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Notes from the Parlor Game

Over at Cato Unbound of all places, Peter T. Leeson makes the case, I think, for anarchy. Or, at least, that "self-governance works better than you think."

Free Liberals will generally agree with that one. Of course people should be free to govern their lives. But Leeson seems to want to push the envelope with empirical evidence that a complete absence of government "works better" than is commonly understood.

Fair enough.

His evidence was, to me, wanting. Leeson cites the history of pirates and their "honor among thieves" codes of conduct. Why we would want to apply the example of pirates to modern society escapes me.

He notes that sunny Somalia is, in fact, anarchy in action, right now. Yes, Leeson admits, Somalia is a challenging place to live, but since the shackles of a state were broken, things have gone from something like "terribly horrific" to just "horrific." That is progress, admittedly, but it seems hardly something to crow about.

Mostly, though, I found wanting of Leeson's application of self-governing anarchy in places like the US and most of the developed world. With trillions of dollars of assets on the line every day, why would people who have much to lose wish to give up protection from foreign invaders. Quaint 19th century-style theory can be grand, even intellectually stimulating, but the world now has stockpiles of nuclear weapons and WMD. With that reality in the balance, Leeson needs to develop a plausible theory for how people in places like the US would possibly want complete and total "self government," i.e., anarchy.

Until that's forthcoming, I'll keep this article in the science fiction files.

-Robert Capozzi

Free-for-all (frfr-ôl) -- n. A disorderly fight, argument, or competition in which everyone present participates.

from Dictionary.com



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