Apr 27, 2009
No Honor among Pirates
At least, that's what Christopher Caldwell claims in his review of Peter T. Leeson's The Invisible Hook: The Hidden Economics of Pirates (Princeton University Press, 2009).
Although Caldwell believes that piracy both as a form of larceny and as a form of war will always endure,"piracy as a form of governance ... is something that exists only in brief moments of government indifference, and soon ends in Davy Jones's locker." In other words, he's claiming that the historical record doesn't support the sort of conclusions that Leeson and others seek to draw.
Would anyone who has read The Invisible Hook wish to comment on Caldwell's review? Indeed, would Pete himself care to respond?
Although Caldwell believes that piracy both as a form of larceny and as a form of war will always endure,"piracy as a form of governance ... is something that exists only in brief moments of government indifference, and soon ends in Davy Jones's locker." In other words, he's claiming that the historical record doesn't support the sort of conclusions that Leeson and others seek to draw.
Would anyone who has read The Invisible Hook wish to comment on Caldwell's review? Indeed, would Pete himself care to respond?