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Walter Edward Williams (born March 31, 1936) is an American economist, commentator, and academic. He is the John M. Olin Distinguished Professor of Economics at George Mason University, as well as a syndicated columnist and author known for his libertarian views.〔(Free Market Mojo )〕 == Early life and education == Williams's family during childhood consisted of his mother, his sister, and him. His father played no role in raising either child.〔Williams ''Up From the Projects p. 3〕 He grew up in Philadelphia. The family initially lived in West Philadelphia, moving to North Philadelphia and the Richard Allen housing projects when Williams was ten. His neighbors included a young Bill Cosby. Williams knew many of the individuals that Cosby speaks of from his childhood, including Weird Harold and Fat Albert.〔Root, Damon (2011-01-28) (Man Versus the State ), ''Reason''〕 Williams was a talented high school student who displayed a very inconsistent performance in his studies. Following high school, he went to California to live with his father and attend one semester at Los Angeles City College. He later said that he was not ready at that time to be a serious student.〔Williams ''Up From the Projects'' p. 28〕 In 1959 he was drafted into the military, and served as a Private in the United States Army.〔〔Williams ''Up From the Projects'' p. 36〕 While stationed in the south, he "waged a one man battle against Jim Crow from inside the army. He challenged the racial order with provocative statements to his fellow soldiers. This resulted in an overseeing officer filing a court-martial proceeding against Williams. Williams argued his own case, and was found not guilty.〔 While considering filing countercharges against the officer that had brought him up for court martial, Williams found himself transferred to Korea. Upon arriving there, Williams marked "Caucasian" for race on his personnel form. When challenged on this, Williams replied wryly if he had marked "Black", he would end up getting all the worst jobs. From Korea Williams wrote a letter to President John F. Kennedy denouncing the pervasive racism in the American government and military, and questioning the actions black Americans should take given the state of affairs, writing: He received a reply from the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, Alfred B. Fitt, a response which he termed "the most reasonable response that I received from any official."〔Williams "Up From The Projects" pp. 63–65〕 Following his military service, he re-entered college as a far more motivated student. Williams earned a bachelor's degree (1965) in economics from California State University, Los Angeles. He earned both his master's degree (1967) and his Ph.D. (1972) in economics from the University of California, Los Angeles. Speaking of his early college days, Williams says "I was more than anything a radical. I was more sympathetic to Malcolm X than Martin Luther King because Malcolm X was more of a radical who was willing to confront discrimination in ways that I thought it should be confronted, including perhaps the use of violence. But I really just wanted to be left alone. I thought some laws, like minimum-wage laws, helped poor people and poor black people and protected workers from exploitation. I thought they were a good thing until I was pressed by professors to look at the evidence." While at UCLA Williams came into contact with economists such as Armen Alchian, James M. Buchanan, and Axel Leijonhufvud who challenged his assumptions. Never one to be over-awed by others, Williams regularly challenged his professors as well. But on examining the evidence of actual outcomes he came to believe such programs were abject failures. "I learned that you have to evaluate the effects of public policy as opposed to intentions."〔 While Williams was at UCLA, Thomas Sowell arrived on campus in 1969 as a visiting professor. Although he never took a class from Dr. Sowell, the two met and began a friendship that has lasted to this day. In the summer of 1972 Sowell was hired as director of the Urban Institute's Ethnic Minorities Project, which Williams joined shortly thereafter〔Williams ''Up From The Projects'' pp. 91–93〕 Correspondence between Sowell and Williams appears in the 2007 "A Man of Letters" by Sowell. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Walter E. Williams」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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