Thomas DiLorenzo

Thomas DiLorenzo
Thomas DiLorenzo at CPAC in February 2010.
Born	(1954-08-08) August 8, 1954
Nationality	United States
Academic career
Field	Economic history, American history
School or tradition	Austrian School
Influences	Henry Hazlitt, John T. Flynn

Thomas James DiLorenzo (born August 8, 1954) is an American economics professor at Loyola University Maryland Sellinger School of Business. He identifies himself as an adherent of the Austrian School of economics. He is a research fellow at The Independent Institute, a senior fellow of the Ludwig von Mises Institute, and an associate of the Abbeville Institute. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Virginia Tech.

Social and historical views

See also: Lincoln Unmasked and The Real Lincoln

DiLorenzo writes about what he calls "the myth of Lincoln" in American history and politics. He has said, "Lincoln is on record time after time rejecting the idea of racial equality. But whenever anyone brings this up, the Lincoln partisans go to the extreme to smear the bearer of bad news." DiLorenzo has also spoken out in favor of the secession of the Confederate States of America, defending the right of these states to secede.

The publication of The Real Lincoln garnered increased attention for DiLorenzo's views concerning President Lincoln and the U.S. Civil War. In a review published by the Ludwig von Mises Institute, where both he and DiLorenzo are Senior Fellows and colleagues on the Mises Institute faculty, historian David Gordon noted DiLorenzo's arguments that the tariffs Lincoln put in place were the cause of the Civil War and that Lincoln was a "thoroughgoing dictator" who suppressed civil liberties. Regarding slavery, Gordon quotes DiLorenzo as writing: "[it] was already in sharp decline in the border states and the upper South generally, mostly for economic reasons".

In 2002, DiLorenzo debated Harry V. Jaffa on the merits of Abraham Lincoln's statesmanship before and during the Civil War.

DiLorenzo is a frequent speaker at von Mises Institute events, and offers several online courses on political subjects on the Mises Academy platform. He also writes for LewRockwell.com.

DiLorenoz has written in defense of the right to secession. In a 2004 article on LewRockwell.com, DiLorenzo wrote that many libertarians refused to support secession of the union by Confederate states because there government was not a "libertarian nirvana". He pointed out that Murray Rothbard, Lord Acton and Lysander Spooner had defended secession by the states. He wrote: "If the war was over the central government's "right" to destroy the right of secession, which both Abraham Lincoln and the U.S. Congress insisted, then the South was in the right, according to both Rothbard and Acton. One need not defend or glorify the Confederacy in order to arrive at such a conclusion."

In 2005 he wrote another article on LewRockwell.com regarding attacks on Thomas Woods, author of the best-selling The Politically Incorrect Guide to American History , because of his earlier association with the southern nationalist group the League of the South. DiLorenzo wrote that the "imperialistic neoconservative cult" that dominated the Republican Party was engaging in "character assassination" in order to defend their agenda. He said regarding the League of the South "Rather than pledging undying loyalty to the state and its imperialistic adventures — the defining characteristic of a neocon — the League asserts that 'Our strongest and most enduring earthly affections and allegiances" are to "families, friends, neighbors, villages, towns, cities, counties, and States,' and not 'the nation' or worse, the 'global community.'" He also wrote that the League "advocates peace and prosperity in the tradition of a George Washington or a Thomas Jefferson".

League of the South controversy

Controversy over DiLorenzo's associations with the League of the South arose when DiLorenzo testified before the House Financial Services Committee at the behest of former U.S. Congressman Ron Paul. Congressman Lacy Clay criticized DiLorenzo for participation in the League, which he described as a "neo-Confederate group" which advocates "a society dominated by European Americans"; after Clay's remarks at the testimony, DiLorenzo's connection with the League was mentioned by several major mainstream news organizations, including the Washington Post, Reuters, and the Baltimore Sun. Washington Post columnist Dana Milbank wrote that the League of the South was listing DiLorenzo on its Web site as an 'affiliated scholar' as recently as 2008. DiLorenzo's alleged association with the League was investigated by his employer, Loyola University Maryland, whose vice president for academic affairs told the Baltimore Sun that "Professor DiLorenzo has denied any affiliation" with the League, and that "if we find there's more to this, certainly we would take appropriate action."

In an article written for a LewRockwell.com piece written in response, DiLorenzo attacked Clay as a "liar and bigot", sharing an anecdote about the representative's alleged racial bigotry. He described his association with the League as limited to "a few lectures on the economics of the Civil War" he gave to The League of the South Institute about thirteen years ago. DiLorenzo told the Baltimore Sun reporter "I don't endorse what they say and do any more than I endorse what Congress says and does because I spoke at a hearing on Wednesday." After the House hearing, subcommittee chair Ron Paul also criticized Clay, saying, "I think that's typical of people who can't compete on ideas, they have to try to discredit the individual."

• Organized Crime: The Unvarnished Truth About Government (2012). Ludwig von Mises Institute, ISBN 9781610162562. OCLC 815625479
• Hamilton's Curse: How Jefferson's Arch Enemy Betrayed the American Revolution – and What It Means for Americans Today (2009). Random House LLC, ISBN 0307382850, 9780307382856. OCLC 593712801
• Lincoln Unmasked: What You're Not Supposed To Know about Dishonest Abe (2006). Random House Inc, ISBN 9780307338419. OCLC 67727894
• How Capitalism Saved America: The Untold History of Our Country, From the Pilgrims to the Present (2004). Random House LLC, ISBN 9780761525264. OCLC 834478638, 56895316
• The Real Lincoln: A New Look at Abraham Lincoln, His Agenda, and an Unnecessary War (2003). Random House LLC, ISBN 9780761536413. OCLC 716369332
• From Pathology to Politics: Public Health in America, with Thomas T. Bennett, (2000). Transaction Publishers, ISBN-10: 0765800233
• The Food and Drink Police: America's Nannies, Busybodies, and Petty Tyrants with James T. Bennett, (1998). Transaction Publishers, ISBN 9781560003854 OCLC 60213705
• CancerScam: The Diversion of Federal Cancer Funds for Politics, with James T. Bennett, (1997). Transaction Publishers, ISBN 1412819105, 9781412819107
• Underground government: the off-budget public sector, with James T. Bennett, (1983), Cato Institute, ISBN 0932790372, 9780932790378

External links

• Mises Archive of DiLorenzo commentary Lectures by DiLorenzo at the Ludwig von Mises Institute.
• Archive of DiLorenzo commentary for The Independent Institute
• Archive of DiLorenzo commentary for LewRockwell.com
• The Real Abraham Lincoln – a debate between Thomas DiLorenzo and Harry V. Jaffa
• Critical review of The Real Lincoln by Thomas Krannawitter of the Claremont Institute
• DiLorenzo and his Critics by Clyde N. Wilson
• Interview with Thomas DiLorenzo in the " Southern Partisan."
• C-SPAN Q&A interview with DiLorenzo, about his two books on Abraham Lincoln, May 25, 2008
• The 2006 Steven Berger Seminar: Thomas DiLorenzo (10 videos)