Jerks Attacking the Heroic Mises Institute

My comments on the Mises blog post by David Gordon on the death of philosopher G.A. Cohen: Stephan Kinsella

Tom Palmer has made a reputation of being a dishonest smearer of good people–so much so that anyone he criticizes can be presumed to be a good guy. So his criticism here backfires.

Published: August 10, 2009 10:18 AM

Lord B,

I didn’t call Cohen a good guy. I said the execrable Palmer has a history of maligning good people, leading to the rebuttable presumption that when he maligns someone, they are actually to be presumed to be a good guy.

Published: August 10, 2009 1:10 PM

Note that Leiter Reports, the most influential of all philosophy blogs, links to Palmer as one of the “Crazies”. How pathetic.

Published: August 10, 2009 1:16 PM

Andrew Zimbriano: on Palmer’s smearblog, you write: “It has opened my eyes a little more to see that people such as Kinsella defend Cohen just because you criticize him. Now I understand better what makes him tick. Someday I will ask you for the roots of why they feel that way toward you, although your columns in the Fever Swamp surely played a role, by exposing some of the less presentable parts of what some of them offer. I did learn some things there, but I wish that the good things they have to offer did not come with such unlibertarian and unattractive attachments.”

I did not defend Cohen; I quoted Gordon. Why would you say this? And why would you make the insinuation that I have unlibertarian views? I think you should re-assess, and apologize.

There is a reason people have a bad taste in their mouth re Palmer. The Mises Institute is the single most heroic institution in the world today, fighting for liberty. The sniping and dishonest attacks on it are malevolent to the core. Talk to any of the hundreds of students who pass through Mises U each year–you’ll hear how great it is.

Have an open mind and beware of the spreaders of lies and hate.

Published: August 14, 2009 8:30 AM

Zimbriano:

“I have nothing to apologize for. You wrote, concerning Dr. Palmer: “anyone he criticizes can be presumed to be a good guy”. So you presumed that Cohen was a good guy because he had been criticized by Palmer.”

Well, I wrote: “Palmer has made a reputation of being a dishonest smearer of good people–so much so that anyone he criticizes can be presumed to be a good guy. So his criticism here backfires.”

It is obvious I am making a comment on Palmer’s credibility. I’m saying that because he has little credibility, many people will dismiss his attacks and assume the contrary is true. I did not defend Cohen.

“As for unlibertarian and unattractive attachments, I was referring to the defenses of the Confederacy and the various other issues connected to it, to which I was subjected during my time at a Mises program. Not everyone shared the fascination, but it was clearly there. I do try to keep an open mind. I wonder about you, though.”

On Palmer’s blog you implied I had “unlibertarian and unattractive attachments.” Now you say you heard some defenses of the Confederacy at “a Mises program.” Even if this were some unlibertarian view (who knows), why attribute it to me? Have you ever heard me defend the Confederacy?

A goodly number of Mises Institute people are anarcho-capitalist, anti-state, and anti-war–I take it you are aware of this? As such they do not defend or support “the Confederacy,” which was just another criminal state. As anti-statists, they do condemn Lincoln and the war he waged, as do any real libertarians [no offense, Tim Sandefur]. If you find anti-war, anti-Lincoln and, yes, anti-Confederacy sentiment to be “unattractive” and “unlibertarian,” it is not me who needs to be “wondered about.”

I just attended part of Mises University 2009. There were probably about 200 students there; and dozens of faculty and staff. This happens every year. The students were bright, intelligent, eager to learn, and all passionate about liberty and individual rights and free-market economics. There are by now thousands of people who have attended Mises Institute programs and have nothing but good things to say about the absolutely heroic, crucial work they do for liberty. And there are tens of thousands more, at least, who benefit from the amazing wealth of free information provided at mises.org. Browse around–can any honest person say he sees a whiff of disgusting ideas that the maligners like your odious acquaintances accuse them of? No. Anyone who is really devoted to liberty, rights, individualism, integrity, and honesty ought to be ashamed for smearing this great Institution and these great people who are doing so much to try to spread the message of sounds economics and liberty–more than any other single group in the entire world, in my sincere view.

So, no, you have nothing to apologize for, other than falsely charging me with “defending” Cohen; imputing to me views I do not hold (re the Confederacy) and insinuating I hold unattractive and/or unlibertarian views, when I have devoted a good deal of my own life to fighting for liberty; and maligning the heroic, libertarian Mises Institute based on ridiculous charges. For shame.

Published: August 17, 2009 12:45 AM