The Art of Liberty Foundation reported generous donations, including $4,800 and a stocked RV, to assist families affected by Hurricane Helene. A community effort, spearheaded by Christpoint Church and TLC Community Center, has donated 62 RVs and numerous relief items. Local volunteers provide essential services amidst governmental shortcomings.

Could New Hampshire be the 1st U.S. State to Kick Out “Government” and See its Economy Flourish?Alec Zeck interviews Eric Brakey, Executive Director of the Free State Project, on the Way Forward podcast. What is the Free State Project? New Hampshire’s Free State Project – How Freeing a Single State from “Government” Could Free Us AllBy Etienne de la Boetie2, Founder of the Art of Liberty Foundation and author of “Government” – The Biggest Scam in History… Exposed!People around the world are organizing various efforts to secure an area with political sovereignty to implement societies free from the control system of “government.” The largest and most exciting is the Free State Project in New Hampshire.The Free State Project has organized over 24,000+ activists who have pledged to move to New Hampshire and campaign actively for its political independence. The group has already moved and contained over 6,200+ in the state, with more arriving every week and has spent over a decade successfully rolling back laws, getting libertarians elected to office, and building the political and social networks needed for societal change. I believe if we free New Hampshire, we can ultimately win freedom everywhere, as we demonstrate, through a single “laboratory-of-liberty,” that you can have harmony and prosperity without “government.”The Free State Project started in 2001 when a political science student, Jason Sorens, then a Ph.D. student at Yale, published an article highlighting the failure of libertarians to elect any candidate to federal office and outlining his ideas for a secessionist movement, calling people to respond to him with interest. That response led to an organizing effort on the Internet, and the Free State Project was born without a specific state in mind.101 Reasons Liberty Lives in New Hampshire101 Reasons: Liberty Lives in New Hampshire (Full-Length Film) 63 MinutesThe initial participants began a systematic review of the U.S. states with a sub-1.5 million population to determine which state would be the easiest to take over. Participants analyzed such variables as population, spending by political parties, the make-up of the legislature, and the percentage of libertarians in the state. Hawaii and Rhode Island were eliminated for their political propensity to centralized government, and a “bake-off” was held in September of 2003 between Alaska, Delaware, Idaho, Maine, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont and Wyoming. New Hampshire edged out Wyoming (57% vs. 43%) in the final vote.Members of the Free State Project signed a “Statement of Intent” promising to move within five years to whichever state was chosen when the total population of the group hit 20,000, a number that had been calculated as what was needed for a committed group of activists to significantly influence a small state with a sub-1.5 million population.Once New Hampshire was chosen in 2003, FSP members immediately moved to the State. These were called “Early Movers,” and they started having an impact almost immediately. The group hit 20,000 “signers” in February of 2016, triggering “The Move,” however, there were all kinds of “outs” in the agreement. Some signers wouldn’t move because they didn’t like New Hampshire, some signers got married, some signers divorced, and many had passed away. Many moved… Some haven’t.. yet… more continue to arrive almost every day, and more find out about it every single day… around the world.Flash forward to today. The FSP now has 6230+ members “on the ground” in New Hampshire, with new members arriving every single week. The actual number is likely higher because not every member has notified the organization’s office that they have moved. Many don’t want to be on a list when we have an organized crime “government” targeting pro-freedom individuals and organizations. The organization runs a highly active jobs board to help folks considering moving to find employment in the state, a housing board to help them find accommodations, AND the FSP “Welcome Wagon” of fellow porcupines helps new movers unload when they arrive. You supply the pizza and beer!The Free Staters, known as “porcupines,” have successfully kept the torch of Liberty alive in New Hampshire. The state has retained its low-tax status as the only North-Eastern state with no income and no sales tax. Forty-five free staters have been elected to the House of Representatives or Senate, but the actual number may be higher as some porcupines run as Republicans and Democrats in a kind of reverse-Fabian socialism (Sheepdogs in Wolves-Clothing). Furthermore, the free-staters in the legislature have formed strong political alliances with both sides of the house, and there is a solid voting block of over 100+ representatives that consistently vote pro-freedom on almost every issue.The Free Stater’s successes in New Hampshire transcend party politics. The members have built political and social networks needed for widespread societal change. On the political side, the New Hampshire Liberty Alliance rates every piece of legislation coming before the House and Senate on whether it is pro-freedom or anti-freedom and assigns a report card score of A-F to every legislator on their voting record. Rebuild New Hampshire organizes activists and amplifies communications. The Children’s Scholarship Fund successfully lobbied the legislature to allow N.H. businesses to redirect a portion of their business proceeds tax to an Educational Tax Credit that has awarded scholarships totaling over $9,000,000, allowing students to attend schools that best meet their needs.On the social side, FSP members have created multiple community centers across the state that serve as homeschooling cooperatives, agorist marketplaces, co-working spaces, and community clubhouses. These include The Quill in Manchester, the Praxeum in Portsmouth, the Shell in Rollinsford, and the Wearehouse in Weare. Freestaters hold more than 550+ meetups, conferences, happy hours, game nights, singles events, hiking clubs, and full-fledged festivals in every corner of the state. You can see the complete calendar at https://www.fsp.org/calendar/What is PorcFest and the FSPThe Porcupine Freedom Festival is the FSP’s annual camping festival that takes over the largest campground in the state for a whole week each June. The event draws 2500+ attendees from around the world and features world-class speakers, parties, workshops, vendors, and activism in a family-friendly setting. Check out our companion article: The Art of Liberty Foundation @ PorcFest 2023… In Pictures!A Libertarian and Voluntaryist RedoubtThe symbolism of the porcupine is simple. The porcupine only wants to be left alone. He has quills, but they are only for self-defense. While most FSP members support a limited government that only protects life, liberty and property, a significant number are voluntaryists who don’t believe in the legitimacy, necessity or desirability of “government” at all. There is a running joke within the FSP: what is the difference between a libertarian and a voluntaryist in New Hampshire? Answer: About Six Months!I break down in my book: “Government” – The Biggest Scam in History… Exposed! the unethically manipulative techniques that the U.S. “government” has used to brainwash the pseudo-religion of Statism into the shave-headed cult members that wear the uni-form (single form, engineered conformity) and enforce the “commandments” (laws) with a judge that wears a “vestment.” I firmly believe that no libertarians or voluntaryists are safe until we have a redoubt where the shave-headed enforcers have no power because they are either:1. Mocked relentlessly from all sides by a population that understands the scam of “government” and the unethically manipulative techniques used to create non-thinking, immoral gunmen.OR2. They are outnumbered and outgunned by a peaceful but well-armed population who simply aren’t going to be robbed using “government” anymore.New Hampshire is one of the only places on the planet where these dynamics are slowly and surely taking place. And New Hampshire has a history of Liberty and defiance of the artificial “authority” of “government.”The Pine Tree RiotGeorge Washington adopted the Pine Tree Riot Flag for his NavyNew Hampshire has a proud heritage of defiance vs. bogus “government” authority, starting with the Pine Tree Riot. On April 13, 1772, Benjamin Whiting, Sheriff of Hillsborough County, and his Deputy John Quigley were sent to South Weare with a warrant to arrest the leader of the Weare mill owners who was ignoring a “government” mandate that the peasants were not to cut down trees of “greater than 12” diameter. These trees were reserved for the King of England to make masts for Royal Navy ships.At dawn the next day, (Pine Tree Riot Leader) Mudgett led between 20 and 30-40 men[6] to the tavern. Sheriff Whiting was still in bed, and Mudgett burst in on him. With their faces blackened with soot for disguise, more than 20 townsmen rushed into Whiting’s room. They began to beat him with tree branch switches, giving one lash for every tree being contested. The sheriff tried to grab his pistols, but he was thoroughly outnumbered. Rioters grabbed him by his arms and legs, hoisted him up, face to the floor, while others continued to mercilessly assault him with tree switches. Whiting later reported that he thought the men would surely kill him. Quigley was also pulled from his room and received the same treatment from another group of townsmen. The sheriff and deputy’s horses were brought around to the inn door. The rioters then cut off the ears and shaved the manes and tails of the horses, after which Whiting and Quigley were forced to ride out of town through a gauntlet of jeering townspeople, shouted at and slapped down the road towards Goffstown.“Government” Tax Collectors try to collect the “meals tax” from food vendors at Porcfest and are surrounded, mocked, and driven off, never to return!Because New Hampshire now has one of the largest concentrations of voluntaryists in the world, the indoctrinated pseudo-religion of “statism” and belief in “government” not only doesn’t fly in New Hampshire but the concentration of pro-freedom activists is approaching the point where they outnumber the bureaucrats and gunmen. Some examples:In 2015 agents from the N.H. Dept. of Revenue showed up at Porcfest and attempted to collect the “meals tax” from food vendors. They were surrounded, mocked, and driven off, and the “Dept of Revenue” has never tried to rob merchants at Porcfest again.I have heard stories of porcupines pulled over by the cops who used the now defunct group calling app Porc911 that sent a call blast to everyone subscribed. The police officer (and other responding officers and state police) were surrounded and outnumbered by porcupines who made fun of them, laughed at their “uni-forms,” mocked them relentlessly and pointed out the immorality of enforcing victimless crimes. The porcupines in New Hampshire are trying to reboot the semi-defunct Cell411, an app that crowdsources emergencies to friends, family, neighbors, mutual aid societies, and militias to modernize and improve that capability.Finally, in Keene,pro-legalization cannabis activists stormed the Keene police department after one of their members was arrested at a pro-legalization “smoke-in” at the town square. The activists forced the release of their detained member and then lit up and smoked out the police station! It even made the local paper in a reasonably positive light.An Armed Society is a Polite SocietyNew Hampshire has the lowest murder rate in the nation, despite “lax” gun laws. The lowest murder rate in the country doesn’t equate to being lightly armed. It equates to being massively armed. My favorite Free State Project gun club is called “Gun Church” (Cause it is on Sunday and for people who like to shoot religiously). Run by a former Green Beret with assistance from Ex-Navy SEALS, Rangers and other ex-military, the group teaches modern gun fighting techniques for community protection.The Pre-State ProjectThe Free State Project is capable of and, I believe, destined for exponential growth! New Hampshire is rapidly approaching the point where the Hundredth Monkey Effect takes place, and most of the population understands that “government” is illegitimate, illogical, openly criminal and has been robbing/tax-farming the people for half their income.The Art of Liberty Foundation believes that dynamic can be accelerated and has come up with an initiative that we call “The Pre-State Project” to super-charge the growth by widely exposing the illegitimacy and criminality of “government” in a way that can’t be censored by the monopoly media.A “Free-Stater” has moved to New Hampshire to seek limited “government.” and greater personal and economic freedom. A “Pre-Stater” already lives in New Hampshire BUT agrees with and supports the FSP’s liberty goals. Currently, most FSP members are “Pre-Staters,” growing this number could be a powerful strategy for taking over and freeing the State.Our “shovel-ready” plan entails dropping 100,000 copies of “Government” – The Biggest Scam in History, Liberator flash drives, and a TBD documentary to the influential and libertarian-leaning in the state and drive the interested to town hall events where we introduce the liberty movement in expo-style town hall events presenting the social and political organizations that stand ready to absorb and utilize new members while moving them to uncensorable, encrypted communications. We believe this can be accomplished for a couple of million dollars. Once freed from the scam and control system of “Government,” New Hampshire can serve as both an example and “laboratory-of-liberty” for other secession movements. If you want to free California, China, Israel or the U.K., free New Hampshire first! You can evaluate our plan for the Pre-State Project at https://artofliberty.org/about-us/ in our Executive Summary.Free State Project New Hampshire Liberty Events: PorcFest – Porcupine Freedom Festival every June, The Freecoast Festival (Sept, Portsmouth) or the Liberty Forum (March, Manchester), FSP Calendar (550+ Liberty Meet Ups and activities year-round)About the Author:Etienne de la Boetie2 is the founder of the Art of Liberty Foundation and the author of “Government” – The Biggest Scam in History, that is exposing the illegitimacy and criminality of “Government” while promoting solutions like the Free State Project, among others featured in the book. He was signer #50 in the Free State Project and has been one of the effort’s most prolific representatives promoting the project on blogs, vlogs, podcasts, and radio shows worldwide.What is behind the paywall this week? Our list/links of other voluntaryist and liberty communities around the world from the 5th Edition of “Government” – The Biggest Scam in History… Exposed!. Get our list of communities in Europe, Norway, Montenegro, Central/South America, Honduras, Mexico, and organizations and efforts promoting voluntaryist, pre-negotiated limited “government” or secessionist movements.Go paid at the $5 a month level, and we will send you both the PDF and e-Pub versions of “Government” – The Biggest Scam in History… Exposed! and a coupon code for 10% off anything in the Government-Scam.com/Store.Go paid at the $50 a year level, and we will send you a free paperback edition of Etienne’s book “Government” – The Biggest Scam in History… Exposed! OR a 64GB Liberator flash drive if you live in the US. If you are international, we will give you a $10 credit towards shipping if you agree to pay the remainder.Support us at the $250 Founding Member Level and get a signed high-resolution hardcover of “Government” + Liberator flash drive + Larken Rose’s The Most Dangerous Superstition + Art of Liberty Foundation Stickers delivered anywhere in the world. Our only option for signed copies besides catching Etienne @ an event.The Art of Liberty Foundation – Important News is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

James Corbett’s Satirical Video Presentation to Liberty on the Rocks – Sedona – The Voluntaryism Conference James Corbett, host of the Corbett Report, delivers a satirical presentation to Liberty on the Rocks – Sedona – The Voluntaryism Conference that pokes fun at the absurdity of centralized government planning. Using the fictional Ministry of Toothbrushes, he humorously explores the inefficiencies and absurdities that arise when the government controls even the most minor aspects of daily life. Corbett compares historical examples of central planning, including the Soviet Union’s attempts to regulate production down to the number of toothbrushes and coffins. He explains how such top-down control stifles innovation, limits choice, and leads to waste as government agencies attempt to dictate what people need. Corbett’s satire ultimately highlights the effectiveness of free markets and human cooperation. He questions the notion that essential services like security, dispute resolution, and infrastructure need government control, suggesting instead that individuals and communities can better manage these. This episode is both a humorous critique of technocratic governance and a thought-provoking exploration of voluntary alternatives.Full TranscriptWelcome, everyone! I’m James Corbett of CorbettReport.com, coming to you from the sunny climes of western Japan this October 2024. This is Episode 468 of the Corporate Report podcast.Now, let’s dive into today’s topic: An Announcement from the Ministry of Toothbrushes. Intrigued? Great! You’re in for a fantastic presentation. But before we get to that, let me provide some context about this presentation and its origins.This is the presentation I’ll be sharing at the Liberty on the Rocks 2024 Voluntarist Conference, scheduled to take place in Sedona, Arizona, from November 1st to 3rd—just a week or two away. If you haven’t secured your tickets yet, you still can! Visit Sedona.org or OfLiberty.org for more information about the conference, the speakers, and how to purchase tickets.If you’re near Sedona or the Arizona area, you can grab tickets to attend in person and experience the full event. Alternatively, virtual tickets are available, allowing you to stream the entire conference live from the comfort of your home.And here’s a special bonus: if you purchase tickets for the conference, use the checkout coupon code CORBETT5 for a discount. Not only will you save some money, but a portion of your purchase will also go toward supporting my work—a true win-win for everyone. So, I’d greatly appreciate it if you used that coupon code!Now, for more details, head over to Sedona.ArtofLiberty.org, where you’ll find everything you need to know about the event. The site provides information about the lineup of incredible speakers, including several past guests from CorbettReport.com, such as Larkin Rose, Etienne de la Boétie Squared, and Walter Block.The theme of this year’s conference is centered on a classic question: “Yeah, but who would pave the roads? Who would provide this service? Who would do this thing if there was no government?” This thought-provoking idea serves as the organizing principle for the various talks at the event.When Etienne de la Boétie Squared approached me to speak at this conference, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity. The event promises to be an engaging and enlightening exploration of voluntarist principles, and I’m thrilled to be a part of it.Unfortunately, I had to decline speaking in person at the conference, as I’ll be here in Japan. However, I’m thrilled to send this video presentation, which will be aired at the event. As I considered my contribution to the theme, I reflected on the profound work others, like Walter Block, have done—writing scholarly articles on questions such as “Who would build the roads without government?” and similar topics. So, what could I bring to the table?Well, in true James Corbett fashion, I decided to flip the issue on its head and tackle it from a completely opposite perspective. What you’re about to see is my unique take on this topic, which is encapsulated in An Announcement from the Ministry of Toothbrushes. Trust me, it will all make sense soon enough.Now, I’m going to play the full presentation for you here. Consider this both a sneak preview of the conference and a special gift for my regular viewers and listeners. As always, if this conference piques your interest, be sure to visit their homepage—I’ll include the link in the show notes. You can explore everything the event has to offer and decide if you’d like to attend.To make the wait for the 2024 conference even more exciting, the Art of Liberty team has made the entire 2023 conference available for streaming. It’s a fantastic way to get a sense of what’s in store.Without further ado, here’s my presentation for the Liberty on the Rocks 2024 Voluntarist Conference. Enjoy!And now, an announcement from the Ministry of Toothbrushes.Friends! Countrymen! Dentites!Lend me your teeth. I am, as you well know, Floss Chompers, Overlord of the Ministry of Toothbrushes, and I come to you today with a great announcement—and a dire warning.First, the announcement. With great glad tidings, I bring you joyous news about this year’s toothbrush production quota. Not only will we meet the target of 57 million toothbrushes, but we will exceed that target. Yes, friends, I am unbearably proud to announce that this year, we will produce not 57 million toothbrushes, but 62 million toothbrushes! I will allow you a moment to process this wonderful news.This monumental achievement is thanks to the tireless efforts of the diligent workers at the Ministry—and, of course, to the favor of Emperor Kamala Trump Kushner IV, from whom all blessings flow. No one shall be without a toothbrush during this long, dark winter of the mouth.However, to achieve this incredible goal, certain compromises have had to be made. I understand that you’ve grown accustomed to choosing between a men’s toothbrush, a women’s toothbrush, or a child’s toothbrush. Some even claim there was once a choice between boys’ and girls’ toothbrushes, but those are silly rumors and should not be entertained.There are also whispers that, in the distant past, people could buy toothbrushes in different colors. Let me be clear: such heresy will not be tolerated, and anyone caught propagating these falsehoods will be burned at the stake for even thinking them.In the interest of meeting our ambitious production goals, the brilliant engineers at the Ministry of Toothbrushes have, after a painstaking year-long study, devised a single toothbrush—one that will suit everyone.Yes, friends, today I am thrilled to unveil a true miracle of our glorious industrial age: Not A Toothbrush. Toothbrush!The only toothbrush you will ever need! The only toothbrush you will ever use! In fact, the only toothbrush that will be available at the government store this year! So, without further ado, I present to you… Toothbrush!Truly, this is an incredible feat of engineering. The designers assure me it is the perfect compromise to satisfy the tastes of everyone in the population—male, female, young, old. All can agree that this charming, pink, toothbrush-emblazoned toothbrush is the only toothbrush they will ever want.And the best part? This year’s toothbrush is available at the usual, low price of 50 carbon credits. Remember: the less meat you consume, the more carbon credits you’ll have to purchase this marvel of oral ingenuity.I know you’re all eager to rush out and buy this extraordinary innovation, but before you go, there’s something very important we need to discuss.It has come to my attention that a certain heresy has crept into the public discourse—a crass blasphemy whispered in the shadowy corners of those dirty, back-alley, non-government-authorized coffee shops frequented by thought criminals and mental defectives.Apparently, there are some who have dared to suggest—I can hardly bring myself to say it—that we do not need a government ministry to ensure the proper production of toothbrushes.The very thought!I know that most of you recognize this for what it is: utter nonsense, sheer lunacy, a notion to be dismissed without a second thought. But for anyone who, even for a fleeting moment, might entertain such a reckless idea, let me remind you of what life was like in the olden days—the before times.Those dark days when people believed they did not need the government to dictate what they should wear, whom they should marry, what job they should do, or how many toothbrushes they needed. The chaos! The disarray! The anarchy!Yes, I know these memories are painful to reflect upon now, as we bask in the joyful utopia of the all-pervasive United State of Global Technocracy, Inc., under the loving rule of Emperor Justin Castro, Ardern, Stalin VII (blessed be her name).But reflect upon them, we mustWe must be reminded that, once upon a time, there were those who believed they didn’t need a government to produce the officially approved Newspeak Dictionary. Imagine—a world without government officials to approve the font choice for corporate newsletters, to dictate the proper color for house paint, or to regulate the length of one’s hair. A world without a government ministry to ensure the production of toothbrushes!Naturally, we know that such things could never be done—could never even be conceived—without the guiding hand of government. As the founding constitution of our glorious omnipresent state so poetically declares: “Without government, who would make the pencils or the toothbrushes?”Just imagine private enterprise and free individuals deciding what to do with their lives—choosing their own haircuts, deciding when to go to sleep, pursuing hobbies of their own choosing, or (heaven forbid) selecting what kind of toothbrush to buy.You know what that would be, don’t you?Blood flowing in the streets! Cats marrying dogs! People deciding on their own toothbrushes!No! Such chaos must never be countenanced, dear friends of the floss. And my loyal comrades, if you ever hear someone speaking such blasphemous nonsense, report them to the appropriate authority at once.Rest assured, we here at the Ministry of Toothbrushes—well, let’s just say we have ways of dealing with such heretics.Now that this unpleasantness is behind us, enjoy your new toothbrushes. Let us, as always, give thanks to the wonderful state manufacturers who make these miracles of modern engineering possible.And now, before you proceed to purchase your toothbrush, please rise for our International Anthem.Oh, OK, enough silliness.James Corbett – Back to Real LifeNo, I am not Floss Chompers, the overlord of the Ministry of Toothbrushes. I’m James Corbett, your humble host here at The Corbett Report on CorbettReport.com.And yes, you’ve probably guessed it—this is satire. This is parody. This is reductio ad absurdum.“Oh, I get it,” you might say. “James is using the obviously ridiculous idea of a government takeover of the design, production, and sale of toothbrushes to highlight the nonsensical nature of central planning itself. I mean, the notion that government would ever actually try to control toothbrush production is so far-fetched, it should prompt us to question the supposed need for government to take over the production of other goods and services—like adjudicating personal disputes or regulating food and medicine.”And while that might seem like a reasonable conclusion…You’re wrong.You see, you might think the idea of a government attempting to control toothbrush production is ridiculous—stupid, silly, out-there satire. But I’m here to inform you that it is, in fact, stone cold reality.Gosplan’s managers built a world that was simple, like a machine.They planned the quotas for arrests by the KGB. They planned the production of coffins. They even planned the number of coffins needed in any given season. Let that sink in.Now, the worst part is that, whatever people may think about the specifics of this “scientific” method of planning, the concept of central, top-down planning is, to most, just an extension of the type of planning we rely on every day in our lives.Coffin manufacturers exist, and yes, they’re currently planning how many coffins to produce this year. Pantyhose manufacturers are planning the sizes, styles, and quantities of pantyhose they’ll make. Toothbrush manufacturers are doing the same for toothbrushes.So, why deal with the inefficiency and waste of the messy free market? Why not just let the state handle it all?Who cares if state planners get their calculations wrong now and then? They can adjust. Who cares if people can’t keep up with fashion? Fashion is irrational and irrelevant, right? People will simply accept the style of toothbrush that state planners determine is best—and they’ll learn to like it. After all, it’s all in the name of the state.Of course, we could talk about the fundamental failure of central planning versus the fundamental success of the free market, where individual businesses compete for people’s patronage. We could delve into Ludwig von Mises and the economic calculation problem:”Without economic calculation, there can be no economy. Hence, in a socialist state wherein the pursuit of economic calculation is impossible, there can be, in our sense of the term, no economy whatsoever. In trivial and secondary matters, rational conduct might still be possible, but in general, it would be impossible to speak of rational production anymore. There would be no means of determining what was rational, and hence it is obvious that production could never be directed by economic considerations.”What this means is clear: apart from its impact on the supply of commodities, rational conduct becomes divorced from its proper domain.Would there, in fact, be any such thing as rational conduct at all? Or indeed, such a thing as rationality and logic in thought itself? Historically, human rationality is a development of economic life. Could rationality exist if divorced from that economic foundation?The operative question here is not “Who will build the roads?” but rather: “Where will they build them? When? With what materials? Why asphalt and not gold? Why build a road from A to B and not A to C, or D to L, or any other configuration?”As Ludwig von Mises explains:*”Picture the building of a new railroad. Should it be built at all? And if so, which, out of a number of conceivable routes, should be constructed? In a competitive and monetary economy, this question would be answered by monetary calculation. The new road will render less expensive the transport of some goods, and it may be possible to calculate whether this reduction of expense transcends that involved in the building and upkeep of the new line. That can only be calculated in money.It is not possible to attain the desired end merely by counterbalancing the various physical expenses and physical savings. Where one cannot express hours of labor, iron, coal, building materials, machines, and other things necessary for construction and upkeep in a common unit, it is not possible to make calculations at all. The drawing up of bills on an economic basis is only possible where all the goods concerned can be referred back to money.”*This underscores a critical point: without monetary calculation, the foundation of rational decision-making crumbles. Without the ability to express diverse inputs in a common unit, planning becomes arbitrary, disconnected from the real needs and efficiencies that the free market naturally seeks to optimize.Admittedly, monetary calculation has its inconveniences and defects. But as Mises aptly notes:”We have certainly nothing better to put in its place, and for the practical purposes of life, monetary calculation, as it exists under a sound monetary system, always suffices. Were we to dispense with it, any economic system of calculation would become absolutely impossible.”All true, of course, and utterly devastating to the machine men with machine minds who lust after the perfectly ordered, meticulously engineered, centrally planned, socialist, technocratic utopia—where government eggheads plan every decision.But that’s not quite the point I’m making today.I could, for example, reference my favorite essay, Leonard Read’s “I, Pencil”, which brilliantly illustrates the sheer magnitude of human organization and cooperation required to produce even something as simple as a pencil. Read demonstrates how no central bureaucratic office could ever hope to itemize, let alone direct, the myriad of processes and resources involved.A pencil isn’t just some raw materials magically acquired and assembled into a product. Its creation represents a vast web of decentralized human effort, ingenuity, and coordination—a process that functions only because of the spontaneous order enabled by the free market.It’s cedar, graphite, candelilla wax, castor oil, zinc, copper, pumice, and a dozen other materials sourced from places like Oregon, Mississippi, Mexico, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Italy, and other far-flung corners of the globe. These materials are collected through various mining, logging, and production processes, then transported to multiple locations to be cut, kiln-dried, tinted, glued, treated, lacquered, vulcanized, and otherwise prepared before being assembled in a factory.But it’s not just about those processes. It’s about the truckers, miners, loggers, factory workers, and all the people who supply their tools and equipment. It’s about the sailors, lighthouse keepers, truck manufacturers, hemp growers, farmers, and coffee bean pickers—the millions of individuals who facilitate these tasks.It takes untold millions of human beings to make a pencil.These people don’t know each other. They have no direct interest in acquiring a pencil themselves. Almost none of them even realize they are, in some way, contributing to the manufacturing of a pencil.And yet, through their cooperation—or, more crassly, their self-interest—they play their roles in a vast, intricate, globe-spanning operation. The miracle of this production could never be directed by a single individual or planning group, no matter how ambitious or determined they might be.And there it sits. A pencil. Or a toothbrush.But that’s not quite the point I’m making today. No, my point is a more fundamental one.Namely, we already live so much of our lives in anarchy. We already love, embrace, and accept that fact.If Biden, Trudeau, Starmer, or any of their ilk came forward and proposed that the government dictate what time you wake up in the morning, what you eat for breakfast, or how many paperclips should be produced—or if they tried to regulate your exercise routine and how often you should do it—you would rightly laugh in their face and go back to living your life in anarchy.We instinctively know that human beings are best left to their own devices to figure out the answers to the countless problems and questions that confront us every day.Of course, people are flawed. They will make mistakes. They will make choices we might prefer they didn’t make. But that’s life. And sometimes, we’re wrong. Or, at the very least, our answer isn’t the only one.Yes, sometimes people will make irrational decisions. Sometimes they won’t like a pair of pantyhose because it’s out of fashion. And only the most cold-blooded, psychopathic, anti-human technocrat could look at those inherently human thoughts, ideas, and feelings and decide that this is a “problem” requiring a solution from the state.If almost everything we do is already lived in anarchy—beautiful, glorious anarchy, free from government oversight, regulation, or control—and if the thought of the government breaching that anarchy to dictate our hairstyles or determine toothbrush manufacturing is inherently laughable, then why is it so ridiculous to consider that the few things the government insists we absolutely need it to handle could not also be solved by the miracle of human cooperation?The provision of security. The adjudication of disputes. The regulation of food and medicine. The defense of our communities.One day, people will look back on those who believed government was essential for these things with the same mix of humor, bemusement, and derision we reserve for the Soviet-era technocrats who thought state planners were needed to decide how many toothbrushes to produce.I look forward to that day, and I hope you’ll be there with me to enjoy it.We’ll leave it here for today with the international anthem of the glorious state of Technocracy, Inc.: Everybody Wants to Rule the World.But for now, let’s call it a day.I am James Corbett of the Corbett Report here in the beautiful sunny climes of Western Japan.Welcome to your life. There’s no turning back. Even while we sleep We will find you acting on your best behavior Turning your back on Mother Nature Everybody wants to rule the world It’s my own design It’s my own remorse Help me to decide Help me make themost of freedom and of pleasure Nothing ever lasts forever. Everybody wants to rule the world. About James CorbettThe Corbett Report is edited, webmastered, written, produced and hosted by James Corbett.An award-winning investigative journalist, James Corbett has lectured on geopolitics at the University of Groningen’s Studium Generale, and delivered presentations on open source journalism at The French Institute for Research in Computer Science and Automation’s fOSSa conference, at TedXGroningen and at Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto.He started The Corbett Report website in 2007 as an outlet for independent critical analysis of politics, society, history, and economics. Since then he has written, recorded and edited thousands of hours of audio and video media for the website, including a podcast and several regular online video series.About Liberty on the Rocks Conference & The Art of Liberty FoundationIs the biggest secret in American/ international politics that “government” is illegitimate, immoral and completely unnecessary? Voluntaryism, REAL Freedom, is the only moral political philosophy on the market. Every other political “ISM” including socialism, communism and constitutional republicanism, has a ruling class that has rights that you don’t have, an illogical exception from morality, and “voting” is so easily rigged by monopoly media, moneyed interests, and the organized crime “government” itself counting the votes with unauditable black box voting machines and mail-in ballots that it is, frankly, a joke to think your vote matters or will even be counted.The Art of Liberty Foundation, a start-up public policy organization exposing the illegitimacy and criminality of “government” from a principled voluntaryist perspective, is also educating the public on the 2nd biggest secret: We don’t really need “Government”! In a Voluntaryist world of REAL freedom, all the legitimate, non-redistributive services provided by monopoly “government” would be better provided by the free market, mutual aid societies, armed protective service companies, arbitration providers, insurance companies, non-profits and genuine charities. The world would be much more harmonious and prosperous under REAL freedom! This year’s Liberty on the Rocks conference brought together some of the most respected economists, legal experts, political philosophers and academics to explain spontaneous order and how the free market would better provide everything from roads to military defense to air traffic control without the waste, fraud, abuse and extortion of monopoly “government.”Go paid at the $5 a month level, and we will send you both the PDF and e-Pub versions of “Government” – The Biggest Scam in History… Exposed! and a coupon code for 10% off anything in the Government-Scam.com/Store.Go paid at the $50 a year level, and we will send you a free paperback edition of Etienne’s book “Government” – The Biggest Scam in History… Exposed! OR a 64GB Liberator flash drive if you live in the US. If you are international, we will give you a $10 credit towards shipping if you agree to pay the remainder.Support us at the $250 Founding Member Level and get a signed high-resolution hardcover of “Government” + Liberator flash drive + Larken Rose’s The Most Dangerous Superstition + Art of Liberty Foundation Stickers delivered anywhere in the world. Our only option for signed copies besides catching Etienne @ an event.

A Sample Chapter from My Upcoming Book: Voluntaryism – How the Only “ISM” Fair for Everyone Would Lead to Harmony, Prosperity and Good Karma for All! Etienne Note: With our IndieGoGo campaign for Voluntaryism ending in Five (5) days, I am releasing a sample chapter and a progress report on how the book is progressing. My goal is to finish up by late January. I am behind because I have kept up publishing the Daily News and Five Meme Friday but I am contemplating taking a break to devote myself 100% to the book. In our weekly Five Meme Friday newsletter, I am going to drop a few of the dozens of memes and visualizations that we have either created from scratch, pro-modified, or recreated to get the high resolution we need for the book. In the chapter below, you can get a feel for a series of chapters where we deal with the specific “hard questions” of how the free market and REAL freedom would deliver better outcomes than monopoly “government” in Healthcare, Roads and Highways, Policing, Primary Education, and National Defense in some specific examples of chapters that have already been completed. Each of these chapters follow the same format: Introduction to the issue, How the “Government” Ruins It, The Voluntaryist and Free Market Alternatives, Voluntaryism in Action (how the free market is already providing better alternatives), Transition Strategies, FAQs, and Resources for a Deeper DiveThe 2025 128GB Liberator Flash Drive (Coming Soon!) It features the companion material for Voluntaryism, including videos, books in PDF, visualizations, and memes from the book! Sneak peak in the free Dropbox version HERE. The book is backed up by both a dedicated video channel on Odysee AND the upcoming upgraded version of our Liberator Flash Drive which will be expanded to 128GBs to include the companion material from the book. We could use a “Heavy Hitter” to get us over the goal line. If you are interested in having a BIG IMPACT, I can share additional chapters and explain the uses and proceeds of the raise. Drop me an email at Etienne(You Know)ArtOfLiberty.orgYou can download the entire chapter in PDF to check out the look/feel of the book. Just click the image below or HERE.Without “Government” What Would We Do About Healthcare?A sample chapter from Etienne de la Boetie2’s upcoming book: Voluntaryism – How the Only “ISM” Fair for Everyone Leads to Harmony, Prosperity, and Good Karma for All! At the risk of making an absolutist statement, everyone wants good health and some assurance that when they come down with some sort of imbalance or dis-ease, they (or their loved ones) will have access to the care they need. Unfortunately, much like every other area of the human experience, our desire for survival has been co-opted by the State, supposedly for our own protection, but in ways that ultimately harm the population as a whole and make health care more expensive than it should be.Instead of an open, competitive, free market in healthcare where competition between providers and multiple schools of medical thought compete to see who can produce the best outcomes for patients, we have a strictly controlled market of endless regulations that favor established players. Instead of competing schools of medical thought, we have a government-granted monopoly for allopathic drug-based medicine and mandatory vaccines that have been linked to neurological issues and life-long negative health outcomes.Health CareIn our book “Government” – The Biggest Scam in History… Exposed! we make the case that “government” is best considered a technique for robbing and controlling populations. Whether you believe that or not, join in a little thought experiment: If that is the case, then, of course, the “government” would have little incentive to have their tax-slave populations be healthy and have clear thinking. If the population at large feels like crap and is unhealthy, they are less likely to revolt and are more likely to be immobile on the couch and easily swayed by political propaganda.Etienne Note: In the physical book, you can click on the QR code with your phone to open supporting multimedia. In the ePub and PDF you can click on the play button, which, in this case, screen-pops a short 5:25 video on the death of lodge practice from our video channel of companion media. Everything works, so give it a try! Regardless of your opinion on why the government is specifically adopting policies that promote dis-ease, the government’s policies are definitely increasing the cost of healthcare, reducing availability, stifling market innovations, and producing negative health outcomes. Here are some specific examples:Monopoly “Government” MedicineMany people are surprised to learn that there are many different schools of medical thought vs. the monopoly AMA system that has been enshrined by law into American medicine. These include:• Functional Medicine – A medical practice or treatments that focus on optimal functioning of the body and its organs, usually involving systems of holistic or alternative medicine.• Naturopathic Medicine – A system of medicine that emphasizes natural remedies and the elimination of toxins and optimum nutrition to help the body heal itself.• Orthomolecular Medicine – When the body is in dis-ease, eliminate toxins, optimize nutrition through vitamin supplementation and let the body heal itself.These systems compete with the AMA’s monopoly flavor:Allopathic Medicine – A school of medical thought attempting to rebrand itself as “Evidence-Based Medicine” but also known as Western Medicine, Modern Medicine, and Rockefeller Medicine. Allopathic Medicine is essentially focused on treating patients with vaccines, chemotherapy, surgeries, and patented drugs vs. treating the root cause of disease, which is frequently the result of poor nutrition, sugar, and toxins in the food supply, and the harmful effects of allopathic medicine’s chemotherapy, vaccines, and drugs.As a matter of fact, under our current allopathic medicine monopoly, the 3rd leading cause of death in the United States, after heart disease and cancer, is Iatrogenesis, or death by medical error.In a free market, we would have a competition between these schools of medical thought to see which one produces better health outcomes for patients, but crony interests behind patented drug-based medicine, led by the Rockefeller family, lobbied, and likely bribed, the “government” to give the American Medical Association (AMA) a monopoly on the licensure of physicians, the accreditation of medical schools, the ability to prescribe, and the ability to be reimbursed by Medicare, Medicaid, and insurance.In addition to pushing aside what this author believes to be less-harmful and better ways of treating dis-ease, the monopoly drives costs through the roof by artificially limiting the number of doctors, mandating doctor visits and prescriptions for commonly used drugs and antibiotics, imposing a myriad of regulations on building and running hospitals, and dozens of other “government” interventions that drive up the cost of healthcare.According to a 2007 study by McKinsey & Company, physician compensation bumps up healthcare spending in America by $58 billion annually, on average, because U.S. doctors make twice as much as their OECD peers.Making matters worse, the government’s ridiculous court system throws out the notion of “Buyer Beware” with unbelievable judgments against physicians, many of them deserving of blame, but the judgments raise insurance costs for all doctors, and costs are passed on to consumers. This has spawned a dynamic known as “defensive medicine” where doctors order the maximum number of tests and procedures in an attempt to insulate themselves from malpractice claims.One final example of government policy ruining healthcare: In the 1970s, when the government imposed wage and price controls to combat the inflation caused by their own monopoly government money, businesses that couldn’t raise wages began competing with non-cash benefits like healthcare, and “first dollar” health insurance plans became the norm. While this benefit is great for those individuals whose companies still provide that level of coverage, it has somewhat crippled customer scrutiny of the doctor’s and hospital’s charges since customers aren’t actually paying the bill.Government Food – Another “weapon of war” in this battle for good health and nutrition is diet – you really are what you eat. For a large part of human evolution, humans only had access to real foods found in nature. This has changed entirely within the past 100 years with the advent of the Industrial Revolution, which has brought forth a tidal wave of processed, refined carbohydrates, meat and dairy adulterated with antibiotics and hormones, toxic herbicides like glyphosate and atrazine, and foods engineered with chemicals like glutamates and/or sugar/salt – the combination of which hacks the brain’s satiety signals, leading to overeating and metabolic issues, and setting the stage for all sorts of dis-ease.Of course, this radical shift in the human diet was heavily influenced by the U.S. federal government. First off, Big Agriculture (“Big Ag”) is a product of government intervention, notably corn, meat, dairy and soybean subsidies that favored and subsidized largescale corporate farmers over family farms. The U.S government spends $38 billion each year to subsidize the meat and dairy industries, but only 0.04 percent of that (i.e., $17 million) each year to subsidize fruits and vegetables. It has been estimated that a $5 Big Mac would cost $12 if the retail price included hidden expenses that meat producers offload onto society, including the socialization of the healthcare costs of people who choose to eat poorly at the expense of those who eat healthy diets in moderation. These subsidies enabled politically-connected food producers willing to suck off the tit of the taxpayer, to overtake the food supply with genetically-modified crops that are resistant to the chemical poisons they are using in agriculture; this corruption also tarnished the entire food supply with toxic vegetable seed oils — think canola oil, corn oil, soybean oil, etc. Until 100 or so years ago, we consumed about 3% of our diet in these polyunsaturated fats (PUFAs), but today, that number is closer to 20%.Government Water – Most counties in the U.S. suffer under regulations that mandate that fluoridation chemicals be added to the water supply ostensibly to prevent cavities even though 98% of Western Europe has rejected the practice. The substance used the most is a toxic slurry of chemicals known as fluorosilicic acid, which is usually the unfiltered toxic waste byproduct of the aluminum and phosphate fertilizer industries. The Fluoride Action Network has organized thousands of doctors, scientists, chemists, and environmental toxicologists into a campaign to end the practice because it lowers IQ in children by around 7 IQ points and causes other health issues ranging from kidney disease to gastrointestinal effects. Here is a brief summary from the organization’s website on just the neurological impact: “As of June 18th 2022, a total of 85 human studies have investigated the relationship between fluoride and human intelligence. Of these investigations, 76 studies have reported that elevated fluoride exposure is associated with reduced IQ in humans. The studies which reported an association of reduced IQ with exposure to fluoride, are based on IQ/cognitive examinations of 28,234 children (73 studies) and 689 adults (3 studies).”These are the results for public tap water in Quincy, Illinois, near Chicago. But enter ANY zip code in the Environmental Working Group’s Tap Water Database and the results are horrifying.Mandatory Vaccines – The U.S. Government currently recommends a total of 76-80 doses of 18 vaccines for kids 0-18, which State health departments then mandate into law. These vaccines are legally classified as “unavoidably unsafe.” A study done for the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care System from 2007-2010 estimated that the government’s reporting system for deaths and adverse events from vaccines only captures 1% of all vaccine injuries.Note: This Slide References This Study and This Study. There have been a few studies that compared unvaccinated vs. vaccinated populations, notable the 2007 Generation Rescue survey of 11,000+ households in Cal-Oregon and the 2019-2020 Pilot Survey of Unvaccinated Americans by The Control Group Project. The Generation Rescue survey found: Vaccinated boys were 155% more likely to have a neurological disorder (RR 2.55) -Vaccinated boys were 224% more likely to have ADHD (RR 3.24) -Vaccinated boys were 61% more likely to have autism (RR 1.61)The Control Group Survey found that certain chronic health conditions such as asthma and diabetes, that affect roughly 10% of the vaccinated population, are virtually non-existent in the unvaccinated population. Summary Slides Here. Regulations and Cost – The U.S. government intervenes in the healthcare economy on almost every front from regulations around the construction of hospitals to which Doctors can prescribe and be reimbursed by Medicare, Medicaid and insurance. As a result, healthcare is more inefficient and more expensive than ever before, leading to the clamoring by some for the U.S. “government” to adopt a single-payer healthcare system, modeled after some socialist European “states” which we cover below in the FAQ sectionLicensure, Prescriptions and Intellectual Property – At an institutional level, in concert with the scam of higher level indoctrination (“college”), the “government” artificially limits the supply of doctors by requiring them to complete expensive, mandatory programs at “licensed” and “approved” medical schools. And naturally, the number of individuals able and willing to jump through the monopoly AMA hoops to become a doctor, as well as the exorbitant cost and time required, all but ensures doctor shortages and higher prices. Of course, we aren’t arguing that doctors shouldn’t get training, but rather that the free market (the sum of all voluntary human interaction) is far better suited to deliver beneficial (and cost-effective) results than an inflexible “State” mandated monopoly. Another scam that raises costs for everyone is prescription medicine. The requirement of prescriptions is another way for drug companies to charge higher prices by artificially limiting the supply and requiring prescriptions for innocuous things, like diabetes test strips or insulin syringes and supplies. These requirements force individuals to pay for a doctor’s visit, driving costs higher for everyone.The Four Thieves Vinegar Collective pioneered DIY Pharmaceuticals with their EpiPencil Recipe, where anyone can make their own EpiPencil for around $30 vs. $300The final government intervention is intellectual property, which we cover in more detail in another chapter, but suffice to say that intellectual property drives up the cost of routine medicines. A couple of well-known examples: The manufacturer of EpiPens, Mylan, led by the daughter of a US Senator, raised the price from $57 to $300 in 2016, a 500% increase since 2009. In 2015, a former hedge fund manager bought Daraprim, a 62-year old malaria drug, and raised the price by 5,000% from $13.50 a pill to $750. Eli Lilly’s Humalog insulin first entered the market at $20/vial in 1996; a single vial rose to $332 in 2019, a 1000% increase, despite the formula remaining exactly the same. The price came down in 2023 to $66 when insulin makers fell under a Medicaid rebate scheme enforced by the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act and would have had to pay hundreds of millions. Government Sponsored Euthanasia – Because organized crime “governments” over-promise what can reasonably be delivered, they frequently face shortfalls in what they have allocated for healthcare and are forced to ration care or even promote euthanasia as the socialist governments of the UK and Canada are openly doing.When Euthanasia Becomes Public Policy – Euthanasia in Socialist Canada has Expanded from 1,018 Cases Per Year to 13,241 per Year in 2022 A recent example of this would be the case of Alfie Evans from the United Kingdom. Alfie was an infant boy with a rare neurodegenerative disorder, requiring him to be on life support. At the end of 2017, however, the High Court in London ruled to remove the parental rights of Alfie’s parents and required the hospital to remove the infant’s ventilator, quickly leading to his death. Reasonable people can disagree on what they would do in such a situation or on the quality of Alfie’s life, but one point remains clear: the free market provides choice, whereas the “State” provides dictates. Another example from the UK, during “The Covid,” the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) issued a directive requiring them to discharge all patients deemed to not require a hospital bed, forcing thousands of patients into care homes. Essentially, simultaneously, the NHS buys a two-year supply of Midazolam, a commonly used sedative drug in palliative care for dying patients in the United Kingdom and for euthanasia. The drug is also used in the United States for lethal injections. The NHS will also buy additional stocks of Midazolam from the French. Over the previous five years, about 15,000 prescriptions for Midazolam to be used outside of hospital had been written each month in England. In April of 2020, 38,582 prescriptions were made – more than twice the February figure leading to widespread deaths that were then blamed on “Covid”. The Voluntaryist & Free Market AlternativesOne of the attributes that define voluntaryist solutions vs. the top-down authoritarian plans of socialism and “government” is that voluntaryists are not promising or seeking to achieve utopia. Rather, we are cognizant of the market forces that allow the best and most creative and innovative solutions to bubble to the surface.A Free Market in Medicine – The easiest solution is a free market in medicine where different schools of medical thought could compete to see which school produced better health outcomes. Without accreditation, we could eliminate the physician shortage and lower both medical school costs and physician salaries. Without Intellectual Property, we could reduce drug costs and without FDA regulations we could reduce the cost that is required to develop new drugs and bring them to market. Without mandatory vaccines, we could reduce the neurological issues and illnesses associated with vaccines while simultaneously reducing the costs associated with the mandatory vaccines themselves and the payments made to damaged children and grieving parents through the government’s secret vaccine court.Mutual Aid Societies – Covered in more detail in the chapter Social Security, Charity and Helping the Poor but deserving of a mention here, Mutual Aid Societies, called friendly societies in the UK and Fraternal orders or lodges in the US, have been providing health insurance and death benefits prior to the revolutionary war. Participants pay a monthly contribution similar to the government’s mandatory workers compensation insurance today, but the workers have a competitive market of mutual aid societies to choose from. These flourished in the early 20th century and still exist today in various flavors. Famous examples include Masons, Knights of Columbus, Foresters, Odd Fellows, Woodmen, Workmen, Sons of Italy, Scots’ Charitable Society, Rebekahs, Moose, Elks, Mosaic Templars of America, Eagles, and Hibernians. Briefly defined, mutual aid societies were voluntary, community organizations formed to provide mutual aid, health care, insurance, and otherwise assistance to individuals in their respective communities. The mutual aid societies frequently employed a full-time doctor to care for their members, known as lodge practice.The Serradifalco Mutual Aid Society in a picture taken in Buffalo, NY on June 8th 1930 during the Great DepressionIn David Beito’s article Lodge Doctors and the Poor, he gives some examples of the system:In 1915, for example, Dr. S.S. Goldwater, Health Commissioner of New York City, went so far as to assert that in many communities it had become “the chosen or established method of dealing with sickness among the relatively poor.” In the Lower East Side of New York City, he noted, 500 physicians catered to Jewish societies alone. Among blacks in New Orleans there were over 600 fraternal societies with lodge practice during the 1920s. Nationally, the two leading providers of lodge practice among native whites were the Foresters and the Fraternal Order of Eagles. By 1910, both organizations had over 2,000 doctors under contract to look after the medical needs of about 600,000 members.Lodge doctors flourished until the 1910s, when non-lodge doctors launched an all-out war against lodge practice which was hurting their business. Throughout the country, medical associations imposed a range of sanctions against lodge doctors, including expulsion from the association and denial of hospital facilities. In certain instances, campaigns were organized to deny patient care, even in emergencies, to members of offending lodges. Mutual aid societies could flourish again today, and using computers, software, internet connectivity, and payment processing would be even easier to set up and manage at a greater scale than in the past.Genuine Charity – Individuals tend to be giving in nature, and many strongly dislike seeing their fellow man hurting, impoverished, or homeless — as an item of proof, in 2019 alone, “Americans” donated ~$427 billion to charity even after the theft of inflation and confiscatory taxation. So, when the welfare state didn’t exist and people were in need, communities, individuals and religious organizations often stepped in to fill the gap, and without the coercion inherent in state-sponsored schemes. In the modern day, many voluntaryists have their own “mutual aid societies,” coordinated mostly by the Internet and social media including both co-authors of this article who are in separate mutual aid societies (Caledonia and P.A.Z.NIA) where we have both provided aid to members in need.Wealthy = Healthy – There are a lot of reasons why wealthier people live longer and have higher quality of life. A study on cardiovascular disease published in JAMA found: “Altogether, an increase in wealth was associated with protection against cardiovascular diseases and a decrease in wealth was associated with cardiovascular risk.” “Decreases in wealth are associated with more stress, fewer healthy behaviors, and less leisure time, all of which are associated with poorer cardiovascular health,” said Andrew Sumarsono at the University of Texas Southwestern’s Division of Hospital Medicine.By getting rid of the government’s confiscatory taxation and inflationary money system while simultaneously freeing the economy from monopoly privileges, the malinvestment of government spending, and bureaucratic regulations to name but a few policies that stifle economic growth, we could unleash an economic renaissance that would lift all boats. A wealthier population would be less stressed, have more leisure time, and could afford healthier, organic food and better health care from a greater universe of providers. Finally, a competitive job market where employers would have to compete with new market entrants would drive up wages and cover more people with better health insurance while higher disposable income would make more money available for charity that would be better targeted by individual donors “on-the-ground” in their communities vs. the inefficient criminal middleman of Washington DC.Voluntaryism In ActionOne huge benefit of the Information Age is the proliferation of information. No matter what the subject, the motivated, self-directed learner can take their education into their own hands. And, just as bitcoin enables the individual to be his/her own bank, technology and information today enable the individual to be their own doctor/ pharmacist! While that is certainly a positive, these solutions were, of course, necessitated by “government” intervention in the first place.Etienne Note: This QR code and clickable image play a 32-minute video on the Surgery Center of Oklahoma, which has all-inclusive, transparent pricing on every surgery they provide. Free Market Medical Services – The Surgery Center of Oklahoma is the best-known example of free market medical services in the United States. In business since 1997, the 35,000+ square foot, physician-owned surgical center has become a national model for posting transparent all-inclusive prices for surgeries on-line where prospective clients can find the total cost of a procedure including the surgeon, anesthesiology, follow up costs and facility fee. The center has raised prices only one-time since 1997 to reflect inflation and boasts the lowest infection rate in the nation 0.00% vs. a national average of 2.6%.DIY Pharmaceuticals and DIY Dental Care – The Four Thieves Vinegar Collective (FTVC) was founded as a response to the fascist, socialist nature of the current American healthcare system. They gained notoriety in 2016 when they released the plans to their $30, do-it-yourself, EpiPencil, after the EpiPen’s manufacturer Mylan raised the price from $50 to $318, virtually overnight. The FTVC’s current projects include the Apothecary Microlab, a 3D-printed lab that is capable of synthesizing specific medications, such as Naloxone (used to reverse opiate overdoses) and pyrimethamine (an HIV/AIDS medication). They also provide the instructions for creating a nano silver fluoride tooth seal.All type 1 diabetics require insulin to live, and thankfully, the Open Insulin Project, a group of Bay Area biohackers, is aiming to provide them with a potential option: make your own. At the time this book goes to press, they have figured out the process to produce small amounts of insulin, but it’s still early on. Sydney, Australia, grammar students under University guidance have shown how simple it is to make a version of the life-saving medicine Daraprim, mentioned above, for $2 a pill after it rose 5000 percent in a single year from $13.50 to $750 a pill.Direct Primary Care – Due to the sheer difficulty of complying with suffocating regulations, many doctors are ridding their clinics of health insurance altogether by switching over to Direct Primary Care. That is, they charge a monthly fee, rather than accepting health insurance, and patients just come in when they need to be seen.Health Sharing Cooperatives – Another similar market alternative that’s seen popularity is “health sharing” “insurance” cooperatives; these not-for-profit, often religious organizations are sometimes the only affordable option for individuals, as health insurance premiums continue to skyrocket. One way to understand health sharing is as a legal loophole; these organizations use different verbiage and terminology (i.e. deductible vs. personal responsibility) to avoid the regulatory burdens associated with traditional health insurance.Crowdhealth has both fiat and bitcoin options — probably one of the only ways you can pay your health “insurance” with bitcoin. Members pay a monthly fee, and then when in need, members work with Crowdhealth to negotiate cheaper prices than what would be offered through traditional health insurance. Then, Crowdhealth puts out a donation request for the member-in-need. Crowdhealth, as of this writing, has a 4.7 star (out of 5) rating on Trustpilot with 176 reviews as another example of how the market provides a way of evaluating healthcare options.Health Savings Accounts – Health savings accounts (HSA) are a market-based solution to the “first-dollar” third-payer insurance where the customer, the patient, has no incentive to scrutinize the costs. With an HSA, an employer purchases a lower cost policy, albeit with a higher deductible and then gives the employee part of the savings as a cash contribution into a tax-free health savings account that can be used to pay for qualified medical expenses including the higher-cost deductible, glasses, contact lenses, prescriptions, etc. The patient is now a customer again with an incentive to get the best price as the employer’s yearly contribution, and any contributions that the employee makes, rolls over and continues to build in the tax-deferred account. You can even pay for non-qualified expenses, but you will need to pay regular income taxes on those withdrawals – the 20% federal tax penalty will not apply if you are at least age 65. You can also use an HSA to pay with pre-tax dollars for qualified long-term care insurance premiums.Transition StrategiesDaniel Dennett famously said: “There’s simply no polite way to tell people they have dedicated their lives to an illusion” and it is truly tragic that so many people have become reliant on Medicare and Medicaid for their healthcare. Unfortunately, as knowledge of the illegitimacy and criminality of “government” become widely understood, and more and more people quit paying their “taxes” (theft), these systems are going to collapse. On a personal level, your strongest strategy is to get yourself into the best possible physical health by eliminating the toxins in processed foods and “public” water. Begin exercising regularly, getting plenty of sunshine and fresh air, meditating, and developing a positive outlook on life so you aren’t reliant on the monopoly healthcare system. Do-it-yourself. Be your own expert. Don’t trust, verify.On the national and State level, our strongest strategy is to deregulate healthcare as widely as possible.Suffice it to say, if a market demand for a good/service exists in society, some entrepreneur (or multiple entrepreneurs!) will rise to the occasion and fill the need in the market, especially if it’s something as important and fundamental as human health. With deregulation and de-monopolization of the healthcare system we could bring back mutual aid societies and lodge practice, see lower-cost, free-market hospitals and surgeries similar to the Surgery Center of Oklahoma flourish, reduce the costs of medications by eliminating prescription requirements and intellectual property, and have more cost-effective medical education available by eliminating accreditation requirements which would produce more doctors without the allopathic medical biases of the monopoly system. Finally, getting rid of vaccine mandates would reduce the long-term health and neurological issues associated with vaccines.Healthcare FAQsWithout “Government” How Could We Guarantee That Everyone Would Be Taken Care Of? Wouldn’t Universal Healthcare Be Better?One of the biggest differences between voluntaryists and socialists is that voluntaryists aren’t promising utopia. We are simply advocating freedom and explaining how the free market delivers better outcomes than centrally-planned “government” schemes based on extortion. Yes, “governments” have created a variety of healthcare systems in a variety of countries that are, in some cases, providing universal healthcare to all of their citizens, BUT all of these systems are built on indoctrination and extortion, and many, like the U.S. system, have long-term insolvency issues. Greece, Spain, Italy and Portugal are examples where the “government” was forced to cut and/or ration care dramatically and/or raise copayments. British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher said it best: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people’s money.”Health, biology, and physiology are huge, complex subjects that people study for their entire lives. How on earth could I find truth in these areas, and begin to come up with my own solutions without AMA-accredited “Doctors”? First, you aren’t going to be on the journey alone! The U.S is replete with private, third-party groups that evaluate and certify professionals, products, and even foodstuffs. Some of these include: The Non-GMO Project – Certifying products as non-GMO after the government’s agencies refused to Underwriters Laboratories – Certifying electrical equipment for the insurance industry and Consumer Reports that tests and reviews various products. There is no reason to assume that because the AMA loses its monopoly that new organizations wouldn’t pop up to rate individual physicians and schools of medical thought. There are already eight websites that rate physicians and four that rate hospitals which are probably providing more valuable information than whether a particular Doctor earned a degree from a monopoly AMA medical school.Resources for a Deeper DiveArticles: Lodge Doctors and the Poor by David Beito From Fraternal Mutual Aid to Welfare State – A Review of David Beito’s From Mutual Aid to the Welfare State: Fraternal Societies and Social Services, 1890-19674 by James C. WilsonAudio: Sheldon Richman discusses the history of Mutual Aid Societies and their impact on 19th century society The Four Thieves Vinegar Collective with Dr. Michael Laufer – The Vonu PodcastVideos: The Surgery Center of Oklahoma – Free Market Provider with Transparent All-Inclusive Pricing and How Government “Solved” the Health Care Crisis – The Death of Lodge PracticeBooks: From Mutual Aid to the Welfare State: Fraternal Societies and Social Services, 1890-1967 by David T. 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Nope… We Don’t Need “Government” for Law or Law Enforcement Either… Another Episode from Liberty on the Rocks – Sedona – The Voluntaryism Conference In this insightful episode from Liberty on the Rocks – Sedona – The Voluntaryism Conference, economist and law professor David Friedman challenges the idea that law and law enforcement must be government functions. Drawing on historical examples, including feud law in medieval Iceland and present-day private legal systems in rural California, David discusses how societies can effectively self-regulate and enforce justice without central authorities. He explains key concepts such as feud law, where compensation and deterrence replace punitive government measures, and shares unique models like Somalia’s pre-government legal structures and the potential of modern technologies to create contract enforcement and private arbitration. David also introduces the concept of competitive “rights enforcement agencies” in a future stateless society, where individuals could choose the agency that best aligns with their values and needs. This market-driven legal system, he argues, would foster fairer, more responsive laws and minimize conflict. Exploring practical examples of private law and governance, this episode invites listeners to envision a society where law is shaped not by central authorities but by voluntary, market-based mechanisms!Full TranscriptDavid Friedman: “Most modern people take it for granted that law and law enforcement are essential government functions. However, I am going to argue that this is not true. Historically, this has not been the case, and I will be discussing the past of private law, which I call feud law, and then move on to the elements of private law enforcement that exist in modern societies or could exist shortly. Finally, I’ll talk about the institutions I’ve imagined, which, as I later discovered, are a modern version of institutions that have existed. These institutions could be used to create an entirely stateless society.But let me start with the past because that’s what I’ve learned about most recently. By the time I finished writing my most recent book, I concluded that when I wrote my first book 50 years ago, I was essentially reinventing the wheel. In other words, I was trying to imagine how a society could function without government-enforced law, and there were, in fact, real-world examples from the past of societies that worked this way.The basic logic of feud law is this: If you wrong me, I will harm you unless you compensate me. For this to be a workable system, it must solve four key problems:Ensuring justice: There must be a way to ensure that I can only force you to compensate me if you’ve harmed me. This is about distinguishing law enforcement from extortion. The mechanism here is one where right makes might — it’s practical to threaten you if you’ve harmed me, but not if you haven’t.Commitment mechanism: I need to ensure that when I say you’ve harmed me, I will follow through on my threat if you don’t compensate me. This means having a way to make me carry out my threat of harm if you refuse to comply.Protection for the weak: What if I don’t have the resources to harm you? In the past, this meant having the social or physical backing to enforce my rights. How are weaker members of society protected in such a system?Ending the feud: If I think you’ve wronged me and you disagree, refusing to compensate me, and we start injuring each other in retaliation, how do we stop this cycle? There needs to be a way to terminate this back-and-forth chain of violence.Real legal systems in the past have all of these problems. One example is the legal system of Saga-period Iceland. Iceland was settled around 870 by Norsemen, who established a unique legal system. I could give a whole talk on that system, but the key point here is that it had courts but no government law enforcement.Here’s how it worked: There was a single court system, but once a verdict was delivered, it was up to the individuals to enforce it. What made it possible to do this was that if the court ruled that you owed me damages and refused to pay, I could return to the court and have you outlawed. Once someone was declared an outlaw, it became legal to kill them, and illegal to defend them. If your friends tried to fight mine, every time someone on my side was hurt, it would result in another legal case against your side. However, if your people got hurt, that was your problem — they were breaking the law.It is legal to kill an outlaw. It is illegal to defend an outlaw. So, if your friends try to fight mine, every time someone on my side gets hurt, it results in another legal case against the people on your side. However, if your people get hurt, that’s their problem — they’re breaking the law. This was one example of a system we know about.More generally, for a feud system to work, there needs to be a mechanism so that all the interested third parties in society — the people around you — can recognize whether what you’re doing is, in fact, law enforcement or extortion. The court system is one way to establish this. In a small enough society, there’s an existing feud system. For example, in England, the Romanchol, the largest Romani group, follows such a system. In this society, if I believe you’ve wronged me, I might threaten to beat you up unless you make it right. Both of us know that the community is small enough that people will be able to tell whether you’ve wronged me or not.However, in a larger society, you need something more organized. A relevant example is Somalia, which had a system similar to the Icelandic one, but this system was only terminated about 50 years ago when the modern state of Somalia was created by England and Italy. Before that, Somalia was largely a stateless society, and the people had mechanisms for creating courts that would be recognized for any dispute. Once a court made a ruling, the verdict was generally accepted by society.There are various ways in which this problem can be solved. The next issue is commitment mechanisms. How do we ensure that my threat is truly believable, that I won’t just back down when you say, “If you try to get me, I’ll get you back”?This concept is hardwired into us. People sometimes argue that property is a modern invention, but in fact, property predates our species. In other species, this behavior is known as territorial behavior. There are a variety of species, mostly birds and fish, that exhibit a similar pattern: an individual marks a territory that it claims as its own. When another member of its species and gender enters this territory, the defender will fight. The intensity of the fight increases the further the trespasser enters the territory. Though a fight to the death usually results in a loss for both sides, once it’s clear that the defender is committed to protecting the territory, the trespasser generally backs down — unless they are much stronger.This is a form of property, albeit a very primitive one. There’s no way to buy or sell it, but the property rights are enforced through a commitment strategy, not by a state. This kind of behavior predates our species.The human version of this commitment mechanism can be observed in myself. If I bump my head, my first reaction is rage. My initial thought is that someone has attacked me, and I feel the urge to retaliate. It’s a hardwired response in human beings — something many of us have observed in ourselves. In that case, however, it makes no sense, but the pattern is there.The only person who’s injured me is myself, if I bump my head against something. Yet, it’s our natural reaction to feel a strong urge to retaliate when someone hurts us. Human beings are, in a sense, hardwired so that when someone injures us, we instinctively feel a desire to get back at them. But there are other ways to enforce the commitment strategy.If I threaten to harm you unless you compensate me, and then I back down, I’ve essentially marked myself as a vulnerable target — someone who can be stolen from, trespassed upon, or wronged without consequence. What I want, instead, is the reputation of someone who is not a safe target; someone who will take action if you violate my rights. Status plays a crucial role here. Human beings care deeply about status, and no one wants to be seen as weak or a pushover.One of the challenges in this system is that we need a commitment strategy that survives beyond death. Without this, the obvious counter-move for the person I’m threatening is to say, “If you’re going to harm me, I’ll kill you first.” The Icelandic solution to this problem was that if you kill me, my heirs inherit my claim against you. Not only do my kin inherit my original claim, but they also inherit the right to seek justice for my death. This gives my relatives an incentive to carry out my threat even if I’m no longer around to do so.The next challenge is how to protect the weak. My favorite solution to this problem is the Icelandic solution, which is why I argue that the American legal system is about a thousand years behind the cutting edge of legal technology. In Icelandic law, tort claims were marketable and transferable.I am an elderly man with only one son, and someone takes his life.Now, I have a claim for several hundred ounces of silver as compensation for the killing of my son. All right? In this system, there is no criminal law as we understand it, because there is no state to enforce it. Everything operates as tort law.However, I know that if I try to go to the court and enforce my claim, I’ll likely get beaten up along the way, because I have no one to fight for me. My neighbor, on the other hand, has four strong sons who spent their youth as Vikings, along with plenty of friends, relatives, and allies.So, I transfer my claim to him.He collects the claim, and if I’m lucky, he pays me back half of the silver he’s collected. But even if he doesn’t pay me anything, the critical point is that someone who kills my son will still have to pay a Wehrgeld — a fine of several hundred ounces of silver. This means that my rights, and those of my son, are protected by deterrence, regardless of whether I receive the compensation. Whether or not I get compensated likely depends on how difficult it is for my neighbor to collect the payment.Now, Somalia had a somewhat different system. They had what was sometimes called the DIA-paying group — a coalition of people, usually relatives but not always, who had an agreement or contract to support one another. If any member of the group was injured, the others would help him recover the damage payment. Similarly, if a member had to pay damages, the others would contribute their share. This arrangement provided a preexisting coalition of support, ensuring that group members had people willing to fight for them.The final problem is terminating a feud. Suppose I believe you wronged me, and you believe you didn’t. You demand compensation, I refuse. You harm me, and now I demand compensation. You refuse. How do we stop this endless cycle of retaliation?One solution, used in both Iceland and Somalia — despite being separated by about 1,000 years — was to have a court. Both parties would agree to take the matter to a court respected by their neighbors. If the court ruled in my favor, you could accept the decision without losing face, since it was based on an impartial ruling. Conversely, if the court ruled in your favor, I could similarly accept the outcome without appearing weak.Another solution found in the Icelandic sagas is the use of an arbitrator. This involves selecting an individual who is both powerful and respected, and having them rule on your dispute. Both sides agree to this arrangement because each side believes they are in the right. If the arbitrator rules in your favor, two things happen:I now have a valid excuse for backing down because a neutral party has ruled against me.If I choose not to back down, the arbitrator will have joined your alliance, making it even harder for me to win since they are a powerful and influential individual.These are some of the ways in which real societies have successfully enforced law privately. This isn’t to say that these systems are universally better than modern government systems, but they do demonstrate that it is possible for private institutions to take over the most central function of government: law enforcement.Now, let’s look at a modern example. In Shasta County, California — a couple of hours from where I live — there exists a form of private law. Robert Ellickson, a Yale professor, became interested in this phenomenon for reasons I won’t delve into now (that would be a separate talk). He concluded that the community operates on a system of privately enforced norms, which, in certain contexts, override California state law.These norms are primarily centered around neighborly behavior. For example, if your cattle stray onto my field, trampling and eating my vegetables, the norm dictates that a “good neighbor” would recognize their mistake and voluntarily help me replant the damage. If you fail to do so, I could spread the word about your behavior. The social consequences might include your wife no longer being invited to bridge parties or your kids struggling to find playmates.Of course, if you’re especially tough, perhaps without a wife or kids, and indifferent to what others think of you, these social pressures might not work.Eventually, if your cattle strayed onto my field a third time, I would open the gate, drive your cattle a few miles away from your farm, and leave them there for you to find and recover. What’s interesting about this system of norms is that it allows me to make it difficult for you to locate your cattle but does not allow me to convert one of your cows into hamburger.This is significant because, in a rural area, I presumably have the skills to butcher animals, and turning a cow into beef would seem like a much more attractive punishment from my perspective — I would gain the value of the cow. However, the system forbids this because if I profit by enforcing my rights, I cannot be trusted to enforce them only when they are genuinely violated.This issue highlights one of the problems in our modern legal system: if I can profit from suing you, it creates an incentive for me to pursue lawsuits even when you haven’t actually violated my rights, provided I have a reasonable chance of persuading the court otherwise. While this may not be a solvable problem, it’s a challenge inherent to systems that allow monetary compensation for rights violations.This is an example of a private legal system — though we don’t call it “law,” we call it “norms.” It functions as a legal system because it includes rules, consequences for breaking those rules, and mechanisms for enforcement. Robert Ellickson documented several cases where the legal solution to a problem existed under California law but wasn’t used.Why? Because one of the norms of neighborly behavior in the community is that neighbors don’t sue neighbors. The social and relational costs of using the court system outweighed the potential benefits for the people involved.Beyond this, there are other innovative ideas for private legal systems. One example, which does not yet exist but could in the near future, is the concept of seasteading. My son, Patry, has been working on this project, which involves developing technology for floating housing — essentially large rafts.What can you do with these rafts? You tow a group of them together to form a village. If this village is located outside the territorial waters of any country, it can create its own laws. If it’s within territorial waters, the village could negotiate with nearby countries to compete for the right to host it, allowing the village to make its own laws in exchange for economic benefits.In that case, the village might have to pay something. But regardless, you end up with a situation of competitive governance.In my first book, written long before the concept of seasteading was conceived, I sketched a world where people were perfectly mobile. I imagined a scenario where the newspapers announce a war between France and England, and the next day the sun rises on an empty landscape. Everyone has left for safer places, leaving behind only a few war reporters and generals.Seasteading, in essence, argues that this kind of mobility could become a reality if people were sufficiently mobile and could, metaphorically, take their houses with them. If your village passes laws you dislike, you could call up a tugboat company, have them tow your floating home out of that village, and join another community with laws more aligned with your preferences. It’s a very intriguing idea.The underlying principle of seasteading is that we should focus less on debating what the law should be and more on creating mechanisms that generate good laws. The proposed technology of floating housing enables exactly that by allowing for dynamic movement and self-selection of communities.A less extreme but related concept that is already happening is the idea of charter cities. In this model, entrepreneurs persuade the government of a relatively poor country to grant them control over a piece of underutilized or low-value territory, allowing them to set their own civil laws within that area. This creates, in effect, a pocket of governance based on systems like American or British common law within a country such as Venezuela.If successful, these charter cities can attract people who want to live there, start businesses, and build thriving communities.Interestingly, the precedent for this approach was inadvertently set by communist China. One of the pivotal steps in China’s transition from being fully socialist to its current model — pretending to be socialist — was the creation of special economic zones. These zones allowed capitalist practices within designated areas, facilitating China’s economic transformation over the last 20 to 30 years.The original theory, as far as I can tell, was that the Chinese leadership realized that the United States must know something they didn’t. After Mao’s death, the communist leaders were able to travel abroad, and what did they discover? They discovered that their country, which they had believed had the best economic system in the world, was actually dirt poor.In fact, a deputy vice chairman of China visited England and made an eye-opening discovery: a trash collector in England was earning twice his own income. This led him to report that England would be the perfect communist economy—if only it had a communist party running it.So, what did they do? One of the strategies they implemented was to figure out what the capitalists knew by creating isolated capitalist enclaves within China. In these enclaves, foreign companies could make deals, engage in trade, and carry out all the “evil capitalist” activities. These enclaves were placed in areas that were considered unimportant, where the experiment would have minimal impact.One of these areas was a village that now has a population of six million people. Over time, the exception became the rule. It became clear that these capitalist enclaves were working. In the 20 years following Mao’s death, China’s per capita income increased about 20-fold. This is a very striking case of economic transformation.Unfortunately, the key figure responsible for this economic breakthrough is no longer alive, and his successors don’t seem to have as clear an understanding of how to continue improving China.Currently, there are examples of common law zones in places like the United Arab Emirates, Kazakhstan, and Honduras. These are attempts to create mini versions of Hong Kong—small areas with systems that are closer to free-market economies because they tend to work better. However, the challenge with these efforts is how to prevent governments from eventually expropriating the wealth and resources these zones create. This is currently a point of contention in Honduras, with ongoing litigation over the Prospera project.There’s another aspect of private law in the modern system, which comes into play with the competition among states for corporate law. For example, many corporations are chartered in Delaware, not by accident. This choice means their legal disputes will be settled under Delaware’s laws. Delaware benefits from this setup by collecting fees from corporations, which makes it an example of a competing legal system where states vie to attract businesses by offering favorable legal frameworks for contracts and disputes.This idea of legal competition isn’t new. In medieval Islam, there were four distinct Sunni schools of law. If a person signed a contract in a court governed by one of those schools—say, a Maliki court—the contract would be interpreted under Maliki law. So, within one society, you had multiple legal systems coexisting. This tradition largely ended with the rise of the Ottoman Empire.If you think about all of this, a compelling idea emerges: if migration becomes sufficiently easy, governments might become little more than landlords. They would no longer have the power to impose laws universally; instead, they’d be forced to create rules that people want to live under. Governments would still control land, which is valuable in itself, and they could collect some revenue from that, but not as much as they would from the ability to dictate laws.You could imagine a gradual shift in the world—a transition from states to anarchy, with people not even noticing when the change happens.For those of you familiar with science fiction, Snow Crash offers a fictional portrayal of a society that functions in a state of anarchy, yet still contains individuals who believe they are part of the government, even if they aren’t actively doing anything.Let me now move on to what I consider my favorite example of modern anarchy that is gradually unfolding: anarchy in cyberspace. Many of you may be aware of public key cryptography, which has been around for some time. It’s the technology that allows individuals to send messages to one another in a way that no third party can read. Though we’re not quite perfect at it yet, it is already practical to make payments and perform transactions that third parties cannot observe.Additionally, there are mechanisms for enforcing contracts through reputation systems. Here’s how it works: I can sign a contract with you online, we agree on an arbitrator, and both of us digitally sign the contract. Our identities are defined by a public key and a private key. I only have the private key, while everyone else in the world has the public key. You can use my public key to encrypt messages that only I can read, and you can also use it to verify my digital signature, confirming that I wrote a message.I won’t go into the full details of the technology here, but the core point is that it is technologically feasible for online transactions to be entirely private.There are also mechanisms, some of which are already in use, to enforce contracts in this system. One of the most widely recognized examples is eBay. When you make a transaction through eBay, both parties can report to eBay and others whether the other party actually followed through on their promises. Buyers and sellers are then able to check each other’s reputations; if someone has a low rating, you might choose not to deal with them. This is a simple but powerful form of reputational enforcement. The technology behind this can be used in various ways to support contract enforcement, but I’ll leave that for another discussion.However, there are some disadvantages to this system. Specifically, once you have a fully private online space with public key encryption, it’s possible for criminal organizations to operate with a brand-name reputation. In my book Future Imperfect, I outline a business plan for a fictional “Murder Incorporated,” where criminals could use these technologies to establish a reputation for services like contract killings, all while ensuring that customers can reach them without the FBI intercepting their communications. Payments could be arranged securely, and the criminals could build a solid reputation in a manner that avoids typical law enforcement risks.This presents a double-edged sword. While it allows for decentralized enforcement and privacy, it also means that such systems can be abused. Moreover, it creates environments where online transactions are uncontrolled, and, importantly, untaxable—because you can’t tax what you can’t observe.I would argue that this is a system that is gradually developing, though not yet in the fully realized form that I’ve imagined. Let me now return to my original idea for how a modern society could function with entirely private law and law enforcement. In this system, each individual is a customer of a rights enforcement agency, and they have the freedom to choose which agency to engage with. Additionally, they can switch agencies if they wish. These rights enforcement agencies would sell two core services: protecting your rights and settling disputes.An obvious issue arises, however—one that becomes clear to most people within about 30 seconds of hearing the idea: What happens when customers of two different rights enforcement agencies have a conflict? Let’s consider a scenario: I come home to find that my television is missing. The video camera, which my rights enforcement agency kindly installed in my living room, shows you walking out the door with my television set.My rights enforcement agency then contacts you and asks, “Please return Mr. Friedman’s television set, and would you mind paying us $20 for the time and trouble involved in retrieving it?” But you, of course, respond, “I don’t know Mr. Friedman. I never took his television.””I don’t know his television set. I’ve got a nice one—a friend gave it to me, and it’s none of your business who the friend is. I have my own privacy.”You, of course, don’t back down. My rights enforcement agency then responds, “We’re sorry you feel that way. If you’re not willing to submit this to a court, four tough guys will show up at your door tomorrow to retrieve the television set.”Now, you retaliate: “Well, if that happens, I’ll contact my rights enforcement agency. They’ll send six tough guys to stop your four tough guys from taking my television.” This escalates into a war between our agencies. This is Ayn Rand’s classic response, where individuals and agencies resort to force to resolve disputes.But this approach doesn’t make a lot of sense. After all, wars are costly, and profit-driven businesses aren’t in the business of fighting wars over property. Instead, a more sensible solution would be for the two rights enforcement agencies to recognize that their customers may occasionally clash and agree, in advance, on a private court system whose verdicts they will both respect.Once such a court system is established, they could resolve the dispute by agreeing that, if the court rules against one of their customers, they won’t protect them. After all, there’s no reason to defend a stolen television. Additionally, the losing party would be required to pay a small damage fee for the trouble they caused by falsely accusing the other of theft.Now, the question you should be asking is: What enforces this contract? We have a contract between two agencies agreeing to abide by a court decision, but in this world, there’s no government. So, there’s no higher authority to enforce the contract.What there is, however, is the discipline of constant dealings — the fact that these agencies are repeat players. Each enforcement agency knows that if it refuses to honor the court’s decision when its customer loses, the other agency will reciprocate. This would lead to a cycle of refusals, escalating into conflict, and eventually, war. And as we’ve established, war is costly. Most customers don’t want their front lawns turned into free-fire zones.If an agency refuses to follow the court’s decision, its customers will flock to a competing agency that values arbitration over war. So, the mechanism that enforces these contracts is competition. Agencies know that a failure to abide by the court’s ruling means losing customers to more reliable competitors. In essence, it’s a system of peaceful law enforcement without government intervention.The next question I’ve brushed over is: Where do the laws come from? What determines what laws exist in this system? The answer is that the arbitration agency is essentially selling its services to the rights enforcement agency. In turn, the rights enforcement agency is selling its customers a package, which includes the legal rules and arbitration services it uses.So, the rights enforcement agency will consider which arbitration agency to use based on which legal rules will generate the most value for its customers. The arbitration agency, in turn, will be motivated to determine which rules it can offer to attract more business.To illustrate this, imagine a scenario where the customers of one arbitration agency — let’s say they’re from a pacifist community — all disapprove of capital punishment.In this scenario, the customers of one arbitration agency might come from a pacifist community that opposes capital punishment, while another agency’s customers — perhaps from a different region, like Tucson — are people who want to ensure that anyone who kills them is hanged. These agencies may serve similar communities, but they might cater to different preferences or even different legal rules depending on regional values.Now, let’s say the Tucson-based agency does a little market research. They find that if they can guarantee that their customers will never face capital punishment in disputes with people from other areas, they can make an extra million dollars a year because their customers greatly value this rule. Meanwhile, another agency discovers that they can only earn half a million dollars from offering capital punishment protections.To resolve this, the Tucson agency might bargain with the other agency, offering them something they want — perhaps a financial incentive or agreements on how to handle other disputes. The Tucson agency, for example, might care deeply about rules protecting their annual gem show, one of the largest in the world. Whatever the exact terms of the agreement, both agencies engage in bargaining to create a set of rules that maximizes the welfare of their customers, based on how much customers are willing to pay for the benefits those rules bring.This system of bargaining and negotiation essentially creates a market for law. Each agency is motivated to optimize its legal rules based on customer demand, ensuring that laws reflect what people actually want.From my standpoint, this is the core argument for the superiority of the system I’m recommending. I see that I’m running low on time—about five minutes left, right? So, instead of going into other topics I had planned to cover, which include some of the flaws of this system (discussed in several chapters of the third edition of my book The Machinery of Freedom), I’d rather leave time for questions.In that book, I explore how the system might break down, under what circumstances it could fail, and how the legal rules it generates won’t be perfect. Markets don’t function perfectly, but they tend to be better than the alternatives. However, I’d prefer to focus on your questions now rather than delving into theoretical issues.About David FriedmanDavid D. Friedman is an academic economist with a doctorate in physics, retired from 23 years of teaching in a law school. His first book, The Machinery of Freedom: Guide to a Radical Capitalism, was published in 1973 and includes a description of how a society with property rights and without government might function. There, as elsewhere, he offers a consequentialist defense of libertarianism.His most recent non-fiction book is Legal Systems Very Different from Ours, covering systems from Periclean Athens through modern Amish and Romany. He is also the author of three novels, one commercially published and two self-published, and, with his wife, a self-published medieval and renaissance cookbook and a larger self-published book related to their hobby of historical recreation. Most of his writing, including full text of most of his nonfiction books, can be found on his web page: www.daviddfriedman.com. His current work is available at David Friedman’s SubstackIdeas about a wide variety of subjectsAbout Liberty on the Rocks Conference & The Art of Liberty FoundationIs the biggest secret in American/ international politics that “government” is illegitimate, immoral and completely unnecessary? Voluntaryism, REAL Freedom, is the only moral political philosophy on the market. Every other political “ISM” including socialism, communism and constitutional republicanism, has a ruling class that has rights that you don’t have, an illogical exception from morality, and “voting” is so easily rigged by monopoly media, moneyed interests, and the organized crime “government” itself counting the votes with unauditable black box voting machines and mail-in ballots that it is, frankly, a joke to think your vote matters or will even be counted.The Art of Liberty Foundation, a start-up public policy organization exposing the illegitimacy and criminality of “government” from a principled voluntaryist perspective, is also educating the public on the 2nd biggest secret: We don’t really need “Government”! In a Voluntaryist world of REAL freedom, all the legitimate, non-redistributive services provided by monopoly “government” would be better provided by the free market, mutual aid societies, armed protective service companies, arbitration providers, insurance companies, non-profits and genuine charities. The world would be much more harmonious and prosperous under REAL freedom! This year’s Liberty on the Rocks conference brought together some of the most respected economists, legal experts, political philosophers and academics to explain spontaneous order and how the free market would better provide everything from roads to military defense to air traffic control without the waste, fraud, abuse and extortion of monopoly “government.”Go paid at the $5 a month level, and we will send you both the PDF and e-Pub versions of “Government” – The Biggest Scam in History… Exposed! and a coupon code for 10% off anything in the Government-Scam.com/Store.Go paid at the $50 a year level, and we will send you a free paperback edition of Etienne’s book “Government” – The Biggest Scam in History… Exposed! OR a 64GB Liberator flash drive if you live in the US. If you are international, we will give you a $10 credit towards shipping if you agree to pay the remainder.Support us at the $250 Founding Member Level and get a signed high-resolution hardcover of “Government” + Liberator flash drive + Larken Rose’s The Most Dangerous Superstition + Art of Liberty Foundation Stickers delivered anywhere in the world. Our only option for signed copies besides catching Etienne @ an event.