Libertarianism is not anarchy: Being an Anarcho-capitalist sympathizer/Ancap Sympathizer, or My love-hate relationship with Anarcho-capitalists.
This article is an update to my old list Top 16 food for thought articles for Anarcho-Capitalists, with the addition of more commentary, with me talking about things that no other commentator has talked about, at least to my knowledge.
As the title says, I have love-hate feelings toward Anarcho-capitalists
In this article, when I use the word “Anarchist“, I especially mean Anarcho-capitalists, though much of both my own criticisms & the criticisms written by others does apply to other types of Anarchists to some degree.
“We have to be nimble thinkers. Try not to make everyone in the world be exactly like you. You have flaws and having people who aren't you exist lets you balance out your own flaws.“ - Rudyard Lynch, WhatIfAltHist, Twelve Lies about Reality..
Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good.
Anarchy, State, and Utopia by Robert Nozick. Online version.
Anarcho Capitalism Odysee playlist
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“All Or Nothing” Libertarians Are Obstacles To A Free Society, by Русский бот - Radical Capitalist
Birth of the Minarchist Syndicate, by Marushia Dark - the-freeman-state
Why Anarchy Can Never Work, by Marushia Dark - Being Libertarian
3 Questions For Anarcho-Capitalists, And Why The Idea Can’t Work, by Charles Peralo - Being Libertarian
Beyond the Ancap/Minarchy Debate, by C.Jay Engel - Reformed Libertarian
American Anarcho-capitalist Sociopathy, by Charles N. Steele - Unforeseen Contingencies
Anarcho-Capitalists: A Threat Within the Libertarian Movement, by James Norris - Being Libertarian
Statist, by Craig Wright
The Case for the Minimal State
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Misconceptions of Real Libertarians, Nathan Kreider - Being Libertarian
Deontology versus Consequentialism: The Great Libertarian Divide, by Brandon Christensen - Notes On Liberty
Realism or Idealism: Why Not Both?, by Nathan Kreider - Being Libertarian
Dear Libertarian Critics, I’m Totally Changing My Name to Republican Girl, by Marianne Copenhaver - Libertarian Girl
Getting Butthurt Shouldn’t Prevent Libertarians From Working Together, by Luke Henderson - Being Libertarian
What a Libertarian Is - and Is Not, by Sam Wells - Sam's Ideological Web Page on Human Freedom and the Laissez-Faire Republic
Is Coercion Necessary? A Minarchist's Defense - Capitalist Thought
2. All Or Nothing mentality & The State is the only major threat to liberty.
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In case you think government is the only threat to your liberty, in Brazil, COVID lockdowns were enforced by gangs;
Why Armed Groups in Latin America Are Enforcing COVID-19 Lockdowns
Drug gangs in Brazil’s favelas enforce coronavirus lockdown
Latin America’s drug gangs have had a good pandemic
Brazil gangs impose strict curfews to slow coronavirus spread
Brazilian Gangs Are Enforcing Their Own Coronavirus Quarantine
Gangs in Brazil Enforce Their Own Lockdown After Bolsonaro Writes Off Coronavirus as "Fantasy"
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Similarly, in El Salvador, gangs have so much control in many parts of the country that they’re practically a cruel occupying army.
Tough On Crime SAVES El Salvador
El Salvador Tells Woke Americans To SHUT UP
The Truth About El Salvador's Crime Miracle
How the World’s Most Dangerous Country Solved Murder
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Brazil & El Salvador, like most of the rest of Latin America, have been crime-riddled, corrupt, low-trust societies since the Portuguese & Spanish Empires (Understanding Latin America. - Whatifalthist).
It’s not a stretch to think that in a society in which the strong majority does not sufficiently value liberty & personal responsibility, & are metaphorically not close to the same page or even reading the same book as far as principles, values and ideas of how society should be like that gangs, warlords & organised crime syndicates act like just another government.
In other words, eliminating the state does not automatically grant you a free society. In much of the world, gangs & warlords would fill in the boots of the government.
As a libertarian, if I was given the choice between dealing with a flawed President Bukele or absolutely ruthless Salvadoran Gangs, I’d take my chances with Bukele, who acts restrained compared to the gangs. I know it’s bad, but those are the cards we’ve been dealt.
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Now, here’s an example of letting The Perfect Be The Enemy Of The Good:
As an anarcho-capitalist, would you rather live in North Korea or Switzerland?
(10 Facts About Famine in North Korea)
(10 Horrifying Accounts Of North Korea’s Prison Camps)
(SOFREP video exclusive: Back on the ground with the Swiss militia)
(Swiss fear EU effort to tighten gun control could disarm law-abiding citizens)
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Why do I ask that question?
I’ve read comments from Anarcho-capitalists who say that they’d rather live in North Korea than a Minarchist state becuase North Korea is more “intellectually honest“ or “consistent“ than a Minarchist state.
Seriously?
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This reminds of of Social Justice Warriors who hate on Thomas Jefferson because he didn’t abolish slavery overnight, when, ironically, Jefferson stopped America’s involvement in the transatlantic slave trade, putting America in a position to phase slavery out in the future.
This makes me think of Anarcho-Capitalists, with a notable example being Larken Rose, who hate Minarchists & the United States Constitution (& probably America’s Antifederalist Founding Fathers) because they didn’t create an Anarcho-Capitalist state. I’d argue that America’s Founding Fathers, the Constitution they created & empowered, along with Minarchy, all put society in an easier position to phase the state out, just as ending the transatlantic slave trade put America in a position to phase slavery out.
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“The biggest problem in our philosophy is that we compare society to utopia rather than other historic societies that are comparable. The reality is that poverty, war, and oppression are normal across the world in history, and in every single society since the dawn of time, whether the Pharaohs, capitalism, communism, or feudalism. Rather than saying what systems cause poverty, war, and oppression, we should be really grateful to those which bring us wealth, peace, and freedom.”
- The Biggest Problem in Modern Philosophy, by Whatifalthist.
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Dont let the Holier than thou SJWs destroy our History, they are after Jefferson now as predicted
What People Get Wrong About Slavery Emancipation in the US | Thomas Sowell
The Moral Revolution in the West that Ended Slavery | Thomas Sowell
Ancap & Minarchism: a Synergy?
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Be grateful that any society was pro-freedom, or at least anti-slavery, at all. All major societies outside the west for the past few centuries didn’t bat an eye at slavery.
All of the freedoms that you take for granted came from Western Civilization, & Western Civilization was a miracle from a perfect storm.
Understanding Western Civilization.
How Family Structure Drives Ideology
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I’d like to note that a reason why the state was created was that 15%-40% of all males died from warfare every generation, & murders & revenge killings were extremely common. Death rates, particularly when it comes to murder & conflict, collapse to nowhere near pre-state levels. (Is War Good? - 10 Taboo Questions About History and Society)
I think the reason why we romanticize the original affluent society is because of how sexually repressed & overall hyper-structured life in civilization & modern industrialized & industrializing societies. This was also talked about in The Anthropology of Real Life NPCs.
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Anyways, having that attitude makes libertarians look like a bunch of autistic neckbeards who just don’t want to follow rules instead of people who have worthwhile ideas (no disrespect intended towards autistic people. I have Asperger’s syndrome myself).
3. Apollonianism: The gap between Theory & Philosophy & Human Nature & Reality.
Part of the problems with western philosophy comes from Apollonianism in Greco-Roman Classical Civilization.
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“The main problem with classical science was that it put far too much emphasis on the rational over the practical, since a logically correct argument was viewed as more real than the real world, which according to platonic philosophy, was just a pale imitation of the immutable forms. This meant that the classical world thought heavier objects fell faster than lighter ones, even though a 30-second trial would have proven that wrong.
Alternatively, that applying science for technology was crass. The Greeks invented the steam engine and computer and never really used them. The brilliant scientist Archimedes apologized for using his understanding of the sun to make cool mirror weapons that could burn ships, since making it practical [was] silly [and] dishonor[ing] as a scientist.”
- Understanding Classical Civilization.
In other words, “The Greeks believed logic to be superior to the outside world. This has resulted in lots of logical rabbit holes that have been disproved by modern science & just testing the goddamn thing. The problem with western philosophy is been that it puts logical argument above experience, but no one checks to see if the assumptions that go into the creation of that argument are even correct.“
10 Taboo Questions About History and Society - Is Western Philosophy a Dead End?
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“When you view the world purely rationally, it gets easy to rationalize away unpleasant things. A piece of advice I give to my friends is that overthinking means you know what the right answer is, but you don’t wanna deal with it.“
- How to Kill a Civilization…. by WhatIfAltHist
“Trust your own common sense. As I've dealt with more of the world, I've realized that the two things that keep me from doing really dumb stuff are friends who have my best interests in mind that are responsible themselves & just trusting my own gut instinct of common sense because it's so easy to purposely make yourself dumb through overthinking.“
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I see this with Anarchists who constantly talk about how their society would work in theory, while there’s almost zero chance of having an anarchist society in practice.
I appreciate their idealism, but I’d also appreciate it if they balanced this with pragmatism.
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Stop Calling North Korea a Monarchy. It Has Never Been One.
"You claim that in a democracy, officials have no incentive to look after the long term, as the best way to enrich themselves is by raising taxes and appropriating the funds for themselves. Maybe this would be true in a system where officials are selected at random – but not where they are elected by the people. Elected officials enrich themselves by getting re-elected, so are incentivised to enact policies which the public like. Now, the general public may be long-sighted or short-sighted – but the same may be said of an absolute monarch. So this argument that absolute monarchy will lead to better long-term governance than democracy does not add up. As for the claim that absolute monarchies have more respect for dissent – I dare you to go to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Brunei or Oman (these four nations constitute the majority of today’s absolute monarchies) and see how much respect they have for freedom of speech. Try insulting the prophet Muhammad perhaps?
You also state that “Some will say that North Korea is not a real democracy since the same people are repeatedly voted into power, and not everyone in the nation is given a voice. However this accusation is no different than when one says the Soviet Union wasn’t real socialism.” Surely, the suggestion that North Korea cannot really be a monarchy due to its poor governance is in the same vein. As for the idea that Kim Jong-Un governs for the present because he is afraid of being removed from power at any moment – well, this could also happen in a regular absolute monarchy, if the monarch got on the wrong side of their military. However, experience would teach Kim Jong-Un, like a regular monarch, that he will probably be in charge of the country for the rest of his life, and pass it onto his heir. Elsewhere in the article, you actually claim that North Korea is more resistant to a change in government than a typical monarchy, due to the people’s inability to stage an insurrection – if this is true, then Kim Jong-Un could be even more confident in the long-term stability of his position.
It’s also a bit rich to have a go at people for using words with their usual meanings rather than your niche redefinitions. Most people would usually consider a system where succession is hereditary to be a “monarchy”, and think that a system where people do not have a realistic chance of replacing their government as undemocratic – so according to common usage, North Korea is in practice a monarchy and not a democracy." - Disqus user Samth.
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I’m not a fan of democracy either (Democracy - America Versus Europe And The World). However, I wonder if some Anarcho-capitalists hate for democracy goes beyond frustrations with politics & the influence of Hoppe, & is a form of contrarianism & shock value, a way to show that they reject mainstream society almost like how biker gangs use Nazi symbols even though they hold no Nazi sympathies or how modern Christian Nationalists identify as Christian to be contrarian against the left, which is entirely plausible, as that Anarcho-capitalists tend to be contrarians, certainly non-conformists at least.
I think the point that Hans-Herman Hoppe was trying to make is that stakeholders have to be in charge of the government. Rudyard Lynch has talked about this in a way that’s shorter, easier to digest, free, & with the bonus of Lynch being a more palatable & far, far, far less alienating personality than Hoppe.
Similar points were also touched on in How California Destroyed its Middle Class (A Cautionary Tale) | Victor Davis Hanson.
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Are modern Religions What Their Prophets Preached?
“The problem with geniuses is that they often construct extremely complicated, and from the perspective of less intelligent people, seemingly contradictory world views but that's just a reflection of how often complicated and contradictory the real world is. What normally happens is a genius creates a very complicated and coherent view of the world, and then since that world view is so complicated, people afterwards can cherry-pick different quotes for whatever they want to do.”
“I was once reading a book on the history of India, and one of the interesting things the author said was that Mahayana Buddhism, or Buddhism in East Asia, basically turned out to be the opposite of what Buddha taught in a lot of ways. Buddha stood against creeds, gods, worshiping him as a god, believing in devils and spirits, making theories about cosmology, and working with the state. Can you guess what Mahayana Buddhism did? Every single one of those. Modern Keynesians spend all the time, even though Keynes said spend in the bad times, and save in the good times.”
Another 7 Taboo Questions About History and Society 40:54-46:07
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This reminds me of how many of Murray Rothbard’s followers oppose voting on the grounds of voting being immoral, even though, ironically, Rothbard himself was fine with voting as basically a form of damage control. Much in the same way that followers of religions change their religions from how their prophets originally created them, modern internet deontological Anarcho-capitalists differ in their practice of politics from their prophet, Rothbard.
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I think the Anarcho-Capitalists really rose after 2012, & with the rise of Social Justice & Trump. In this era, the libertarian movement lost hope & collapsed into decadence. Basically, if you’re not going to win elections or get anything else tangibly done, why not become a neckbeard & indulge yourself in utopian neckbeard philosophy & purity tests?
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Why people hate Libertarians (and we hate each other) - The Libertarian Republic
How to Win Any Argument in Politics: A Complete Guide - 71 Republic
3. A New libertarian Constitution.
If it was up to me, I would implement something similar to the Constitution of Oceania (which I would classify as a constitutionally minarchist republic with direct-democracy). While I find it to be very idealistic (I feel like it was optimized for an artificial island country), it still does have some flexibility, with the ability to change with a strong majority through referendum if doing so is vital (use the key alt + f4, and search "95%" "80%", and "66%" for examples).
Examples of changes I would implement are:
Restrictions on legislation:
. Line-item veto.
Elements of government:
. Government law-enforcement agencies.
. Prosecution Branch, with its own law enforcement.
. Bailiffs for the judicial branch.
. Auditing and Anti-Corruption Branch, with its own law enforcement.
. Representative government, with a tricameral system of regional representatives elected through score voting, and two other chambers with one using Schulze Single Transferable Vote and another using the Psi/Harmonic system. In a Federal system, have a quadricameral system, with Senators appointed by the legislatures of constituent political entities (equivalent to a U.S. state).
. Premier, to head the executive branch in domestic policy, especially with the oversight of law enforcement.
. Department of Foreign Affairs and Political missions (embassies/consulates).
Additional powers (a few examples):
. Taxation in 1 of 3 ways: FairTax, land tax, or flat income tax.
. Eminent domain for border (including coastal) defenses or air defenses or during wartime or emergencies.
. Ability for military and law enforcement agencies to respond to disasters.
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My Work In Progress Constitution is on Google Docs,
4. Examples of libertarian Countries And States.
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There’s more freedom in the world that you think. There are countries that aren’t statist dystopias.
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This will be excerpted from
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Is America the freest country in the world?
Yes & no. The long answer is that, while America is not the best at any single aspect of freedom, it is good as an aggregate, & thanks to its decentralization, gives the individual more choices than any country in the world.
In short, America gives the individual more choices than any other single country can.
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America may not have the most:
. Personal freedoms. Even if drugs are legalized or decriminalized in your state, the federal government may still come after you. Prostitution is only legal in several counties in Nevada. Gambling is banned in some states, & restricted in others.
. Economic freedom. There are countries/territories with less regulatory capture or have simpler regulations, such as Singapore, Switzerland, the Cayman Islands, Hong Kong in the past, etc. Business & occupational licensing vary from state to state.
. Lowest taxes. Anguila, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Pitcairn Islands, & Saint Kitts & Nevis all lack either corporate or income taxes. The U.S. used to have some of the highest corporate taxes in the world & the highest in the first world before 2017, & the complicated federal tax code alone creates a situation where mom-and-pop stores are paying more than 1/3 of their income to the federal government, while multi-billion dollar corporations pay virtually nothing because the latter can afford lawyers & accountants to find tax exemptions.
. Educational freedom (private schools & home education is legal in every state. However, this varies wildly depends on the state).
. Freedom to keep & bear arms (Yemen, & to a lesser degree, Pakistan are better on this).
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What America does have is that it is pretty good with freedom as an aggregate.
From the Bill of rights alone, you have a right to/freedom of:
. Religion.
. Speech/Press.
. Peaceful assembly.
. Due process.
. Speedy, public trial by an impartial jury.
. Confront and/or compel witnesses.
. Assistance of counsel (right to an attorney).
. No excessive fines or cruel or unusal punishments.
. Self-defense & to Keep & bear arms. Even in the most restrictive jurisdictions, such as New York City, firearms licenses are still shall-issue, & after NYSRPA v. Bruen, licenses to carry firearms are shall-issue. In Europe, while many countries have shall-issue licenses to own firearms, only 5 countries have shall-issue licenses to carry firearms, being the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, & Poland (Lithuania does not allow for rounds to be chambered except for revolvers, & in Poland, the police can restrict you from carrying).
. More freedom of speech & less censorship than much of Europe, Canada or Australia (the last of which is infamous for its internet censorship), specifically with hate speech laws.
. No warrantless or unreasonable searches & seizures (officially).
You can also own a television without a license.
America is the country in which if you don’t like living in Utqiagvik/Barrow, Alaska,you have the option of moving to Key West, Florida,& you’re still in the political mainland. You can also drive or ride from Key West, Florida to Western Washington before needing a plane or boat to reach Alaska & drive to Prudhoe Bay.
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Don’t like county governments? Alaska, Connecticut & Rhode Island.
Want to drive before you're 17? South Dakota, North Dakota, Montana, & Idaho. Many other states allow 16-year olds to drive.
Want to use cannabis? Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont, Virginia, & Washington.
Don’t want to pay sales taxes? Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, & Oregon.
Don’t want to pay income taxes? Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, & Wyoming. New Hampshire only has income taxes on dividends & interest.
(Are There Any States with No Property Tax in 2021?)
Want legal prostitution & brothels? Nevada.
Conficted felon & want to vote? There are dozens of states where you can do that.
Want to own & carry knives? Alaska, Arizona, Kansas, Montana, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Tennessee, & Wisconsin.
Want a license to carry a gun? Idaho.
Want to own guns? Alaska.
Want to have sex with a 16 year old? The South, & New England .
Want to be perfectly alone, smoke weed, have guns & pay few taxes with your 16 year old girlfriend (but don't mind the frigid arctic tundra?) Alaska. (I got that from a Quora user.)
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Now let’s move onto Europe.
Want to drink at or even before you're 18? No problem in most of Europe.
Want to buy/sell sex? Plenty of countries where it's legal.
Want no corporate income tax? Latvia, & the United Kingdom Channel Islands of Isle of Man, Gurnsey, Jersey & Sark.
Dislike government school uniforms, speed limits on highways, or restrictions on advertising, eating, drinking, vaping or smoking? Germany.
Want to drive a moped before you're 18? You can be 14 & drive a moped in Estonia, Switzerland, Poland & Latvia, 15 in the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Austria, Finland, Denmark, Spain & Germany, & 16 in the United Kingdom, Netherlands, Bulgaria, Luxembourg, Belgium, Norway, & Sweden.
Want to drive before you're 18? Kosovo, Isle of Man, Gurnsey, Jersey, Iceland & the United Kingdom, with runner-ups being France, Estonia, Slovenia, Latvia, Luxembourg, Gibraltar, Greece, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Germany & Slovakia.
Want to be an adult at 16? Scotland (though you still need to wait 2 more years to get a gun license).
Prefer a flat tax? Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Estonia, Georgia, Gurnsey, Hungary, Jersey, Moldova, & Romania.
Want to use medical marijuana? Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, San Marino, & Switzerland.
Want to use cannabis without being prosecuted like a criminal? Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Slovenia, & Switzerland.
Want recreational cannabis? Georgia & the Netherlands.
Want to home-educate? Ireland.
Want firecrackers? The Czech Republic is the best country for that.
Want to own & use suppressors? Norway, France & Finland.
Want unlimited capacity firearms magazines? Poland & Serbia.
Want black powder guns with no license? France, Poland, & Croatia are the best countries to be in, allowing both newly-manufactured blackpowder guns & revolvers.
Want airguns with no license? Bulgaria, the United Kingdom & the Netherlands are the best countries to be in.
Want modern long guns with no permit? Andorra, Austria, Greenland, Monaco, & Switzerland.
Want a shall-issue firearms license? 20 countries have you covered. 15 of them have shall-issue licenses for semi-automatic center-fire rifles, 16 of them have shall-issue licenses for handguns, & 14 of them have shall-issue licenses for both.
Want to conceal carry? Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, & Poland are all shall-issue jurisdictions for concealed carry licenses.
(If you're curious about carrying weapons on board of ships & boats, read COMPARISON OF FLAG STATE LAWS ON ARMED GUARDS AND ARMS ON BOARD.)
Want the most personal freedom, most business freedom, & low taxes all combined? Try Estonia, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, Georgia, Poland, Monaco, & Andorra, almost exactly in that order.
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A comparison of personal freedoms in tax haven countries:
. Anguilla.
Drinking age: none.
Age to purchase alcohol: 18.
Bermuda.
Age to purchase alcohol: 18.
. British Virgin Islands.
Drinking age: 16.
Soliciting and procuring prostitutes are illegal. Known prostitutes or those known to be living off the proceeds of prostitution can be refused entry visas to the country.
. Cayman Islands.
Cannabis: Cannabidiol (CBD oil) is legal for medical purposes.
Drinking age: 18.
. Pitcairn Islands.
Prostitution is seemingly unregulated.
Weapon laws seem to be the same as Great Britian.
. Saint Kitts and Nevis.
Cannabis: decriminalized up to 15 grams, punishable by a $50 fine, unless it is used in public, which would be punishable by a $1,000 fine.
Drinking age: none.
Age to purchase alcohol: 18.
Employment and school leaving age: 16.
Prostitution is illegal.
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Ironically, if any major territory in the world can be Anacho-capitalist, it would be Japan. Japan has some of the very lowest crime rates on the face of the planet. From what I’ve read, in Japan, people often literally don’t even lock their doors. It’s even common for Japanese people to return wallets without taking money. This is before Japanese work ethic, discipline & trust, which are the very best in the world.
If I was the Emperor of Japan & turned Japan into an Anarcho-Capitalist State, I’d look to annex Singapore & all of its docile Asians (I’m half Asian, so I’m allowed to say that).
Thank you for reading.