Author Archives: admin

Response to Salon’s “Grow up, Libertarians”

www.salon.com/2013/06/13/grow_up_libertarians/

I’m actually responding to a friend who cited the article and says that he’s visited “libertarian” countries in Africa and SW Asia. I think it may be beyond the ability of these people to understand, but I wrote back anyway:

Afghanistan and Congo are not libertarian. Look for private justice and private security. Medieval Iceland is an oft cited example, albeit an imperfect one – people voluntarily chose clans for their protection.

Another is the Not-so-wild West which had a lower murder rate than most modern American cities. Wagon trains had private constitution. The original meaning of the term “outlaw” was someone declared to be outside the protection of private law. Meaning, private security would not protect him. This seems like a much more sensible means of punishment then *Forcing* victims to pay for the food, lodging and entertainment of their aggressors.

In the not-so-wild west civilization grew faster than the state, but unfortunately, the state and its many psychopaths caught up. So if you want honest example looks there, or to Medieval Iceland, the clan structure of Ireland, the thousands of kingdoms of Germany prior to Bismark and unification.

If you just want to call libertarians childish, as the article does, I would say: fuck you. What’s childish is thinking that a man with a gun can solve all the world’s problems. Health? The government will do it. Education? The government will do it. Consumer protection? Government. Raising children? Restricting commerce? Delivering little pieces of paper back and forth? Deciding whether I can put raw milk in my own body? Government. Government. Government. Government. That’s a very mature and nuanced perspective.

Global Warming Alarmism In Twilight

Another sensational, fake problem which called for a massive governmental solution is about to enter the dustbin of intellectual history. It’s hard to believe how intensely this idea was promoted. Hard the believe the passion with which I was berated by acquaintances for my skepticism. Hard to believe that I pretty much broke up with a great girl because I wouldn’t join the church of the dying earth. Now, the idea is ending. I’m sure its zealots will not be afflicted by memory. For them there is another crisis on the horizon — inequality, perhaps. For them, there is no time to reflect on the past. The crisis is upon us! We must throw ourselves behind this cause with all our hearts and mind!

www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2013/06/global-warming-alarmism-in-twilight.php

an open letter to Lookout Names regarding “lostrepublic.com”

Dear Lookout Names,

Thanks for contacting me (multiple times). I had received an email some months ago regarding lostrepublic which invited me to make a bid.

I followed the link with the intention of making a low bid, but your website didn’t allow any bidding below $498 dollars.

Earlier, I was very interested in this domain and made offers of over $1,000, only to be told that the owner had rejected offers of $20,000. Was it you guys who told me this? Ridiculous. You shouldn’t have been so arrogant and greedy.

Lostrepublic is much less important to me now. I decided a few months ago to shut down .

If you want to sell me the lostrepublic for $100, I’ll buy it. I’m not even sure why, but I’ll do it. If you have offers higher than $100, please take them and leave me alone.

Can Anarchy be feasible to set up in a particular world?

Curt Doolittle, The Propertarian Institute….

I’ll try to do give the the best answer that is available to us today.

1) If we define anarchy as the absence of RULES (MORALS AND NORMS), then no – without morals and norms humans cannot cooperate.
2) If we define anarchy as the absence of LAWS and JUDGES then no. Without contracts and the common law support of contracts, then no, not in any meaningful sense.
3) If we define anarchy as the absence of GOVERNMENT (meaning group of people who coordinate investments in commons then possibly anarchy can exist, but under very constrained and simple conditions. Realistically it would be very hard for these people to compete economically with people from other groups.
4) If we define anarchy as the absence of LAW MAKERS then almost certainly. The common law alone is sufficient for law making.
5) If we define anarchy as the absence of an abstract corporation we call the ‘STATE’, then absolutely certainly. In fact, when people complain about government they generally are complaining about the behavior of individuals in a monopoly (government) who are insulated from competition, and whose members also for a bureaucracy that is insulated from competition, and who, as members of a bureaucracy, pursue their own interests.

Human societies employ at least these five sets of institutions and by and large, the first three are necessary, and the second two are not. The question is whether in practice a group could compete effectively without the abstract state and the ability to issue commands (we call them laws, but that’s just a way of trying to give commands the legitimacy of natural laws to what are just political ‘commands’.)

So, a homogenous body of people who are not very different in character, belief, genetics, status, and wealth can quite easily create anarchy by writing a constitution with just one a half a dozen rules in it, and then hopefully finding judges that will rule according to those rules and no others.

A government lf laws then, is quite possible. A government of men isn’t necessary. And it’s what our founding fathers were trying to prevent.

Didn’t work well though. Civil war and all that….

Muslims Demand Germany ‘Make Islam Equal to Christianity’

open quoteA major conference on German-Muslim relations has ended in failure after Muslims attending the event refused to acknowledge the government’s concerns about the threats to security posed by radical Islam.

German Interior Minister Hans-Peter Friedrich had wanted the eighth annual German Islam Conference, held in Berlin on May 7, to focus on finding ways the government could work together with “moderate” Muslims in Germany to combat Islamism and extremism.

But Muslims attending the gathering were apparently offended by the insinuation that Islam could be radical or violent, and demanded instead that the German government take steps to make “Islam equal to Christianity” in Germany.close quote (Read more)

French soldier stabbed while on patrol near Paris

open quoteA French soldier patrolling a business neighborhood west of Paris was stabbed in the neck and injured on Saturday by a man who fled the scene and is being sought by police, President Francois Hollande said.

The 23-year-old was patrolling in uniform with two other soldiers as part of France’s Vigipirate anti-terror surveillance plan when he was approached from behind around 6 p.m. and attacked with a knife or a box-cutter.

A police union spokesman said surveillance footage of the attacker showed him as tall and bearded, aged about 35, possibly of North African origin and wearing a white Arab-style tunic.close quote (Read more)