Thnx for the RP quote in that +rep message. Made it part of my sig.
Gotcha. Thanks for replying. When I talk to the average person I just tell them I believe all interactions should be voluntary and go from there.
It's true that government is not the State, but the common man thinks the two are the same, so I use them that way in casual conversation. Rothbard's definition of the State is nearly identical to Bourne's and Oppenheimer's, and I think they are all good ways to think about it and distinguish it from the government. The wikipedia page on Voluntaryism is pretty good IMHO. gtg for now, but feel free to keep this conversation going if you like. It's pretty interesting.
I would agree that there is a difference between anarcho-capitalism and voluntaryism when using the most common definitions of government and anarchy, but I guess I don't know of any anarcho-capitalists who use the common definitions of those two words. I have read the Voluntaryist Manifesto, and it was written (or just posted???) by an anarchist. I have also read a lot of The Voluntaryist online.
And from what I understand, anarcho-capitalism is basically short for Anarcho-Free Market. Free market being synonymous with voluntary market... Here Rothbard defines what he means when he says 'capitalism': The difference between free-market capitalism and state capitalism is precisely the difference between, on the one hand, peaceful, voluntary exchange, and on the other, violent expropriation. So using Rothbard's definition of anarchy (absence of the State, not government), and combine it with free-market capitalism (the voluntary market), anarcho-capitalism is the same as voluntaryism. The reason I bring this up is because I don't know of any anarcho-capitalist who does not support voluntary government/governance (voluntaryism). ( part 3 coming lol)
I don't think there is an easier way to do it then copying and pasting into a word processor. That is what I do with posts I want to save. This does not necessitate abolition of government(which anarchy requires), but a "perestroika" (restructuring) of government so that individuals can choose how they want to interact with government, if at all. Are you equating government with the State? And do you wouldn't you consider the 2nd and 3rd paragraphs here http://www.lewrockwell.com/rothbard/rothbard133.html synonymous with Voluntaryism if we use these definitions?... From how you explained Voluntaryism, it isn't any different than anarcho-capitalism. Are there any anarcho-capitalist writings that advocate the abolition of voluntary governance? From how I have always understood anarcho-capitalism, it is not anti-government per se, the means of governance are provided by the market. (continued in part 2 lol)
Voluntaryism maintains that participation in government can and should be entirely voluntary. This does not necessitate abolition of government(which anarchy requires), but a "perestroika" (restructuring) of government so that individuals can choose how they want to interact with government, if at all. The wikipedia summary is pretty good http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voluntaryism and the Voluntaryist manifesto is a great read (though google can't seem to find it anymore). There are also back issues of the now-defunct "The Voluntaryist" newsletter published online on several sites. Is there an easy way to save pms to text files or something? I have to clean out my box, but I don't want to waste a lot of time if I don't have to.
What is the distinction between Anarcho-Capitalism and Voluntaryism you are making when you say you are not an anarchist? Sometimes I use the words synonymously so I am wondering if there is something I am overlooking... Is it because 'anarchy' is synonymous with chaos and lawlessness to 99.9% of the population? Just wondering... Your PM box is full, in case you didn't know
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