State-Smashing

Anarchy: The Basis for a Civilized Society

"Sartwell says even if anarchism were not practical, it doesn’t follow that it has no value. This is not to put aside the question of practical application. He pointed to the works of anthropologists James Scott and David Graeber, whose work independently has shown how anarchism has worked in a variety of settings. Bowling leagues, to use an example from Sartwell’s book, are anarchist organizations. They are completely voluntary. No one is forced to join. So when you think about it, our lives are full of anarchist organizations built on voluntary foundations. Suddenly, anarchism doesn’t seem like such a radical idea. You come to appreciate that the basis of civilized society is anarchic to its core." Continue reading →

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A Real and Lasting Peace

"Seems as if supplying Syrian rebels with arms just isn’t enough. The US government and its Western allies are about to unleash direct military force in the small Middle Eastern country. We have heard the drumbeat of war for a long time – now as early as Thursday bombs may start falling on Syria. Instead of regime change, we are told, US military forces just seek to 'send a strong message' to Syrian president Bashar al-Assad to stop (apparently) using chemical weapons. A humble, non-interventionist, foreign policy is no good — to be humanitarian we must bomb other populations." Continue reading →

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Jeffrey Tucker: We’re All Edward Snowden Now

"In the course of only a few decades, everything unraveled. The monopoly over communication that the government once maintained had been completely smashed. This situation has persisted for about 15 years — a near-anarchist paradise of human sharing and interaction through technological innovation. What’s going on today is really the reaction and response by the elites. They want their power and control back. They are trying to get it through the oldest form of government control surveillance and the blackmail that comes with it. It’s the tactic guards used to control prisoners. It’s the tactic government is using to fight its way back toward having control over our lives." Continue reading →

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Edward Snowden legal defense fund raises over 100 BTC so far

"The Journalistic Source Protection Defence Fund raises money for Journalistic sources' legal defence. Periodically it will nominate sources it wishes to direct legal and campaign aide to. For its first source it has selected Mr. Edward Snowden whose revelations have exposed the extent to which the world is being mass surveilled by the United States. Mr. Snowden is currently in Russia where he has been granted temporary asylum. The United States government is exerting substantial pressure on Russia and other countries in an attempt to force Mr. Snowden to the United States where he will face decades in prison or worse." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEdward Snowden legal defense fund raises over 100 BTC so far

Should We Celebrate the American Revolution?

"Conservatives who cherish the Fourth of July while cheering today’s wars have a high tolerance for cognitive dissonance. The American Revolution was, at best, a revolt against empire. The taxes at issue were being used to finance Britain’s national security state. The colonial rebels didn’t 'support the troops' – they resented them. And they resented Britain’s status as the hypocritical world power, which closely resembled the modern United States – an empire claiming the mantle of liberty while smashing its colonial subjects. Today’s conservatives would have likely been partisans of King George. Independence would mean Washington, DC, releasing control of its colonies worldwide." Continue reading →

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Why Libertarianism Will Crush Conservatism

"They have over the last century lost their battles against Wilsonian progressivism, the New Deal, the Great Society, racial integration, abortion, drug abuse, and secularization. The fact that they have lost so reliably, despite their persistent numerical superiority, is a testament to the holes in their philosophy. Along the way, they've adopted virtually every bureaucratic idea pioneered by progressives, increasing government spending while wasting energy and billions of dollars fighting losing cultural battles. The diminishing appeal of conservatism for younger, more cosmopolitan millennials as well as exploding immigrant populations translates to serious demographic problems for Republicans." Continue reading →

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Why Libertarianism Will Crush Conservatism

"They have over the last century lost their battles against Wilsonian progressivism, the New Deal, the Great Society, racial integration, abortion, drug abuse, and secularization. The fact that they have lost so reliably, despite their persistent numerical superiority, is a testament to the holes in their philosophy. Along the way, they've adopted virtually every bureaucratic idea pioneered by progressives, increasing government spending while wasting energy and billions of dollars fighting losing cultural battles. The diminishing appeal of conservatism for younger, more cosmopolitan millennials as well as exploding immigrant populations translates to serious demographic problems for Republicans." Continue reading →

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Dear World, Americans Don’t Want War With Syria

"Their propaganda doesn't work on us anymore. They can't hide behind political labels anymore. They can't hide behind geopolitical unions and corporations anymore. They can't hide behind religions or 'humanitarian' organizations anymore. By their actions we shall know them. A Reuters poll released today said only 25% of Americans would support military intervention in Syria if, and only if, it was proven that Assad used chemical weapons. There is virtually no support for this war. If it happens, please know that it is not the will of the American people. We stand with you - our human brothers and sisters - for peace, liberty, and justice against this global threat." Continue reading →

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Snowden leaks: the real take-home

"To Gen X, a job for life with the NSA was a probably-impossible dream — it's what their parents told them to expect, but few of their number achieved. To Gen Y the idea of a job for life is ludicrous and/or impossible. This means the NSA and their fellow swimmers in the acronym soup of the intelligence-industrial complex are increasingly reliant on nomadic contractor employees, and increasingly subject to staff churn. There is an emerging need to security-clear vast numbers of temporary/transient workers ... and workers with no intrinsic sense of loyalty to the organization. Edward Snowden is 30: he was born in 1983. Generation Y started in 1980-82. I think he's a sign of things to come." Continue reading →

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