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58 sats \ 3 replies \ @SimpleStacker 10h \ parent \ on: The Archipelago econ

The most practical implication, in my mind, of the ideas in this article is that an inexorable force pulls toward the collective that is not captured by the atomic view; and so the expectation that some folks persistently cling to -- that one day, if only we are virtuous enough, we will organize ourselves into small autonomous clusters, and the state will evaporate -- is unsound, not just in that it hasn't happened yet, but that our nature rebels against the idea.

I think this is also where I depart from the libertarians. I don't think we'll ever eliminate the state, and if we do I don't think it'll be a desirable situation.

As for what ideological baggage one must buy into to believe Bitcoin, I don't even think libertarianism needs to be part of it. If you simply believe that fiat money is more easily corruptible than Bitcoin, and leads to undesirable phenomena like the Cantillon Effect, then that should be enough to understand and support Bitcoin.

The reason bitcoin is so associated with libertarianism is simply that libertarians are predisposed to distrust anything associated with the state, including fiat currencies. But libertarianism is by no means a precondition to supporting bitcoin

30 sats \ 2 replies \ @Undisciplined 9h

You certainly don't have to believe we'll ever eliminate the state to be a libertarian. You don't even have to believe it would be desirable; some people hold the "necessary evil" view after all.

Libertarianism basically just says that the same moral principles we apply to everyone else also apply to the state. If it is not morally legitimate for you to take your neighbors stuff, then it's not legitimate for some group to do so either. That doesn't mean you can't think the end result of stealing from your neighbor would be more desirable.

27 sats \ 1 reply \ @SimpleStacker 6h

I think I can get on board with most of that. Would libertarians object to all forms of taxation, though? Would it matter whether the taxation is done by a democratically elected government or a dictator, or a divine right king?

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @Undisciplined 12m

We have to make sure we're defining our terms precisely here. Libertarians oppose non-voluntary interactions, which includes pretty much all taxes.

There's no objection to opting in to a community that has fees for services that would look like taxes to any normal person, but would be considered meaningfully different to a libertarian.

Form of government is considered relevant to some (probably most) libertarians, but I don't see the relevance from a fundamental principles perspective. They're all systems where a group of people are regularly violating the rights of others.