"Planet Government"

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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Voting in Libertopia

You may be surprised that voting still goes on in our free society. The "right to vote" applies to everyone. Adult, child, FurLumpz, cat, dog, trout, etc.

No, "the vote" has not been extended. It has been "depoliticized".

Animals have always had exactly the same right to vote that humans have. Everyone can, and does, vote- decide- to do what they want as long as it imposes on no one else of their own species. People have no right to impose their wishes on someone else by a majority [sic] vote. And they never did. This is what political "voting" was all about. And it was wrong.

Instead, if I decide to paint my house purple, by my actions of doing so I have "voted" to live in a purple house. My neighbors have no right to "vote" to force me to paint my house a different color. If my neighbors complain too loudly about my purple house, I can paint it another, possibly more annoying, color- or I can move away, or I can shun my neighbors (even as they may choose to shun me). But no one is forcing anyone to do anything just because they get more people to agree on one side of an issue than the other. Because, simply put, no one has a right to not be offended.

If someone decides it would be a good idea to build a water treatment plant, he must convince people to sign on, and pledge their own money, to the project. If someone doesn't want to participate for some reason, he is not coerced into going along. Maybe he is suspicious of the additives the treatment plant will use, or maybe he prefers his water's taste. Whatever the reason, his choice is no one else's concern. He will not get to hook up to the treated water once the project is finished without paying (just as everyone else did), but if he chooses to rely on his old water source, he is perfectly free to do so.

If my daughter decides not to eat brussels sprouts, she votes with her actions to not do so. I have no right to hold her down and force my will that she eats brussels sprouts, not even if I get her mother to agree to vote with me.

A dog will vote to eat his food or not, or to nap on the porch or under a shade tree.

Everyone gets to vote. No one gets to rule by tyranny of the majority. Not even if it is a "good idea". If the idea is that good, convince everyone to go along.

The clearest description of legitimate voting is through the illustration of the "pizzacracy". You vote for what you want, and if the results are not to your liking you opt out and are not obligated to pay. You are then free to arrange your own group that is more to your liking. Everything is done by unanimous consent.

Voting (and "politics" in general) was a terrible way to "run" a society, and my life is better off without that destructive mythology imposing itself on me and violating my liberty.

Anyway, I vote that it is time to go eat. Adios!

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Terrorism- a historical curiosity

I was looking back over some history today and saw a word I haven't thought about in a very long time: "terrorism".

Like smallpox, terrorism is something Libertopians never worry about. Most people have probably forgotten either problem once existed. Both are diseases which were eliminated when the causes were eradicated. States caused terrorism just as surely as viruses caused smallpox.

Sure, there are sometimes violent attacks here or there. What difference does it make why the attacker does what he does? The results, and consequences, are the same. However, now there is no State whipping up violent extremism and hunger for revenge. So, even without Homeland Security [sic], the attacks are very, very rare- almost nonexistent.

Of course, without a State to make enemies around the globe, and to influence politically, it isn't worth the effort to attack random innocent people. Libertopians are pretty much universally armed. You'll die and no one will fear "your cause".

I admit it is hard for me to even hard for me to think about what terrorism might have been or how it might have been thought about. How unsettling it must have been to watch a State continuing to take actions which put your loved-ones at risk, while it simultaneously violated your liberty, using the terrorism its own actions caused as justification. It's no wonder some people .... Ah, I almost fell into the trap of revealing too much about your future. Don't worry. You'll soon see what I was referring to.

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Museum of Government- Constitution

"There once was a document that was widely believed to protect liberty. Unfortunately, it established a government; the opposite of liberty, as we all know. The document was called 'The Constitution of the united States of America'.

"This is one of the only surviving original copies. As you see here, it has no weapons with which to kill tyrants, so it couldn't actually protect liberty in any way. It didn't even spell out the penalty for violations by government agents. Therefore, the government became more and more coercive until it collapsed.

"That 'united States government' ignored the Constitution when it was inconvenient, which was anytime it would have impeded the growth and power of the government, with one criminal president even making some rather profane remarks about it when it was pointed out he was operating outside its authority. It was, as his fundamental point reminded Americans, just a piece of paper which did nothing to actually rein in his abuses. He forgot that it was the basis for any authority that he or his government had ever had, and once violated, 'the deal was off', as they say.

"That turned out to be a very good thing for individual liberty in the long run, but it did lead to some pretty bad short-term difficulties. When the government refuses to obey the laws that apply to it; the highest law of the land as it were, the people realize that they are no longer obligated to obey any of the 'laws' that the criminal government imposes upon them. When they have not been taught self-responsibility, bad times are sure to follow.

"A large number of ignorant aggressors, both former government and free-lance, died before a peaceful anarchy settled in. Such things always happen in order to allow the fit to survive. It is the way of nature and can be cruel, but in this case, the 'darwinized' individuals had a choice, they were even marginally educated about it if they survived more than a few weeks, and still they chose aggression and doom. Weep not for them, but celebrate our survival and our true liberty."

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Museum of Government- Libertarian Party

Still more from The Museum of Government.

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"I hope you are refreshed from your break. Back to the tour.... If you can believe it, there was once a political party that claimed to be working within the corrupt system to provide more freedom. It was a good idea, but was probably doomed from the start. Here is a display of some of its symbols and photos of some of its more influential leaders.

"As you can see from the trinkets, they called themselves 'The Libertarian Party'. Those who could see that the other political parties were all heading towards a police state, racing one another toward tyranny, yet still thought there was value in participating in the rigged system, chose to support the Libertarians. The problem is that no one has ever 'voted themselves free'.

"The illusion of government was so strong that even those who knew better got caught up in the fever. When you are told from birth that you have a duty to vote, or that if you don't vote you are consenting to whatever rulers get thrown at you, it has a detrimental effect on rational thinking ability even in the best of us.

"Still, one can't fault them for trying. The alternative methods were made 'illegal' by the very rulers who needed to be deposed. Trying to be 'law abiding', the Libertarians got distracted from what was necessary for America to finally become free. Each passing year brought new threats from new 'laws' until people became frantic trying to stay 'legal'. It didn't work and the unintended consequences are what finally brought down the regime, as I am sure you are aware.

"The LP, as it was called, did make more people aware that there was an alternative to more 'laws', and more enforcers, and more taxes, and more government. So, the effort wasn't a total waste. Plus, some people who had no stomach for more confrontational methods were able to quietly slip in amongst liberty lovers by way of the LP. Some of those became very strong leaders towards the end of the 'Era of Government'. But not the ones you might expect.

"In the end, the Libertarian Party was a dead-end on the evolutionary road to our free society. Scholars still debate whether it was a wasted effort or not, and since I am no scholar, but only a lowly tour guide, I'll leave that assessment to you.

"Watch your step as we move into the next room."

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