Suppose there is a group of 20 children in the class, and they all like apples. Would you rather….a) give one apple to each of the 20 childrenb) give three apples to a random 10 of the children, and nothing to the other 10Which do you choose? Option (a) looks… Read More »Apples
Social organisations are inherently small-c conservative, in that over time, they tend to become more cautious, more inclined to stick with what has gone before, and less open to radical change. This applies all the way from small community organisations to the governments of countries and leadership of huge businesses.… Read More »Why organisations are inherently conservative
It would be nice if guaranteeing equality of outcomes could lead to a happier society, but it’s never going to happen. Communism is generally considered to be a political and economic system which is characterised by common ownership of the means of production and free access to the articles of… Read More »Why Communism must be Coercive
In part 1, we looked at Violence, Trade and Law, with regard to Property. The Origin of Property In 1797, Sade wrote “Tracing the right of property back to its source, one infallibly arrives at usurpation. However, theft is only punished because it violates the right of property; but this right… Read More »On Property : 2 : Justice
When two strangers meet, and one desires something which the other has, the two have two options before them, whether they be individuals, ethnic groups, corporations, or nations. The first option is force: violence or the threat of violence. This option is chosen unilaterally by one party, believing themselves stronger,… Read More »On Property : 1 : Violence, Trade and Law
Humanists assert there are no gods, but that a non-god morality is still possible. Herewith, a straw man, based on different assumptions, to the ones I hold myself. Evolutionists assert that evolution is undirected, and without external meaning. That competition to reproduce is the driving factor. That there is no intrinsic… Read More »The Humanist Delusion
French economist Frédéric Bastiat, in his 1850 essay “The Balance of Trade” (#13 in “Selected Essays on Political Economy” attempts to debunk the mercantilist view of François Mauguin who prefers that their nation of France exports more than it imports. However, once we unpack the clever packaging of Bastiat’s narrative,… Read More »Is Bastiat a Englishman?
I’m fascinated by the narrative conflict around whether the police should be construed as the agents of the state enemy, or else as the also-human guys doing a necessary job. The calls from some sections of the US left, to defund or disband the police indicates the idea of having… Read More »Whose side are the police on?