Editor’s Pick. Written by Alex R. Knight, III. The most obvious question that never gets asked is: “What, pray tell, makes you believe that those who call themselves government – those whose very livings are derived from stolen and extorted loot (taxes), are themselves more heavily armed than anyone else, and are responsible for every…
Category: Voluntaryism
Nonviolent Resistance is Not Futile
Editor’s Pick. Written by Benett Freeman (original). Some thoughts on resistance… 1. Individual, isolated acts of resistance – whether violent or not – cannot bring about an end to industrial civilisation or any aspect of the incumbent paradigm. 2. With sufficient (majority) support, the sheer weight of popular, non-violent, resistance will be enough to depose…
A Theory of Civil Disobedience in Three Minutes
Editor’s Pick. Written by Jason Brennan. Civil disobedience is one of the easiest topics in political philosophy. Civil disobedience is at base the conscientious decision to break a law on the grounds that it’s unjust. It may or may not be accompanied by active public resistance and displays, a willingness to submit to punishment, attempts…
A Tale of Two Political Systems
Editor’s Pick. Video by Eric Li. Editor’s note: This is not an endorsement of political China, but merely something the editor found interesting as it concerns Hans Hoppe’s thesis on democracy.
The State Is Too Dangerous to Tolerate
Editor’s Pick. Video by Robert Higgs.
The Faux Slavery Analogy to Voting
Editor’s Pick. Written by Wendy McElroy. I oppose electoral voting on both moral and strategic grounds. In presenting the Voluntaryist case against electoral voting, however, I commonly encounter the slavery analogy as a counterargument in support of defensive voting. A classic formulation of it comes from Walter Block who argues, “Suppose we were slaves, and…
There Will Be No Victorious State
Editor’s Pick. Written by Alex Knight. One of the most absurd characteristics of democracy to me is the unspoken yet obviously present belief on the part of all active participants that ultimately, one day, through enough intellectual persuasion – or even underhanded political tactics so often openly engaged in – a single ideology will prevail,…
The Libertarian Paradox
Editor’s Pick. Written by Llewellyn Rockwell. As libertarians attempt to persuade others of their position, they encounter an interesting paradox. On the one hand, the libertarian message is simple. It involves moral premises and intuitions that in principle are shared by virtually everyone, including children. Do not hurt anyone. Do not steal from anyone. Mind…
Bloody Revolutions Fail: Now Is The Time For Peace
Editor’s Pick. Written by Jared Bachman. Every violent revolution in history has been a failure. I understand that you’re probably doubting that. Many Americans have been misled to believe in successful revolutions in history. The American Revolution is considered a success by many. We’re often told that the brave rebels stood up to the unethical…
Social Contract Fallacy
Editor’s Pick. Written by AC. You are a slave. If you’ve ever argued with a government apologist, you’ve heard the social contract fallacy. It says that even though government does evil things like steal your money and kill people, that is okay because everyone agreed to live under the government’s rule. Of course, there is…