WITH A FOREWORD BY RON PAUL



Nothing makes traditional left and right kiss and make up faster than when they're faced with an articulate libertarian. Avert your eyes from this dangerous extremist, citizen! Government is composed of wise public servants who innocently pursue the common good!



In Real Dissent, Tom Woods demolishes some of the toughest critics of libertarianism in his trademark way. In doing so he strays beyond what he calls the index card of allowable opinion, the narrow range within which the media and political classes permit debate to take place in America.



Should 40% or 35% of our income be taxed? That's the kind of debate the New York Times prefers. Should our income be taxed at all? Now that's out of bounds, citizen!



In foreign policy, Americans are permitted to choose between bombing a despised country or starving its people to death. You favor peace? Why, you must be an "extremist"!



On the Federal Reserve, the debate is over which policy the Fed should pursue. But what if the Fed is itself the problem? No answer, because the question isn't raised.



Real Dissent is organized into ten parts:



Part I: War and Propaganda

Part II: Capitalism and Anti-Capitalism

Part III: Libertarianism Attacked, and My Replies

Part IV: Ron Paul and Forbidden Truths

Part V: End the Fed

Part VI: History and Liberty

Part VII: When Libertarians Go Wrong [on people who don't quite get their own philosophy]

Part VIII: Books You May Have Missed

Part IX: Talking Liberty: Selected Tom Woods Show Interviews

Part X: Back to Basics

Afterword: How I Evaded the Gatekeepers of Approved Opinion



The index card of allowable opinion forces Americans into narrow and pointless debates, and closes off discussion of plausible and humane alternatives. For the sake of American liberty, it’s time we set that thing on fire.



This book is a match.



PRAISE FOR TOM WOODS:



“During my presidential campaigns, Tom Woods wrote some of the most effective replies to some of my unkindest critics....



"Real Dissent is great fun to read, but also filled with useful debating points that will come in handy as you make the case for the free society with friends and family. Over the years I have worked together closely with Tom, one of the libertarian movement’s brightest and most prolific scholars, and I am delighted to commend his new book to you. You will enjoy it, and profit from it.”

Ron Paul, former U.S. Congressman



“The smartest guy in the room.”

Judge Andrew P. Napolitano, Senior Judicial Analyst, FOX News



“Tom Woods is one of my dearest allies in the struggle against wrong-headed and dangerous economic policy.”

Peter Schiff



“Tom Woods has written some great stuff over the years, and he's contributed to the education of a lot of people, including myself.”

David Stockman, director of the Office of Management and Budget, 1981-1985



About the Author

Thomas E. Woods Jr. is a senior fellow of the Ludwig von Mises Institute and host of The Tom Woods Show, a Monday-through-Friday podcast (at TomWoodsRadio.com). He has appeared on CNBC, FOX News, MSNBC, C-SPAN, FOX Business, Bloomberg Television, and many other outlets, and has been a guest on hundreds of radio programs.



Tom is the New York Times betselling author of 12 books, including Meltdown (on the financial crisis) and The Politically Incorrect Guide to American History. His book The Church and the Market won the $50,000 first prize in the Templeton Enterprise Awards for 2006. Tom's books have been translated into a dozen languages.



Tom's writing has appeared in scores of popular and scholarly periodicals, including the American Historical Review, Investor's Business Daily, Christian Science Monitor, American Studies, Catholic Social Science Review, Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics, Human Events, New Oxford Review, Independent Review, and University Bookman.



Tom lives in Topeka, Kansas, with his wife and five daughters.