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Beyond Distributism
Troubled by rampant injustice and inequality, many conscientious Christians advocate radical economic reforms. Distributism, a program that traces its popularity to Catholic writers Hilaire Belloc and G.K. Chesterton, promotes the widespread ownership of property by tempering the market with guilds or similar associations.
75 pages, ebook
First published January 1, 2008
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76 people want to read
About the author
Thomas E. Woods Jr.
48 books475 followersThomas Ernest Woods Jr. is an American author, podcast host, and libertarian commentator who is currently a senior fellow at the Mises Institute. A proponent of the Austrian School of economics, Woods hosts a daily podcast, The Tom Woods Show, and formerly co-hosted the weekly podcast Contra Krugman.
Woods' The Politically Incorrect Guide to American History in 2004 interpreted U.S. history through a paleoconservative and, as described by some writers, pro-Confederate lens. This, and his 2009 book Meltdown on the financial crisis of 2007–2008, became New York Times bestsellers. His subsequent writing has focused on promoting libertarianism and libertarian leaning political figures such as former Congressman and presidential candidate Ron Paul. Woods also teaches homeschooling courses on Western civilization and government called The Liberty Homeschooler as part of the Ron Paul Curriculum.
In 1994, Woods was a founding member of the League of the South, but he no longer associates with it.
Woods' The Politically Incorrect Guide to American History in 2004 interpreted U.S. history through a paleoconservative and, as described by some writers, pro-Confederate lens. This, and his 2009 book Meltdown on the financial crisis of 2007–2008, became New York Times bestsellers. His subsequent writing has focused on promoting libertarianism and libertarian leaning political figures such as former Congressman and presidential candidate Ron Paul. Woods also teaches homeschooling courses on Western civilization and government called The Liberty Homeschooler as part of the Ron Paul Curriculum.
In 1994, Woods was a founding member of the League of the South, but he no longer associates with it.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
June 24, 2014
Drawing from Pope Leo XIII and St. Thomas Aquinas, the Jesuit theologian Thomas de Molina and Pope John Paul II, Woods presents a Catholic understanding of private property, charity as a matter of Christian obligation; models of state sovereignty both medieval and modern, and the principles of subsidiarity and the preferential option for the poor in Catholic Social Teaching. (He also reminds us (along with Archbishop John Meyers and Pope John XXIII that "although all Catholics must share a concern for the poor, precisely how that concern should translate into action is naturally the subject of legitimate debate.")
Chapter III is then devoted to a concise-yet-substantial review of the distributist principles and arguments as laid out by Hilaire Belloc and G.K. Chesterton, which reportedly seeks to promote the widespread ownership of property (and disbursement of the means of production) in the hands of the greatest number of people, curbing the "profit-driven" capitalist system with mutually agreed upon quotas and price controls as set forth by guilds and similar associations with the ultimate goal of establishing a more equitable playing field and a more human human economic relations.
Woods offers a number of practical challenges -- rooted in a historical research and experience -- that would challenge this distributes vision.
For example, countering the notion that it is always preferable for man to operate his own business than work for another ("wage slavery"), Woods notes that "it may well be that a man is better able to care for his family precisely if he does not own his own business or work the backbreaking schedule of running his own farm" -- and that within the capitalist system, wage-earning may in fact afford more leisure and family time.
Concerning the factory worker, Woods points out that he enjoys "a security that distributists do not acknowledge": that of immediate compensation whether or not the goods towards whose production he contributes ever sell. (Woods cites the observation of Eugen von Bohm-Bawerk that the capitalist in this sense undertakes the risk -- and therefore is entitled to the credit.
Woods undertakes a bound-to-be-provocative look at The Industrial Revolution and to recent historical studies which challenge the congenital portrayal of it as leading to "widespread impoverishment of people who had hitherto enjoyed lives of relative happiness and abundance." Granting that working conditions in the capital-starved economies of 18th and 19th century England were unspeakably poor compared to those of today, Woods argues that the rise of capitalism nonetheless rescued many from destitution and made possible "growth in life expectancy, in health, and in in living standards … a population explosion that could not have been sustained under the stagnating conditions of the preindustrial age."
Woods goes on to challenge the validity of Distributist scenario of "predatory pricing"; the proposal that increased regulation of capitalist activity is conducive towards small business growth.
Chapter IV takes a look at what appears to be a rather idealistic and romantic conception of medieval guilds and their modern-day replications -- as in President Roosevelt's National Industrial Recovery Act of 1933, setting minimum wages, minimum prices and other regulations and which turned out to be so unpopular that a U.S. Senate commission condemned it and overturned it as unconstitutional in 1935.
Nevertheless, Woods points out that "a great detail of the guild mentality persists in the U.S. economy and can be seen in the behavior of the American Medical Association, the American Bar Association and others" -- providing some present-day examples. One cited tragedy is that of Robin Smith, a paralegal for a large law office who -- "disgusted by the fact that lawyers billed clients high fees for what was entirely her work, fees that many of them could scarcely afford" -- began a business of her own, "People's Paralegal, Inc.", offering low cost services to the masses … until such time as the Oregon State Bar filed suite against Smith for "unauthorized practice of the law." This manner of monopolizing by associations is defended "with the interest of protecting the customer" -- but as Milton Friedman observes, the lobbying for restrictions on non-licensed activity is typically done by practitioners of the trade rather than the customers themselves. As a Catholic, Woods thus questions whether the artificial inflation of prices or the often-stifling regulation of services (as under a guild system) is genuinely reflective of "a preferential piton for the poor."
I personally found "Beyond Distributism" to be a provocative, stimulating and yet respectful airing of Woods's position on this issue. Naturally it is not the end of the story -- Catholic proponents of distributism have raised their objections and there has been a plethora of exchanges. Those interested can see an ongoing compilation of such should visit: http://thechurchandtheliberaltraditio...
Chapter III is then devoted to a concise-yet-substantial review of the distributist principles and arguments as laid out by Hilaire Belloc and G.K. Chesterton, which reportedly seeks to promote the widespread ownership of property (and disbursement of the means of production) in the hands of the greatest number of people, curbing the "profit-driven" capitalist system with mutually agreed upon quotas and price controls as set forth by guilds and similar associations with the ultimate goal of establishing a more equitable playing field and a more human human economic relations.
Woods offers a number of practical challenges -- rooted in a historical research and experience -- that would challenge this distributes vision.
For example, countering the notion that it is always preferable for man to operate his own business than work for another ("wage slavery"), Woods notes that "it may well be that a man is better able to care for his family precisely if he does not own his own business or work the backbreaking schedule of running his own farm" -- and that within the capitalist system, wage-earning may in fact afford more leisure and family time.
Concerning the factory worker, Woods points out that he enjoys "a security that distributists do not acknowledge": that of immediate compensation whether or not the goods towards whose production he contributes ever sell. (Woods cites the observation of Eugen von Bohm-Bawerk that the capitalist in this sense undertakes the risk -- and therefore is entitled to the credit.
Woods undertakes a bound-to-be-provocative look at The Industrial Revolution and to recent historical studies which challenge the congenital portrayal of it as leading to "widespread impoverishment of people who had hitherto enjoyed lives of relative happiness and abundance." Granting that working conditions in the capital-starved economies of 18th and 19th century England were unspeakably poor compared to those of today, Woods argues that the rise of capitalism nonetheless rescued many from destitution and made possible "growth in life expectancy, in health, and in in living standards … a population explosion that could not have been sustained under the stagnating conditions of the preindustrial age."
Woods goes on to challenge the validity of Distributist scenario of "predatory pricing"; the proposal that increased regulation of capitalist activity is conducive towards small business growth.
Chapter IV takes a look at what appears to be a rather idealistic and romantic conception of medieval guilds and their modern-day replications -- as in President Roosevelt's National Industrial Recovery Act of 1933, setting minimum wages, minimum prices and other regulations and which turned out to be so unpopular that a U.S. Senate commission condemned it and overturned it as unconstitutional in 1935.
Nevertheless, Woods points out that "a great detail of the guild mentality persists in the U.S. economy and can be seen in the behavior of the American Medical Association, the American Bar Association and others" -- providing some present-day examples. One cited tragedy is that of Robin Smith, a paralegal for a large law office who -- "disgusted by the fact that lawyers billed clients high fees for what was entirely her work, fees that many of them could scarcely afford" -- began a business of her own, "People's Paralegal, Inc.", offering low cost services to the masses … until such time as the Oregon State Bar filed suite against Smith for "unauthorized practice of the law." This manner of monopolizing by associations is defended "with the interest of protecting the customer" -- but as Milton Friedman observes, the lobbying for restrictions on non-licensed activity is typically done by practitioners of the trade rather than the customers themselves. As a Catholic, Woods thus questions whether the artificial inflation of prices or the often-stifling regulation of services (as under a guild system) is genuinely reflective of "a preferential piton for the poor."
I personally found "Beyond Distributism" to be a provocative, stimulating and yet respectful airing of Woods's position on this issue. Naturally it is not the end of the story -- Catholic proponents of distributism have raised their objections and there has been a plethora of exchanges. Those interested can see an ongoing compilation of such should visit: http://thechurchandtheliberaltraditio...
July 20, 2018
Excellent
An excellent explanation on why the free market is a morally superior economic system compared to distributism from the Catholic social point of view.
An excellent explanation on why the free market is a morally superior economic system compared to distributism from the Catholic social point of view.
November 9, 2020
Excellent quick read - chock full of economic history which debunks “the third way”.
December 9, 2013
"Beyond Distributism" is a thorough critique in-so-far as it rebukes those tenants of distributism which seem-to-be apparent. I say seem-to-be apparent because I have yet to encounter a candid and coherent proposal of what exactly the philosophy maintains, though Woods certainly gives a hospitable account.
The topics discussed in this small book include, but are not limited to, the principles of Catholic social teaching, the variety of ways which those principles might be applied (both pro and con), a generous assessment of what motivated the distributist founders to offer their philosophy and an assessment of why that motivation may have been rooted in a misguided evaluation of the social conditions it sought to remedy, the dangers of a centralized government which would be needed to achieve the goals of distributistm and a historical examination of the guilds (beloved and advocated by many distributists).
I offer one citation -- from many available -- which offers a telling indictment of why distributism should be rejected:
"A time of ongoing cultural revolution when the adversaries of Christianity have made plain their intent to use the state machinery to promote radical social ideologies hardly seems an opportune moment to discuss how the rights of property might be compromised. Private property is an important bulwark against the ongoing anti-Christian campaign. Although opponents of the free market will doubtless claim that they wish to interfere with the rights of property only to this or that extent, or only to bring about this or that allegedly desirable social outcome, there can be little excuse for such naiveté in our day. No Christian should want to build up an institution that he would be terrified to see in the hands of his ideological opponents."
The author certainly satisfies the said intention and this work would make for a nice introduction to free-market economics and the critique of socialism. My main and only problem with the book is that it reads dry -- I often struggled to maintain focus and had to reread passages. This may be due to other factors, but it's a criticism I can't overlook.
The topics discussed in this small book include, but are not limited to, the principles of Catholic social teaching, the variety of ways which those principles might be applied (both pro and con), a generous assessment of what motivated the distributist founders to offer their philosophy and an assessment of why that motivation may have been rooted in a misguided evaluation of the social conditions it sought to remedy, the dangers of a centralized government which would be needed to achieve the goals of distributistm and a historical examination of the guilds (beloved and advocated by many distributists).
I offer one citation -- from many available -- which offers a telling indictment of why distributism should be rejected:
"A time of ongoing cultural revolution when the adversaries of Christianity have made plain their intent to use the state machinery to promote radical social ideologies hardly seems an opportune moment to discuss how the rights of property might be compromised. Private property is an important bulwark against the ongoing anti-Christian campaign. Although opponents of the free market will doubtless claim that they wish to interfere with the rights of property only to this or that extent, or only to bring about this or that allegedly desirable social outcome, there can be little excuse for such naiveté in our day. No Christian should want to build up an institution that he would be terrified to see in the hands of his ideological opponents."
The author certainly satisfies the said intention and this work would make for a nice introduction to free-market economics and the critique of socialism. My main and only problem with the book is that it reads dry -- I often struggled to maintain focus and had to reread passages. This may be due to other factors, but it's a criticism I can't overlook.
January 7, 2014
In "Beyond Distributism," Professor Woods directly and succinctly challenges the views held by those who believe that Distributism, as discussed by Chesterton and Helloc, is the only economic perspective consistent with Catholic social teaching. Woods highlights the simple fact that it would be the poor, the very people who Christians should seek to protect, who would be harmed by Distributist policies. That is because such policies would restrict the provision of goods and services, presumably through guilds and/or small businesses, resulting in higher prices and a lower output of goods and services than would otherwise be available in the free market. I strongly recommend this book to any Catholic who wants to keep the poor in the forefront of their thoughts and wish to understand how, indeed, the marketplace is the best way in which to provide material benefits to everyone, including and especially the poor.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews