And since I'm a libertarian economist, I realize that makes me doubly suspect.

So when I write about the desirability of market-based organ transplants (see here, here, and here), I realize some people will instinctively object because selling one's organs is somehow distasteful and icky.

Or because it makes people subject to exploitation. For instance, writing for the Washington Post, Scott Carney argues that organ sales would take advantage of the poor.

What would happen if the United States legalized the sale of human organs? …Whether we like it or not, we live in the era of globalization, and if the U.S. legalizes the market for body parts, there is no reason to think that international economies won't play a role in how a patient decides to procure transplant organs … According to the National Foundation for Transplants, a kidney transplant costs about $260,000. In the illegal organ markets in India, Egypt and Pakistan, the same procedure rings in at just shy of $20,000 — certified organ included … The only thing stopping the typical American transplant patient from going abroad and buying an organ is the difficulty of making contact with a broker and the threat of what might happen if they get caught … the market for human body parts is a lot like the one for used cars: They're only worth what someone is willing to sell them for … hundreds of thousands of people are available and willing to sell their flesh for pennies on the dollar.