Vengeance Libertarianism

[Tim May <tcmay@got.net>]

At 7:04 AM -0800 12/4/98, Petro wrote:

>	I just disagree with your "millions who need killing". Because some
>beleives in a polly-annaish world were taking guns away from the "good
>guys" also keeps them away from the "bad guys" is no reason to kill them.
>It's a reason to render them impotent until such time as they wake the hell
>up, and if they don't manage to wake the hell up until some mugger points a
>chinese manufactured .25 at them in the middle of the night and just
>fucking pulls the trigger because murder carries the same punishment (or
>less) than carrying a gun (enemy of the state) then "we" didn't kill them,
>they killed themselves.

You are free to adopt the beliefs of what I'll call "the forgiveness
libertarians." Summarized, roughly, as:

"You've been stealing from me, sending my sons to die in your foreign wars,
imprisoning my friends for what they smoke or eat...but let's let bygones
be bygones...stop your stealing ways and we'll forget about what you did in
the past."

This is a dominant thread of libertarianism, though it is seldom
articulated as I have just done. Look at the platform of the Libertarian
Party and you'll see this "forget the past, look to the future" approach.

I, on the other hand, have drifted into the camp I will dub "the vengeance
libertarians." Summarized, roughly, as:

"You've stolen my property, you've imprisoned my friends, you've passed
laws making us all criminals, you've started wars to enrich your
military-industrial complex friends, and you're corrupt bastards. You can
forget about some kind of "libertarian amnesty." It's going to be payback
time, with at least hundreds of thousands of statist judges, politicians,
cops, soldiers, and other such persons going to the gallows. Payback time.
Welfare recipients are going to have to pay back all that they have stolen,
with compounded interest. Out of their pockets, or while in labor camps.
Payback time."


--Tim May

"I swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, just the way the President did."
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Timothy C. May              | Crypto Anarchy: encryption, digital money,
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