“I’m going to make our military so big, so powerful, so strong, that nobody — absolutely nobody — is gonna to mess with us,” Trump says. On other occasions he’s said similar things: “We want to defer, avoid and prevent conflict through our unquestioned military strength” (same link) and, a year ago, “Nobody is going to mess with us. Nobody. It will be one of the greatest military build-ups in American history.”
Tag: aggression
When Does Action Become Aggression?
Benjamin Franklin said, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” I consider that apropos on the question of how to prevent unwanted albeit non-aggressive actions by others as it concerns our property. I predict that in a totally free society, security will be a higher expense on our personal financial statements than will be reactionary force or violence.
Obligations, Responsibility, and the Inalienability of the Will
Even among those who subscribe to the non-aggression principle (NAP), there are those who do not understand the nature of obligations, responsibility, and the inalienability of the will. While a thorough discussion of these issues could fill many volumes, it is my desire to provide a simple summary for those who desire an overview of the subject.
No One Stole Your Job
People who have chosen to trade with you in the past can decide to trade with someone else instead. While this may be inconvenient for you, this is not an act of aggression against you. It doesn’t make you a victim of anything. You have no right to a “job,” any more than the local convenience store has some right to have you buy lunch from them.
Free Will, Hypocrisy, Peaceful Coexistence, & Ideas vs. Incentives (45m) – Editor’s Break 054
Editor’s Break 054 has Skyler giving his commentary on the following topics: why he’s been recording fewer episodes lately, corruption among political leaders, distasteful implications of the absence of free will, hypocrisy by Judge Katherine B. Forrest, who put away Ross Ulbricht of the Silk Road for life, the necessity of non-aggression toward the goal of peaceful coexistence, why incentives matter more than ideas in steering society, the high price that must be paid to satiate bigotry toward foreign immigrants, and more.
You Are The Obstacle to Peaceful Coexistence
It’s wrong to initiate violence. Using force against people is only justified when it is used to stop an actual aggressor. That is true in rich, pretty neighborhoods. It is also true in poor, rundown neighborhoods. It is true where there is a lot of violent crime. It is true where there is little or no violent crime.
Conditions for Justified Coercion
Below are some conditions or situations when coercion may be justified. They are designed to be concise yet comprehensive. I have defined terms as clearly as I can, but they may still be open to interpretation and judgement. Think about them and see if you can improve upon them or develop your own!
Ultimately Reduce Overall Aggression
After all, if the ends justify the means, and the long term “big picture” goal makes violent aggression against non-violent individuals justified, or even necessary, then how could you object to the outright murder of anyone who has beliefs that you consider to be in any way anti-freedom?
Property and Self
It seems to me that this is a central economic question confronting the human species, but to resolve it is to put statist and interventionist footprints all over the question. Voluntaryists are stuck on the fence of believing the resolution while being restricted in implementing much of its implications.
A Thought Experiment in Voluntaryism
The goal of the present thought experiment is to explore how much of existing social institutions, practices, and human relationships depend upon physical violence or the threat of it in order to function or exist.