The Libertarian Snakebite Kit - Day

2:01PM - In Praise of Non-Conformity

From Extremism In Defense of the Status Quo written by Butler Shaffer

I have been labeled just about everything from a "crackpot" to an "ivory-towered dreamer" to an "extremist," more often than not by people who have never bothered to inquire into the basis of my opinions. It seems to be enough that my views lie outside the boundaries of conventional thinking that have been carefully constructed to confine our minds. To those who do ask, I tell them that my social and political philosophy comes down to a very simple proposition: to not trespass upon the person or property of another. Such is the essence of my "extreme crackpottery!"

The playing out of that principle does, of course, bode ill for all political systems. The state is nothing more than organized theft, trespass, and killing, all of which are attacks upon privately-owned property. To support my proposition is to be an anarchist. No matter how deftly one tries to tap-dance around the subject – as with delusions of "limited government" – political systems are inherently at war with private property. If "government" is defined as a system with a monopoly on the lawful use of force, such force can only be exercised against the lives and property of individuals.