Let them eat cake

Inevitably, when ever I mention Anarchy to someone, I immediately hear the same arguments. We need police to protect us. People wouldn't provide for their own defense. When confronted with violence, we can always call 911. People always argue that without government we'd have poverty, violence, and war. The reality is that at this time, we have more, and more powerful, government than at any time in history, and we are still laboring under all the same threats we always have. In fact, the government itself uses these very tactics to accomplish its own goals. If you really believe that government exists to protect us, then you must admit that it is a complete failure. Governments can't even get people to wash their hands.

The reality is that we will always have crime. You can't eliminate murder, rape, and arson. You can't get 100 percent of the people to be good to each other and stop stealing and lying. You can make whatever laws you want, with the most draconian enforcement policies you can imagine, and some people will still commit crime. The reality is that the only person who is ever responsible for your defense is you. You can't obligate someone else to provide you with protection without advocating slavery. You can assume someone else will protect you, but ultimately, that position is foolishness. You can't abdicate that responsibility. You can refuse to accept it if you wish, but whether you accept it or not, the responsibility for your defense still lies with you. And the government agrees.

While governments all over the world struggle with fixing the global economy, the fallout of the recent rescue bill is already being seen in other industries. Predictably, where other companies are struggling with the current financial climate, some are already calling for a bailout of more American industries. Will the government now talk of nationalizing the auto industry? Soon we can all get credit from the government, to buy cars from the government. When the government controls the means of production as well as the distribution of goods, you have something called socialism.

Some people have said that we need a government as a stop-gap during tough economic times. The reality is that in a free market, resources shift. If the currency has real value, then that value still exists, it's just shifting to other areas of the economy. While we might wish the money went to us, and not to places like pawn shops and repo men the reality is that money is still being exchanged for goods and services. People still have to eat, but maybe right now they're eating Campbell's instead of steak. That's ok.

I'd rather eat soup than eat cake.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anarcho-capitalism