I am shocked and saddened to learn that John Blundell, who was a leading Thatcherite before there was a Prime Minister Thatcher, died yesterday. The Atlas Network and the Acton Institute have both put up notices. John hired me to be a summer associate at the Institute of Economic Affairs two decades ago, and I visited with him, too rarely, when I was in London or he in Washington. He was always a cheerful and wry champion of classical liberal ideas. My condolences to his wife Christine and their sons, and to the liberty movement in Britain that he served so faithfully and well.
Update: It occurs to me that my qualifier “in Britain” inadvertently gave short shrift to John, who very much saw that movement as international and worked with think tanks in the U.S. and around the world.