I wrote this as a response in a Facebook discussion. I thought I’d share it here. There’re two ways to approach libertarianism: 1) legal philosophy, and 2) political philosophy. 1) is *what* laws should be made, and 2) is *how* those laws should be made. Liberty, hence libertarians, hence the non-aggression and self-ownership principles, demand…
Tag: persuasion
Analyzing Authority Through Anarchy
Guest post by Connor Boyack. Objecting to the near-limitless expansion of government authority, people of all political persuasions question, at times, the specific program or policy with which they take issue. Whether the criteria for judgment is the Constitution, statutory code, precedent, or other sources of affirmed legal authority, a comprehensive discussion regarding what government…
The Liberty Movement: What Now?
Ron Paul has officially dropped out of the race for those who live under a rock and/or are attending college for a ministry degree.I was left unsurprised and shocked at the same time. Many of my libertarian brethren told me that there is still hope and that we should continue fighting for what we believe in.…
Individualism, Collectivism, and Other Murky Labels
Imagine the following person. He believes all individuals should be free to do anything that’s peaceful and therefore favors private property, free global markets, freedom of contract, civil liberties, and all the related ideas that come under the label libertarianism (or liberalism). Obviously he is not a statist. But is he an individualist and a capitalist or a socialist and a collectivist?
Winning Arguments
Guest post by Eric Peters. The other day I had a chat with a neighbor friend. He posed a rhetorical question, “You do believe some taxes are necessary, right?” Rather than debate the merits of this or that tax, this or that function funded by taxes – I merely replied that as a non-violent person…
Chapter 15 – Why Socialism Must Fail
Table of ContentsPrevious – Section Three – Chapter 14 – “Historical Capitalism vs. the Free Market” by Richard Ebeling 15 Why Socialism Must Fail by Hans-Hermann Hoppe Socialism and capitalism* offer radically different solutions to the problem posed by scarcity: everybody can’t have everything they want when they want it, so how can we effectively…
Chapter 10 – Secular Theocracy
Table of ContentsPrevious – Section Two – Chapter 9 – “For Conscience’s Sake” by Carl Watner 10 Secular Theocracy by David J. Theroux Part 1 We live in an increasingly secularized world of massive and pervasive nation states in which traditional religion, especially Christianity, is ruled unwelcome and even a real danger on the basis…
Chapter 9 – For Conscience’s Sake
Table of ContentsPrevious – Section Two – Chapter 8 – “The Historical Origins of Voluntaryism” by James Luther Adams 9 For Conscience’s Sake by Carl Watner George Smith, in his essay “Philosophies of Toleration,’’ reviews the history of freedom of religion and identifies the moral axiom of “righteous persecution,” which has been part of most…
Chapter 3 – Fundamentals of Voluntaryism
Table of ContentsPrevious – Section One – Chapter 2, “Coercivists and Voluntarists” by Donald J. Boudreaux 3 Fundamentals of Voluntaryism by Carl Watner Voluntaryism is the doctrine that relations among people should be by mutual consent, or not at all. It represents a means, an end, and an insight. Voluntaryism does not argue for the…
Everything Voluntary – Introduction
Table of ContentsPrevious – Preface Introduction by Skyler J. Collins, Editor The mainstream political, education, and parenting philosophies all have one thing in common: promoting the domination of one group of people over another. In politics, this is the ruling class, ie. the politicians and bureaucrats, over the ruled. In education and parenting, this is…