I appreciate your prose. And I have tried, difficult though it can be, to stay out of the "Who's Wrong? Who's Right?" intellectual and moral battle over the Israel versus Hama cage match. That said, I did offer my own thoughts, albeit much more pedestrian than yours, in this piece: https://substack.com/home/post/p-142109809.

I admit to not YET reading your whole rejoinder, but as I read though the bulk of it, this paragraph stuck me, "If Hamas had not engaged in its atrocities of October 7, 2023, the IDF would not now be dropping any bombs on Gaza. If Hamas surrendered today, and released all its hostages, one minute later there would be no more deaths, civilian or otherwise, in Gaza.20 If Hamas did not use Gazan civilians as shields, there would not have been virtually any civilian deaths, except on a collateral basis, which invariably occurs in modern warfare."

That line of thought strikes me as a similar justification a wife abuser uses when he says, "If you acted better, I wouldn't have to beat you." I am sure that either I didn't get it, or you didn't mean it that way. However, that's how it came across to me. Anyway, the level of opposing discourse in libertarian circles over this issue is fascinating, to say the least.

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