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Author, individualist feminist
Wendy McElroy

Wendy McElroy (born 1951) is a Canadian individualist feminist and anarcho-capitalist writer. She was a co-founder along with Carl Watner and George H. Smith of The Voluntaryist magazine in 1982 and is the author of a number of books. McElroy is the editor of the website ifeminists.net.

Images

TheAdvocates.org - Wendy McElroy
200x303 JPEG, color

Born

1951, in Canada

Associations

Advocates for Self-Government, Board of Advisors
Independent Institute, Research Fellow
Institute for Humane Studies, Guest lecturer
Eris Society, 1996, "The Impact of Pornography On Women"

Websites

News - WendyMcElroy.com
Personal website, includes general blog, forum, links to McElroy's books, articles and external resources

Web Pages

Advocates for Self-Government - Libertarian Education: Wendy McElroy - Libertarian, by Bill Winter
Includes picture, biographical profile and quote
Wendy McElroy is a pioneer of 'individualist feminism' — a movement that rejects the traditional left-wing, big-government school of feminism, and argues that only individual liberty will empower women to achieve true equality. ... She edited Liberty for Women (2002), a collection of essays that give the Ifeminist perspective on sex, guns, work, violence, and other topics ... Philosophically, McElroy doesn't call herself a libertarian, but describes her beliefs as 'individualist anarchism.' She also rejects voting and political action, which she says are 'direct violations of libertarian morality.'
Biographical, Wendy McElroy
Biographical summary, including sections on feminism and individualist anarchism; last updated circa 2010
Wendy McElroy ... is the editor of Freedom, Feminism and the State ... a historical overview of individualist feminism in America. ... McElroy has also compiled Index to Liberty: 1881-1908, a comprehensive index to Benjamin Tucker's 19th century periodical ... She is a weekly columnist for FoxNews.com, writing under the title 'The ifeminist' -- a column that is widely reposted on the Internet. ... McElroy is also a research fellow at the Independent Institute, and contributing editor to Ideas on Liberty (formerly The Freeman), The New Libertarian, Free Inquiry, and Liberty magazines.
Feminists For Free Expression: Speakers Network
Biographical profile including photograph
In XXX - A Woman's Right to Pornography, feminist Wendy McElroy boldly and convincingly asserts that pornography benefits women. The message of XXX, as McElroy says, 'is not that every woman should read or watch pornography. It is that every woman should decide for herself.' By giving a history of pornography and feminism in America, McElroy reveals that pornography and feminism make strange bedfellows. ... Wendy McElroy is a committed feminist ... Although she writes in defense of pornography, her personal life is not sensational. She is happily married and lives in rural Canada.

Articles

Voting Is No Sin [PDF], by R. W. Bradford, Liberty, Nov 1996
Bill Bradford's response to Wendy McElroy's "Why I Would Not Vote Against Hitler" essay, published in Liberty, May 1996
Wendy McElroy presented a more concise argument against voting ... "At the last Liberty Conference," she writes, "a question was posed: 'If you could have ... cast the deciding vote against Hitler, would you have done so?" I replied, "No, but I would have no moral objection to putting a bullet through his skull.'" ... McElroy's willingness to put "a bullet through [Hitler's] skull" demonstrates her revolutionary zeal. But her elaboration makes it clear that she considers voting the kind of serious sin that mere assassination, apparently, is not: A ballot can never be "an act of self-defense ..."
Related Topics: Government, The State, Voting

Writings

Auberon Herbert, Part 1, Freedom Daily, Feb 2011
First part of biographical essay on Auberon Herbert; discusses Spencer's influence on him, his views on anarchism vs. voluntaryism, self-ownership, majority rule, war and imperialism
In his periodical Liberty, (May 23, 1885), the quintessential American individualist-anarchist Benjamin Tucker wrote of his British counterpart Auberon Herbert, "I know of no more inspiring spectacle in England than that of this man of exceptionally high social position doing battle almost single-handed with the giant monster, government, and showing in it a mental rigor and vigor and a wealth of moral fervor rarely equaled in any cause." ... Herbert was also cognizant that wars benefited the ruling class at the expense of common men, who were overwhelmingly the ones to fight and die.
Background of the Middle East Conflict, Part 1, Freedom Daily, Oct 2003
Historical account of the Middle East and Northern Africa since Napoleon's invasion of Egypt at the end of 18th century to the liberation of Damascus near the end of World War I
The modern-day Middle East centers on Israel, Palestine, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, and Egypt — clustered close to the Mediterranean Sea. Lying near the juncture of Europe, Asia, and Africa, the Middle East has traditionally acted as a commercial, cultural, and military route between the worlds of East and West. ... On June 5, 1916, Hussein's sons led a revolt in Medina. ... Using brilliant guerilla tactics, the Arabs harassed the Turks. Pinning down the enemy — often through hand-to-hand combat — the Arabs allowed Allenby to capture Jerusalem. But, significantly, the ancient Arab city of Damascus was liberated by Arabs.
Background of the Middle East Conflict, Part 2, Freedom Daily, Nov 2003
Continues the historical account of the Middle East from the territorial deals during World War I to the Palestine riots of 1929
The Arabs would not have fought so bravely had they known of the Sykes-Picot Agreement, which had been signed by the Entente in May of 1916. In essence, the Agreement divided the Middle East between Britain and France. When the Arabs did learn of the agreement, they were incensed and sent out feelers to their recent enemy, the Turks. ... Arab bitterness burned; the Zionists continued to arm; the British created commissions of inquiry. The Shaw Commission and the Hope-Simpson Royal Commission both recommended that Jewish immigration and land purchases be restricted. The recommendations were ignored.
Background of the Middle East Conflict, Part 3, Freedom Daily, Dec 2003
Concludes the historical account of the Middle East from the 1930s to the establishement of Israel in 1948
In 1936, the Arabs went on a six-month general strike, seeking both economic reforms and a moratorium on all debt. The Arabs would call off the strike if the British would end Jewish immigration. Instead, the British increased the immigration quota by 10 percent, establishing the port at Tel Aviv under Jewish control, which became the port of entry for thousands of illegal settlers. ... The Jewish claim was outlined in a 1948 document entitled 'Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel' ... The Arab claim was outlined in 1938, by George Antonius, a Christian Palestinian Arab ...
Related Topics: Israel, Middle East, Saudi Arabia
The Bathtub, Mencken, and War, The Freeman, Sep 1999
Relates the story behind a Mencken essay, written during the First World War, to mock and show contempt for contemporary "journalists who blithely reported fiction as fact" and subsequent (eight years later) articles confessing to the hoax
"Not a plumber fired a salute or hung out a flag. Not a governor proclaimed a day of prayer," wrote H. L. Mencken on December 28, 1917, in the New York Evening Mail. The occasion for the iconoclastic journalist’s lament was "A Neglected Anniversary" ... Mencken wished to demonstrate the dramatic inaccuracies of many newspaper accounts, which are too often swallowed whole by uncritical readers. This phenomenon is especially prevalent in periods of war, when great efforts are made to stir the public's emotions so that it unquestioningly supports the government's policies.
Related Topics: H. L. Mencken, War, World War I
Benjamin Ricketson Tucker, Part 1, Freedom Daily, Aug 2007
Biographical essay on Benjamin Tucker from birth to the early years of the periodical Liberty
The first issue of the radical individualist periodical Liberty (1881–1908) opened with the words,
Liberty, Equality, Fraternity, these three: but the greatest of these is Liberty. Formerly the price of Liberty was eternal vigilance, but now it can be had for fifty cents a year.
... But what if a contract involved the payment of capitalistic profit such as interest? Tucker was clear: if you signed a contract to pay interest, then it was your right to enter into such a foolish agreement and no one had any business interfering with that contract.
Benjamin Ricketson Tucker, Part 2, Freedom Daily, Sep 2007
Biographical essay on Benjamin Tucker from the first issue of Liberty until his death
Liberty first appeared on August 6, 1881, from Boston, where Tucker worked as a journalist with the Boston Globe; later, in 1892, Liberty moved to New York City, where it was published until its demise in 1907. Fittingly, [its] superscript was a quotation from Proudhon ...
[Tucker's] death marked the end of an era ... Radical individualism as an organized movement would not appear in America again until the mid 1950s ... By integrating the political theories of Tucker into the economic framework of Austrian economics, the modern libertarian movement was born.
Benjamin Tucker, Liberty and Individualist Anarchism [PDF], The Independent Review, 1997
Presents a short biography of Tucker and then the history of the Liberty journal, including its major themes, the debates over Stirnerite egoism vs. natural rights and its literary and international coverage, concluding with commentary
"Liberty, Equality, Fraternity, these three; but the greatest of these is Liberty. Formerly the price of Liberty was eternal vigilance, but now it can be had for fifty cents a year." So wrote Benjamin Ricketson Tucker (1854–1939) on the first page of the first issue of Liberty. ...
Perhaps most destructively, individualism clung to the labor theory of value and refused to incorporate the economic theories arising within other branches of individualist thought ... Unable to embrace statism, the stagnant movement failed to adequately comprehend the logical alternative to the state—a free market.
Benjamin Tucker, Individualism, & Liberty: Not the Daughter but the Mother of Order, Literature of Liberty, 1981
Bibliographical essay covering the people and radical movements that influenced Tucker in his founding and publishing of Liberty, its major themes and contributors
"Formerly the price of Liberty was eternal vigilance, but now it can be had for fifty cents a year." So wrote Benjamin Tucker (1854–1939) on the first page of the first issue ... The American journal Liberty ... was arguably the finest libertarian periodical ever published in the English language ...
In broad terms, the achievements of Benjamin R. Tucker's journal Liberty were: its influence upon people, its role in the creation and sustenance of an autonomous movement; and the preservation of a tradition without which modern libertarianism could not exist.
Big Pharma and Crony Capitalism, 9 Jul 2012
Examines the ways in which large pharmaceutical companies influence government agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
A friend just experienced a terrible drug problem. Not with illegal drugs, but with a prescription from her doctor. Her eighty-year-old memory sometimes stumbles, and so, without diagnostic tests, the doctor prescribed a potent Alzheimer medication ... Kirsch had to use the Freedom of Information Act to procure the results of the drug tests he examined. Neither government nor big pharma wanted the public scrutiny. While they may turn against each other when power or profits create separate interests, there is one point on which the state and big pharma are in accord: They want your blind acceptance. And your money.
A Clarion Call for Health Independence, 31 Jan 2007
A review of the movie Lorenzo's Oil (1992), exploring its main themes
Lorenzo's Oil (1992) is one of the best movies you've never seen. This incredible drama hit the big screen for two seconds before skidding into rental stores, where it failed to find the wider audience it deserves. ... Finally, Lorenzo's Oil is a counterargument to the assumed need for government funding and law to regulate all things medical in order to ensure progress and quality care.The movie is a clarion call for individuals to take control of their own bodies and their own medical well being. It is the triumph of personal responsibility over bureaucracy, the individual over the system.
The Colonial Venture of Ireland, Part 1, Freedom Daily, May 2004
Historical account of Ireland from its earliest inhabitants, through various invaders, conflicts with the English and between Catholics and Protestants, to the mid-nineteenth century
Irish history has been likened to the cry of wind through a ruined house because so much of it deals with destruction and the breaking of a whole into parts. Centuries of conflict between Catholic and Protestant, Irish rebel and British authority offer a dramatic narrative ... The British responded with the Coercion Bill of 1833 which temporarily suspended habeas corpus, prohibited meetings, and replaced civil courts with military ones. One result: [Daniel] O'Connell and many others abandoned their attempt to reform Ireland through appeals to Britain. Reform would come from within.
The Colonial Venture of Ireland, Part 2, Freedom Daily, Jun 2004
Historical account of Ireland from 1840 to the first decade of the twentieth century, including the Young Irelanders, the famines, the Irish in North America, Captain Boycott, the demand for home rule, the Gaelic League and the emergence of Sinn Fein
In the 1840s, a new voice would be heard in Ireland: the Young Irelanders, who urged the Catholic peasantry to return to their Gaelic roots. Literary and political radicals, the Young Irelanders sprinkled Gaelic terms throughout their writings long before the language was revived in order to redeem the Irish soul by de-Anglicizing it ... [T]he Parliament Act of 1911 limited the House of Lords' veto power to three consecutive sessions. When the Lords threatened to veto that Act as well, King George V threatened to pack the peerage with Liberals in order to secure passage. The Act passed.
The Colonial Venture of Ireland, Part 3, Freedom Daily, Jul 2004
Historical account of Ireland from 1912 to 1921, including the formation of the Irish Assembly, the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and the 1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty that concluded the Irish War of Independence
In 1912, Prime Minister Herbert Henry Asquith introduced a "Government of Ireland Bill" that attempted to establish an Irish parliament with a popularly elected lower house and an appointed senate. A small delegation of Irish was to remain at Westminster to represent Ireland's interest in the Empire. ... Among the defectors were delegates from the IRA, which split into two factions: those who rejected the treaty and those who reluctantly accepted it as granting "the freedom to achieve freedom." The British began to depart from their oldest colony, which they had occupied for almost 800 years.
The Colonial Venture of Ireland, Part 4, Freedom Daily, Aug 2004
Historical account of the partitioned Ireland from 1922 to the 1970's, including Éamon de Valera, the creation of the Republic of Ireland, the conflicts with and eventual split up of the IRA, and civil rights marches and riots in the North
In the North, treatment of Catholics deteriorated as one of the most infamous measures in Irish history was passed — the Special Powers Act of 1922. Catholic-rights advocate Bernadette Devlin explained ... Many observers contend that if the British were to leave Northern Ireland, blood would flow in Northern streets and the South might erupt in civil war. They argue that centuries of differing development have made the North and South into truly separate entities. Others contend the opposite ... These two positions — and those in-between — constitute the ongoing debate and dilemma that is Ireland.
Étienne de La Boétie, Part 1, Freedom Daily, Apr 2003
Provides biographical background on La Boétie and begins examination of his "Discourse"
A 16th-century essay entitled Discourse of Voluntary Servitude by the French jurist Étienne de La Boétie (1530–1563) discusses a question that haunts those who love liberty: Why do people obey unjust laws? The Discourse offers insight. It examines the psychology of those who obey, those who command, and those who resist ...
Yet, when the elected ruler tastes power, "he plans never to relinquish his position." The trick was to engineer the future consent of the people in order to ensure his continued power. But how? La Boétie explored the major ways that a ruler engineered consent.
Étienne de La Boétie, Part 2, Freedom Daily, May 2003
Examines the major themes in La Boétie's "Discourse": custom (habit), control of information, buying off the people and withdrawal of consent
The beginning of a tyrant's rule was the most difficult period because those who had not consented to his rule would obey reluctantly, and brute force might be necessary. Brute force could put down dissent in the short term but it was never a good option. Violence bred martyrs ...
There is something within man and beast that resists the tension of a leash. Rather than break the tension by attacking those who hold the reigns, La Boétie told people to let the tension go slack. People should refuse either violence or submission. They should simply say No. In that word, lies their freedom.
Gertrude B. Kelly: A Forgotten Feminist, The Freeman, Oct 1998
Biographical essay on Dr. Gertrude B. Kelly (1862–1934), Irish immigrant, individualist feminist and contributor to the Liberty periodical (1881-1908)
Contemporary feminism's preoccupation with its collectivist past has served to silence the voices of early individualist women. A perfect example is Dr. Gertrude B. Kelly (1862–1934), whose contributions to women's rights are long forgotten ... Kelly went on to express her principles through action ... As an outlet for writing and theory, she turned to the cause of women's suffrage and of Irish independence, becoming a prominent member of the Irish Women's Council. Ironically, two years after her death in 1934, Mayor Fiorello La Guardia dedicated the "Dr. Gertrude B. Kelly Playground" on 21st Street.
The Great Lie of Modern Unions, 31 Oct 2013
Details the history of labor organizing, from the Knights of Labor in 1869 to the 1935 Wagner Act
Few aspects of America's past are as thoroughly misunderstood as the history of the labor movements that thrived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The modern union that arose and usurped their place was the antithesis of what it claimed to be. It did not voice workers' rights. It silenced them. ... The main losers? Small businesses that were forced to deal with big labor. And the individual worker who was stripped of the right to contract in his own name, on his own terms. The very existence of the modern union violates worker's rights.
The Great Writ Then and Now, The Freeman, Nov 2009
Chronicles the history of the writ of habeas corpus from the Magna Carta through the American Civil War to Guantanamo Bay and "enemy combatants"
Habeas corpus is a rarely invoked legal writ, or document, widely considered to be the cornerstone of individual liberty. Also known as The Great Writ, habeas corpus (ad subjiciendum) is Latin for "you may have the body" (subject to examination). The writ is a civil action with the force of a court order, which requires a custodian, usually the government, to produce a detainee. ... the United States enshrined habeas corpus as a foundational right for every human being on American soil. No external threat or internal problem can dismantle the individual freedoms on which America was created.
Henry David Thoreau and "Civil Disobedience," Part 1, Freedom Daily, Mar 2005
After some background and biographical material, describes the event (Thoreau's imprisonment) that led to writing "Civil Disobedience" and Thoreau's reaction to those who paid the tax on his behalf, his jailers, his neighbors and Ralph Waldo Emerson
Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862) was an introspective man who wandered the woods surrounding the small village of Concord, Massachusetts, recording the daily growth of plants ... How, then, did he profoundly influence such political giants as Mohandas Gandhi, Leo Tolstoy, and Martin Luther King Jr.? ...
Thoreau shed the experience of prison, but he could not shed the insight he had gained into his neighbors nor the questions that accompanied his new perspective. The text of "Civil Disobedience" constitutes the answer he discovered by listening to the "quiet voice within."
Henry David Thoreau and "Civil Disobedience," Part 2, Freedom Daily, Apr 2005
Examines several of the initial themes in Thoreau's "Civil Disobedience", including government injustice, the individual as the source of power and authority, war and the military and the reasons why people obey the state
Although many Quaker writers had argued from conscience for civil disobedience against war and slavery, Henry David Thoreau's "Civil Disobedience" essay is not tied to a particular religion or to a specific issue. It is a secular call for the inviolability of conscience on all issues, and this aspect may account for some of the essay's enduring legacy ... By his own lights, Thoreau was fortunate in this respect. He had neither property to be seized nor children to go hungry. Accordingly, he did not criticize men who reluctantly obeyed an unjust law out of fear for their families.
Henry David Thoreau and "Civil Disobedience," Part 3, Freedom Daily, May 2005
Further examination of themes in "Civil Disobedience", including unjust laws, politicians and reformers, voting, when to resist the state and the influence on Gandhi
Thoreau's criticism is aimed at the form of obedience that springs from a genuine respect for the authority of the state. This obedience says, "The law is the law and should be respected regardless of content." Through such attitudes, otherwise good men become agents of injustice ...
Months [after Thoreau's death], Emerson published a eulogy that concluded,
The country knows not yet, or in the least part, how great a son it has lost ...
As always, Thoreau said it more simply: "For joy I could embrace the earth. I shall delight to be buried in it."
Herbert Spencer, 29 Aug 2012
Review of the book Herbert Spencer (2013) by Alberto Mingardi, volume 18 of the "Major Conservative and Libertarian Thinkers" series
"Who now reads Spencer?" As someone who does, I was seduced by the opening question of this recent book on the thought of Herbert Spencer. The book by Alberto Mingardi (of the Italian think tank Instituto Bruno Leoni) ... presents an accessible yet sophisticated overview of an English philosopher who was key in the development of classical liberalism. ... Herbert Spencer is a well-written, -referenced, and -researched book that never slips into the error of academic cleverness. Mingardi pays respect to a fallen leader who deserves to stand tall. He steps back and lets Spencer speak.
Related Topics: Evolution, Herbert Spencer
Book Review: Isabel Paterson and the Ideas of America, 30 Mar 2005
Review of the book Isabel Paterson and the Idea of America: The Woman and the Dynamo (2004) by University of California, San Diego professor of literature Stephen Cox
Some readers of Stephen Cox's recently published biography, Isabel Paterson and the Idea of America: The Woman and the Dynamo, may succumb to the same temptation I did. I immediately scanned the index for references to Ayn Rand and then I turned directly to those pages ... The mark of the success ... is that it leaves the reader with such questions. I found myself repeatedly lowering the book to consider throwaway statements such as "Radical individualism is an influence without an institution." Buy this book. Not just because Paterson has waited decades for her place in history but because you deserve the pleasure of meeting her.
A Lesson from Vietnam, Part 1, Freedom Daily, Jan 2004
Relates key events in Vietnam from the end of World War II and the establishment of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North) in 1945 to the forming of the Republic of Vietnam (South) in 1955
One lesson offered to America by the Vietnam War is the folly of forcing regime change in a nation whose religion, culture, history, and politics differ dramatically from its own. As a story, the folly may begin in September 1945, when a slender figure stood on a balcony in Hanoi to address the assembled masses. ... Diem pointed to these acts of violence as evidence of spreading communism. He explained to the Americans that it was necessary to send troops into the villages. Thus, Diem not only destroyed village democracy but also convinced the Americans that he was really eliminating communism.
A Lesson from Vietnam, Part 2, Freedom Daily, Feb 2004
Describes the groups aiming to control South Vietnam from 1956 to 1961, as well as the reactions of the people
With American encouragement, Diem defied the deadline for a national election. ... Until then, the North had waited to see whether Ho could be voted into power. The communists themselves were brutal and had violated various terms of the Geneva Accords, but they had not openly confronted the South. ... One thing was becoming evident: merely supporting an anticommunist regime did not work. A special task force was created to reassess American policy toward revolutionary movements in the Third World. The definition of 'war' itself had to be re-examined to take into account revolutionary warfare.
A Lesson from Vietnam, Part 3, Freedom Daily, Mar 2004
Relates key events in Vietnam mostly from the start of the Kennedy in 1961 to the Gulf of Tonkin resolution in 1964, and a few concluding paragraphs on this three part series
“Counterinsurgency” became the new American buzzword and Vietnam became the testing ground, with American leaders looking to apply its lessons elsewhere — for example, in Cuba. The Kennedy administration developed a policy which broke the containment of revolution into three stages ... In the best of circumstances, regime change most often goes astray owing to unintended consequences, popular resistance, and the almost-inevitable tension between the installed regime and the regime-makers. In a foreign and complex culture, forced regime change seems to be a formula for disaster no matter what the underlying intentions.
Libertarianism Is Not Atheist, Is Not Religious, The Daily Bell, 9 Oct 2014
Examines Rothbard's views in a 1987 article about freedom and religion, in particular regarding Ayn Rand's atheistic influences on early modern libertarianism
A Liberty magazine article (March 1987) on religion was entitled "Freedom is for Everyone (Including the despised 'Rightists')." In it, Murray Rothbard observed, "The libertarian movement, and the Libertarian Party, will get nowhere in America–or throughout the world–so long as it is perceived, as it generally is, as a movement dedicated to atheism ... In the absence of harm, the scorn flies in the face of the spirit of libertarianism, if not the letter of its law. The debate on religion within libertarianism needs nothing so much as a word that both true believers and true libertarians should agree upon: Peace.
Lysander Spooner, Part 1, Freedom Daily, Oct 2005
Lengthy biographical and bibliographical essay; from Spooner's birth to 1850-1860, examining his writings on economics, money, banking, mail delivery and slavery
The 19th-century individualist anarchist Benjamin Tucker called Lysander Spooner "our Nestor," a Greek name denoting "wisdom." The 20th-century ... Murray Rothbard referred to Spooner as "the last of the great natural rights theorists ... the last of the Old Guard believers in natural rights." ...
Spooner maintained,
If an indictment be found, the jury who try that indictment, are judges of the law, as well as the fact. If they think the law unconstitutional, or even have any reasonable doubt of its constitutionality, they are bound to hold the defendants justified in resisting its execution.
Lysander Spooner, Part 2, Freedom Daily, Nov 2005
Lengthy biographical and bibliographical essay; this second part is from 1852 to Spooner's death, examining An Essay on the Trial by Jury, the No Treason essays and his subsequent influence
The right of people to defend themselves against the usurpation of government was the central theme of Spooner's next major work, An Essay on the Trial by Jury (1852), which some consider his masterpiece. Benjamin Tucker stated the gist ...
Charles Shively observes of Spooner,
In our time, both his example and his ideas concerning the absolute inadequacy of force and of government remain relevant ... In place of these slave-master relationships, there is a search for forms of cooperation among equals. In this search Spooner was a pioneer and a prophet.
Man, Economy, and State: A Treatise on Economic Principles, 17 Mar 2012
Review and personal impressions of Man, Economy, and State, and in particular the 2004 edition from the Mises Institute which also includes Power and Market
Man, Economy, and State: A Treatise on Economic Principles (2 vols., 1962) by Murray Rothbard is a light bulb of a book that keeps the reader clicking with insights. I am jealous of anyone who reads this book for the first time because it is a remarkable adventure ...
The 'deleted' chapters were later published as the book Power and Market (1970). In a worthy homage, the 2004 edition of Man, Economy, and State reunites the original material as Murray intended his greatest work to be published. The book is like listening to a masterful symphony that is complete at last.
A Man's Home Is His Castle, Freedom Daily, Jul 2006
A review of the movie The Castle (1997) and its main theme: eminent domain
The Castle is a tacky tract house in Melbourne, Australia, where the quirky Kerrigans live in the firm belief that they are the luckiest family in the world. Their house is so close to the airport that planes almost scrape their roof. But instead of complaining, patriarch Darryl feels lucky to have such an up-close view of man’s conquest of nature. High-power lines buzz over the toxic landfill that is their backyard but the Kerrigans couldn't be prouder of their house. ... This movie is a comedic treasure. It is a loving homage to the common man who loves his family and his castle, and will fight anyone who threatens either.
Movie Review: The Incredibles, 2 Apr 2005
Review of The Incredibles, including commentary from other media and some of its Objectivist influences
Pixar Animation Studios' feature, The Incredibles, returned me to the Saturday mornings of childhood when I sat enraptured in front of a TV set, careening on fast-paced cartoons and the glucose high from a breakfast of Chocolate Frosted Sugar-Bomb cereal. ... Japanese anime has dominated with its state-of-the-art visuals, punchy political themes, unforgettable characters, and brute originality. The Incredibles is American anime that holds its own with the best without blending in. The movie retains traits that are stereotypical: optimism, a happy ending, radical individualism, family values. American anime has arrived.
Murray N. Rothbard: Mr. Libertarian, 6 Jul 2000
A tribute to Rothbard as a "system builder," an integrator of multiple disciplines into a "philosophy of freedom"; examines several of Rothbard's essays and books
Murray N. Rothbard (1926-1995)–the greatest libertarian theorist of the 20th century–expressed what he considered to be the central political issue confronting mankind. He wrote, "My own basic perspective on the history of man ... is to place central importance on the great conflict which is eternally waged between Liberty and Power." ... Murray had a habit of sitting with his right arm draped over his head ... A whole generation of libertarian theorists wanted to be Murray Rothbard. We adopted his slang terms, his gestures ... hopefully some of his intellectual magic has rubbed off as well.
Neither Bullets nor Ballots [PDF], The Voluntaryist, Oct 1982
First editorial, describing the two major goals of The Voluntaryist, namely, to construct a theory of voluntaryism and to examine non-political strategies
The Voluntaryist seeks to reclaim the anti-political heritage of libertarianism. It seeks to reestablish the clear, clean difference between the economic and the political means of changing society. This difference was well perceived by the forerunners of contemporary libertarianism ... Political anarchists are in the gray realm of agreeing heartily in words to principles which their actions contradict. It is time to have the differences between Voluntaryism and political libertarianism clearly expressed and for non-political alternatives to be pursued. It is time for The Voluntaryist.
The Physiocrats, Freedom Daily, Dec 2010
Discusses the 18th century French economists and their influences on Adam Smith, on American agriarianism and on Henry George
The Physiocrats, a group of 18th-century French economists, are often credited with founding Western political economy—the study of "laws" governing the production and distribution of wealth. The word "law" is not used in a legal sense. Rather it refers to a principle or governing rule ... Although their ideas were overwhelmed by the violent forces they helped to release, the Physiocrats made an indelible contribution to the literature and progress of human liberty. In the larger picture, they may have been a small step toward freedom ... but they were one of the first steps and in the right direction.
The Post Office as a Violation of Constitutional Rights, The Freeman, May 2001
Prompted by the announcement of the U.S. Postal Service eBillPay service (now discontinued), surveys the history of mail service vis-à-vis civil rights, from colonial days to the present
In September 2000, the United States Postal Service (USPS) launched a $12 million campaign to advertise a new Internet service, eBillPay, through which customers could pay their bills electronically. EBillPay is one of several new e-services designed to woo back the growing army of Americans who would rather click a mouse than lick a stamp to send mail. ... Enforcing those prohibitions required widespread interception ... of private correspondence. It required monopoly. The question posed by Spooner over a century and a half ago remains unanswered: from which passage of the Constitution can Congress claim this right?
Robert LeFevre, Paying a Debt Backward, 6 Nov 2014
A tribute to Robert LeFevre, highlighting his solution to ensuring private justice
I owe an unpaid intellectual debt to Robert LeFevre (1911-1986) with whom I associated in my twenties. LeFevre deeply impacted libertarians who met him personally but current and future generations may not understand why. They will meet only his books, which are deceptively simple and less impressive than was the man himself. ... Whatever one thinks of moral pacifism, LeFevre had a great deal to teach including a vital piece of the puzzle on how a free society should handle violence. Namely, don't. Individuals should eradicate the root causes so that violence doesn't erupt in the first place.
The Roots of Individualist Feminism in 19th-Century America
Introduction to Freedom, Feminism, and the State, a collection of 22 essays edited by McElroy
"To me," wrote Voltairine de Cleyre (1866-1912), "any dependence, any thing which destroys the complete selfhood of the individual, is in the line of slavery." Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1860-1935) wrote: "To define individual duty is difficult; but the collective duty of a class or sex is clear. It is the duty of women ... to bring children into the world who are superior to their parents ..." ... While minor socialist figures have been examined in depth, the Lucifer staff has barely received a mention. This marked tendency to exclude individualists from feminist history indicates its bias.
Sophie Scholl: A Life of Courage, Freedom Daily, May 2007
Review of the 2005 German film Sophie Scholl: The Final Days (Die letzten Tage), also contrasting this film with typical Hollywood depictions of Nazis
The 2005 German film Sophie Scholl: The Final Days ... depicts the anti-Nazi heroine Sophie Magdalena Scholl ... Sophie and her brother, Hans, were leading members of a nonviolent resistance group called the White Rose. ... He created a heart-stopping, heartbreaking movie that is inspirational without preaching. It creates fresh perspective on freedoms we take for granted, such as the ability to speak without being killed for doing so. It reminds us to jealously protect that freedom ... especially in times of war when speaking truth to power can easily and officially become "aiding the enemy" and treason.
Was Freeborn John Tortured in Vain?, 16 Aug 2011
Reviews the history of the right against self-incrimination in England and early America, then describes certain modern attempts to diminish its applicability
'Taking the Fifth' – invoking the right against self-incrimination – is a mainstay of mafia movies in which heinous criminals hide behind liberties guaranteed by the Bill of Rights. ... Personal freedoms have been protected for so long that they are taken for granted as 'the American Way,' as though liberty were indigenous and inherent to American soil. Meanwhile, the Bill of Rights is being eroded to a nub. The great wrongs corrected and prevented by its protections have been forgotten. Like forgotten history, they are destined to be repeated.

Reviews

V for Vendetta, 31 Jul 2010
Review of V for Vendetta (2006) both as a movie and as a political statement, comparing it to The Count of Monte Cristo (1934) (which is shown in some scenes)
The movie V for Vendetta (V) is a thriller set in London's dystopian future of 2020, where an anti-government anti-hero named "V" (played by Hugo Weaving) uses violence to bring down a totalitarian right-wing state called Norsefire ...
[Valerie] Page is imprisoned by Norsefire. The journal she writes there provides inspiration to Evey who discovers it during her own imprisonment by V. Those scenes are among the most compelling that I have ever seen on screen. But the movie quickly returns to the muddled and cartoonish agenda of the Wachowski brothers and, so, betrays its own potential.

Interviews

Faculty Spotlight Interview: Wendy McElroy, 3 Feb 2011
Asks McElroy about her hobbies, Murray Rothbard, the Mises Institute, Benjamin Tucker, Auberon Herbert, libertarianism and the feminist movement and her advice for future Austrian scholars
What do you like to do in your free time? Do you have any hobbies?
My favorite hobby is cooking, especially ethnic food. Years ago, my husband and I moved from a big city to a farm that is down a gravel road with the nearest town containing fewer than 500 people ...
Are there any words of wisdom you wish to pass onto the next generation of Austrian scholars?
... Do not presume that people who are 'wrong' are less intelligent, less decent or well-informed than you. For many years, my BFF was an old-fashioned labor union socialist ... When we disagreed, she did not suddenly become stupid, coarse and ignorant.
Interview with Wendy McElroy on feminism in America, by Wendy McElroy, Marco Faraci, 8 Mar 2012
Translation of the interview published at Libertiamo.it on 8-9 Mar 2012 (excluding the last question and answer, regarding Ron Paul)
This is a recent interview conducted by a Italian free-market periodical. 1) You are one of the leading dissident voices in the gender debate. Could you please explain your vision of individualist feminism, what are its main tenets and how it differs from mainstream feminism? ... These are dangerous measures and the atmosphere created by such campaigns has already led to some women being criminal prosecuted for taking insufficient care of their fetuses. If the fetus is a person, can the pregnant woman become a criminal for taking a drink or a drug that necessarily impacts the fetus?
ripensare il femminismo/.1 Intervista a Wendy McElroy, by Wendy McElroy, Marco Faraci, 8 Mar 2012
"Rethinking feminism", an interview with Wendy McElroy in Italian; topics include differences between individualist and traditional feminism, the market vs. the state, gender feminism in the North America and quotas and affirmative action
Wendy, Lei è una delle principali voci dissidenti del "dibattito di genere". Ci può spiegare la Sua visione di femminismo individualista, quali sono i suoi assunti ed in che cosa differisce dal femminismo più tradizionale?
WME: Il principio cardine del femminismo individualista è che le donne e gli uomini meritano un trattamento uguale davanti alla legge. ... A mio modo di vedere un elemento essenziale perché si possa ristabilire un rapporto sano e civile tra i due sessi è eliminare tutte le leggi che favoriscono uno dei due sessi – ed oggi nella maggior parte dei casi si tratta di leggi che favoriscono le donne.
ripensare il femminismo/.2 "My body, my choice", by Wendy McElroy, Marco Faraci, 9 Mar 2012
Second part of "Rethinking feminism" interview; topics include modern feminism vs. the Berlusconi scandals, American conservative women, and the presidential candidacy of Ron Paul
Non è che il femminismo moderno sta finendo per seguire i passi del vecchio tradizionalismo patriarcale nella sua pretesa di definire un modello di ruolo "buono" per le donne e di colpevolizzare le "cattive ragazze"?
WME: Giusta osservazione. Certo la condanna "da destra" delle donne che "usano" la loro sessualità è espressa in termini diversi ... Ed anche se mi sento più vicina a quello che dice Ron Paul che a quello che dicono gli altri candidati, alla fine Paul resta comunque un politico. Quei libertari che vogliono consegnargli "l’anello per governarli tutti" (per dirla alla Tolkien) sono un po’ troppo ottimisti ...
Related Topics: Conservatism, Ron Paul
Wendy McElroy on Sex, Rape and Libertarian Feminism, by Wendy McElroy, Anthony Wile, 11 Mar 2012
Topics discussed include McElroy's early life, two of her notable books, individualist anarchism, voluntarism, conspiracy theories, religions, banks and money, feminism, capitalism, Austrian economics, Julian Assange and the future
Wendy McElroy is a prolific book author, columnist, speaker and contributor to prestigious journals and magazines, often with an "alternative" slant. She made her reputation as a young writer commenting from a libertarian standpoint on feminism, and taking a pro-ponography position that was anathema to the feminist "old guard" that saw pornography as a tool of chauvanist oppression. McElroy has continued to speak out, nonetheless, on issues of the most importance to her: libertariansim, anarchism and, of course, feminism. She has served as a weekly columnist for FoxNews.com ...

Books Authored

The Art of Being Free: Politics versus the Everyman and Woman, 2012
Contents: Preface - The Theoretical Footing of Freedom - Applying Theory to the Issues - Principles Work through People - Getting There from Here - Conclusion
Related Topic: Liberty
The Debates of Liberty: An Overview of Individualist Anarchism, 1881-1908, 17 Dec 2002
Excerpts available at WendyMcElroy.com; partial contents: Benjamin Tucker, Liberty, and Individualist Anarchism - On the State and Politics - On Violence - Egoism v- Natural Rights - Children's Rights - Intellectual Property - Trial by Jury
Liberty, 1881-1908: A Comprehensive Index, by Wendy McElroy (compiler), 1982
Electronic text available at The Memory Hole; contents: How To Use This Index - Part I: Titles and Periodicals - Part II: Individuals - Part III: Subjects
Related Topic: Benjamin Tucker
XXX: A Woman's Right to Pornography, 1997
Partial contents: Pornography As an Industry - Feminism and Porn: Fellow Travelers - A Critique of Anti-Pornography Feminism - Liberal Feminism: The Glimmer of Hope - Individualist Feminism: A True Defense of Pornography - Interviews with Women in Porn
Related Topic: Sexual Pleasure

Videos

The Anarchist Roundtable: Ron Paul, 6 Jan 2008
Stefan Molyneux hosts Wendy McElroy and Brad Spangler, over the phone, to discuss the Ron Paul Revolution
Related Topic: Ron Paul

The introductory paragraph uses material from the Wikipedia article "Wendy McElroy" as of 13 May 2018, which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0.