It started with an idea: "Planet Government".
Someone proposed, a couple of decades ago, that we find a dead world somewhere and let all the rulers and would-be rulers of the world emigrate there, along with all their militaries. And those who just can't get along with others.
Let them fight it out among themselves as much as they want, but warn them that if they ever return to Earth, they will be expected to abide by the Zero Aggression Principle and the Covenant of Unanimous Consent, and if they don't they will be subject to self-defensive actions. Just like any other thug. They will never again have a "position" or any veil of legitimacy to hide behind.
It wasn't an exile, but was completely voluntary. And, it was shocking how many jumped at the chance to live in a constant Hell of fighting and power struggles, rather than forgo getting what they wanted by coercion.
The authoritarian types were already becoming miserable here. Too much peace. Too few controls, and too little "crime". They had already lost power, and since that was all that gave their lives meaning, they chose to leave rather than adapt to a voluntary life.
It took several years, and a LOT of money, willingly donated, but it did happen. They launched long ago. The thing is, no one here knows if the ship ever made it to its destination or not. Their ship does have the capability to communicate with Earth, but no one was interested enough to monitor their progress.
I hope that whatever happened to them, they are happy. And I hope they never try to come back. But if they do, we are ready for them. Without their lingering influence, society is more "polite" than ever- by which I mean it is the rare individual who goes anywhere unarmed- almost everyone is ready to defend against theft or aggression. And there are anti-asteroid hobbyists who could deal effectively with the threat of an incoming hostile ship or missile.
Life is better here without them.
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I remember that! I believe they went to a planet with a vacuum-type atmosphere (or lack thereof) and all died the second the door was opened.
ReplyDeleteOh well.
Sounds like some of the excellent works of L. Neil Smith.
ReplyDeleteI always recommend "The Probability Broach" to anyone interested in "how could anarchy work?" in the same way "1984" is to "how could total government work?".
There was a TV movie some time in the late 1970s about how the top politicians and military thought the world was going to be destroyed in an asteroid impact, so they all got on space shuttles and ran away, going relativistic to come back later.
Well, the story is about the later people who lived in a somewhat new-age Utopia. This was the result of the Non-Aggression Principle, which was adopted after the psychopaths (politicians) had run away. But they were coming back now, and so they revived a corpcicle engineer who knew how to operate the old weapons and blow the space shuttle (and psychopaths) out of existence before they could bring back war, taxes, and coercion.
Bummer I can never remember the title. It was sappy, but inspiring. I think of it when some statists tells me to either get used to taxation or "leave".
I love "The Probability Broach".
DeleteI would like to see that movie. Let me know if you ever figure out what it was called.
Hey dispatches from libertopia! Have some more dispatches from libertopia!
Deletehttp://amormundi.blogspot.com/2010/02/dispatches-from-libertopia-anthology-of.html
I go through optimistic fazes, countered with periods of severe pessimism. Do you realize how few there are who think like we do? Who genuinely WANT freedom? That's my pessimistic mindset.
ReplyDeleteThen I see the Ron Paul phenomenon and reach into my optimistic basket. Although most of us recognize the danger of even "a little political action" on the one hand, and we'd never "vote" for The Messiah Himself for political "office"; on the other hand we also realize none of us got here from there overnight.
So many Pauliens (like at least two of my 7 grown kids and their families) will be in our camp before too long. Unless they get diverted by the status quo into believing human government systems can actually work and serve a socially useful purpose -- if they will just "...support the right candidates and vote the bums out...".
Pie-in-the-Sky governmentalist thinking. 1984 was not a moment too soon.
My only option is to recognize that I AM "SOCIETY". There is NONE ELSE. So I must be free, whether or not another man on earth wants or accepts freedom.
But "bein' free" does not necessarily equate with "bein' happy". Therefore, I must learn to enjoy the interaction I have with neighbors, customers, friends and family. Few of them may ever acquire or accept freedom -- but I must remain free and not hesitate to spread my message.
I am a sovereign state. Life's too short to whine and pine over your approach to "freedom". Or whether you would accept liberty if it snuck up and bit you on the arse.
Sam
I have been reading through some of these posts and you have to be the most optimistic person in history. I don't think anybody has ever had a higher oppinion of mankind than that evidenced on this blog.
ReplyDeleteThink so? I see it the other way around. I know people seek their own self interest, and will try to get away with whatever they can, so setting up a "system" that allows them to gain power and rule over others- and expecting that to turn out WELL- seems wildly optimistic and Utopian in the extreme.
ReplyDeleteAs has been said, if men are angels you don't need a government- if men are devils you dare not have one. Since the truth is somewhere in the middle, "only" ~200 million innocents died for the myth of government in the past century or so.