Mar 23, 2006

Chris Tame, RIP

by Liberty and Power

I just received a phone call from Sean Gabb of the Libertarian Alliance. Sean tells me that my pal, Chris Tame, passed away at 3:37 pm, London time. Having battled cancer these many months, Chris's passing was, as Sean describes it, peaceful.

I'm very sad to hear this news, and I extend my deepest condolences to his friends and family. I was fortunate enough to speak with Chris last week; it was a"goodbye" phone call, as he knew the end was near. I will miss his almost daily"Ayn Rand Watch" postings, his warped sense of humor, and, most of all, the intellectual engagement. But I know that his legacy will live on.

A press release will follow from Sean very soon. (I've added that release at the Notablog post here. Kenneth R. Gregg has also added it to the comments section here.)

Update (23 March 2006): Sean Gabb has published an Obituary for Chris Tame here and here.

Chris Tame: 1949-2006

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Kenneth R. Gregg - 3/21/2006

It is with the deepest regret that I must announce the death of Dr Chris
R. Tame, Founder and President of the Libertarian Alliance.

Chris founded the Libertarian Alliance in the early 1970s. During the next
30 years, he worked tirelessly to recover the British libertarian
tradition as a seamless heritage of freedom. He took issue with those
Conservatives who saw freedom in terms purely of pounds and pence - and
often not even as that. He took issue also with those who demanded freedom
in all matters but those involving the getting and spending of money. He
believed that freedom should be defined in the traditional English sense,
as the rights to life, liberty and justly acquired property.

In July 2005, Chris was diagnosed with a rare and very aggressive form of
bone cancer. Though only 55 at the time, and though he had avoided all
those vices commonly believed to be dangerous, he took this diagnosis with
great calmness. During the next eight months, he faced his approaching end
with a fortitude and good humour that was an inspiration to those around
him.

To the very end, he retained a keen interest in public affairs and in the
welfare of his friends and loved ones. On his last day, he made sure to
check his e-mails.

Chris died peacefully in his sleep at 3:37pm GMT on Monday the 20th March
2006. He was never alone during his last six days. Mrs Helen Evans and Dr
Sean Gabb were by his side at the end.

Chris was married and divorced twice. He left no children.

Dr Gabb will make a further announcement in the next few days of the funeral arrangments. In the meantime, all further correspondence should be directed to him.

Chris leaves the Libertarian Alliance in the hands of Dr Timothy Evans and
Dr Sean Gabb, who as President and Director, hope to carry on its work
through the first decades of the 21st century.

--
Sean Gabb
Director, the Libertarian Alliance
sean@libertarian.co.uk Tel: (44) 7956 472 199
http://www.seangabb.co.uk http://www.libertarian.co.uk

Kenneth R. Gregg - 3/20/2006

Chris was the former director of the Freedom Organisation for the Right to Enjoy Smoking Tobacco (FOREST) he wrote extensively over the years in Britain and elsewhere. He edited The Bibliography of Freedom for the Centre for Policy Studies and contributed to The Case for Private Enterprise, The New Right Enlightenment and The Politics of Crime Control. His essays have appeared in such journals as The Jewish Journal of Sociology, Il Politico, Science and Public Policy, The Journal of Social, Political and Economic Studies, Werifrei and Economic Affairs.

A graduate in American Studies from Hull University, he was later awarded a PhD from Middlesex University. A public affairs professional who has worked in a variety of fields, he is one of Britain’s best known libertarian broadcasters and writers.

With his kind and generous personality, always willing to encourage young libertarians, Dr. Tame has been an inspiration to a generation of British libertarians. He will be greatly missed.

The Libertarian Alliance, one of Britain’s leading free market and civil liberties think tanks, currently has more than 700 pamphlets in print and online, as well as their periodical, Free Life. It has attracted widespread press and media interest and has been at the forefront of establishing libertarian ideas as an important part of modern political discourse.

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