Bad faith garbage

[Martin Radwin]

NOTE FROM MSK: I peeled this pearl of wisdom from another discussion.

Here's an interesting thought experiment. Suppose you took a group of criminals--say about a thousand--out of a prison, gave them classes in individual freedom, NIOF, etc., put them on a desert island, then came back in a year. What do you think you will find? Anarcho-capitalism?

This is your argument against anarcho-capitalism? That a bunch of criminals set free on a desert island would not be very likely to form an anarcho-capitalist society? Well, you're probably right about that. Of course, they also would not be very likely to form a society with a limited government, or a society in which individual rights were respected, rather than a society based on predation. Congratulations! You've just proven not only that anarcho-capitalism is contra human nature, but that limited government, individual rights, free trade, and a peaceful society without violent predation are also contra human nature. All of these things are clearly incompatible with the reptilian side of the human brain that you have been discussing so frequently on this thread. So you might as well abandon your belief in limited government, individual rights, free trade, and peaceful coexistence among people. Which is to say, you might as well abandon objectivism in total, since it's obviously contra human nature. You can start by closing down "Objectivist Living".

Martin

[Selene]

NOTE FROM MSK: I peeled this pearl of wisdom from another discussion.

Here's an interesting thought experiment. Suppose you took a group of criminals--say about a thousand--out of a prison, gave them classes in individual freedom, NIOF, etc., put them on a desert island, then came back in a year. What do you think you will find? Anarcho-capitalism?

This is your argument against anarcho-capitalism? That a bunch of criminals set free on a desert island would not be very likely to form an anarcho-capitalist society? Well, you're probably right about that. Of course, they also would not be very likely to form a society with a limited government, or a society in which individual rights were respected, rather than a society based on predation. Congratulations! You've just proven not only that anarcho-capitalism is contra human nature, but that limited government, individual rights, free trade, and a peaceful society without violent predation are also contra human nature. All of these things are clearly incompatible with the reptilian side of the human brain that you have been discussing so frequently on this thread. So you might as well abandon your belief in limited government, individual rights, free trade, and peaceful coexistence among people. Which is to say, you might as well abandon objectivism in total, since it's obviously contra human nature. You can start by closing down "Objectivist Living".

Martin

"Coventry" is a science fiction short story by Robert A. Heinlein and part of his Future History series. It was collected into the book Revolt in 2100.

Plot summary

The protagonist, David MacKinnon, is a romantic idealist up for trial for assault. Since the government fears that he will repeat his action, he is given a choice: either allow trained psychologists to fix him, or leave to an area known as Coventry. MacKinnon chooses to emigrate so he can escape the boredom of a too-civilized future. He is sent to the rugged outland beyond the Barrier, where people who refuse to abide by social norms are exiled, rather than submit to radical psychotherapy. He finds out that the peaceful anarchy he envisioned is but a corrupt democracy and he is immediately jailed, losing all his goods. Outside of the democracy is a military dictatorship and a group of expatriate of the former theocracy. Befriended by a man he knows only as "the Fader," he breaks jail. He then finds out that the dictatorship is planning an attack on civilization. He breaks out of Coventry with Fader to warn everyone. He then learns that the Fader is actually an agent of the United States Army, and that he has redeemed himself by risking his life to warn the rest of the country.