This is the power of victimhood in the “social justice” (Marxist) movement, and it’s why I’ve said many times that victimhood– real, genuine, beautiful, wonderful, rich and delicious victimhood, is so deeply cherished, sought after and uplifted with such passion by the left. It’s their gold and diamond currency and they mine it, mint it, wear it and show it off with a greedy, lusty fervor.
Lyle
November 30, 2011
Comment to Peterson Syndrome example.
[You don’t have to think about this very long to realize Lyle has nailed it.
The NRA says, “Refuse to be a victim” and trains people to enforce this refusal with knowledge, confidence, and, if necessary, force. The anti-gun people seek out victims, hire them, and not only enable more victims but work to force others into being victims.—Joe]
Sort of OT… I found this series of posts about Libertarianism that I think Lyle and the rest of you Libertarians should take a look at. I started reading with this post, so I’ll link to it: http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2011/11/journey-into-a-libertarian-future-part-ii-–-the-strategy.html
Very interesting stuff!
Wow! That’s really hard-core stuff.
I just realized that the link I posted has none of the comments attached. You’ll have to go through the main page of nakedcapitalism to get to the comments. (The comments are good on this entire series.)
Part III makes mention of an IBM prospectus for the future of the insurance industry that will just *chill* you. Part III (with comments) is here: http://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2011/12/journey-into-a-libertarian-future-part-iii-%e2%80%93-regulation.html#comments
Yup; you know you’re rattling them (i.e. speaking the truth) when they default into the age-old Ignore And Redirect defense mode. So yeah; I got an IAR from ubu, which was to be expected.
Thanks for making my point through your total predictability. It was a good one though, as it not only changed the subject it’s also accusing me via innuendo of being an anarchist.
The problem with it though is that there is, functionally, no such thing as anarchy– organized power structures will arise immediately to fill a vacuum. Hence, anarchy, by definition, is the opposite of itself.
One way a lot of power structures arise is through claims of class or group victimhood, real or imagined, and the inevitable subsequent demands for reparations and/or special authority and/or special protections of some kind, and so now we’re right back on subject.
Anarchist or anarcho-capitalist? Hoppe is the latter.
… and ignored and redirected again! This is fun.
Hey ubu – which is better, training people not to be victims, or embracing victimhood and using it like a club to force people to do what you want?
“The problem with it though is that there is, functionally, no such thing as anarchy– organized power structures will arise immediately to fill a vacuum. Hence, anarchy, by definition, is the opposite of itself.”
This is the one reason I hate the term “anarcho-capitalism”, although I’m convinced that such a system could work. When I first encountered it in “The Probability Broach” by L. Neil Smith, I thought it was a cute pipe-dream; when I learned about the government of Medieval Iceland, however, I discovered that such a system really could work, because it has before.
It’s ironic that Ubu52 is so determined to prove that so-called Anarcho-Capitalism would be a failure–even doubly so, when you consider that many libertarians aren’t anarcho-capitalists, but mere minimalists–because she is unwilling to acknowledge when state control fails. And there are *lots* of examples:
— Gun control. (It particularly irks me when Chicago, Washington DC, and New York are hailed as reasons why we need strong gun laws.)
— Socialized Medicine. (It works wonders in Great Britain and Canada, and not only that, but look at all the great things it’s done for us via Medicaid and Medicare!)
— Financial Institution Meddling. (Thanks to Freddie Mack, Fannie Mae, and the Federal Reserve, everyone can buy a house, and we’ll end the business cycle for good! NOT.)
— Meddling in Education. (Student loans have produced wonders! Such as, “I wonder why I have to pay so much in tuition!” and “I wonder why I can’t find a job with my PhD in English, or even my Bachelor’s in Mathematics!” and “I wonder how I’ll ever pay off all my student loans!” and “I wonder if college really is worth it!”)
The list can easily go on and on. What’s really funny is that these are all examples that Ubu52–and others against freedom–like to parade about as examples of “the failure of the free market”! as if we’ve had a free market all this time, and we’re only finally getting Government to step in to fix things.
And so the wheel turns: Government looks upon the world, sees Chaos, and is mightily displeased. So Government decrees “I will fix this!” and passes a law, or provides a subsidy. This leads to more chaos, as people have to work around laws to do even good, and subsidies corrupt all those who partake of them. And thus, Government proclaims, “The Free Market has failed! We need to fix this!” And Government is pleased, for every time the wheel turns, it becomes Larger and Fatter and more Powerful.
While I don’t expect to convince very many people to become so-called “anarcho-capitalists”, Ubu52, I have seen far too much harm caused by laws passed with the full backing of “good intentions”, to be convinced by a handful of links, that things will get better if Government would only just step in, and take away people’s rights. And it especially appalls me when you link to failures of Government as reasons why we should believe that freedom will fail.