Needless to say, it doesn't look impressive - even at first glance. Before I pick it apart, I'd like to disclose that I obviously admire Rand a great deal. I've defended her and her ideas on numerous occasions on this very forum (and others). As far as 20th century philosophers go, you're not going to get much better than Rand in my opinion (except, of course, for Rothbard). So I don't want to make this seem as if it's a slam-fest against Rand per se. In any case, her views, and the subsequent views of her acolytes, regarding "anarchy" are disturbingly off-base. It appears that Harry Binswanger is giving us the opportunity to see precisely why:
A proper government is restricted to the protection of individual rights against violation by force or the threat of force.
And right off the bat we see a pitch hopelessly flung in the dirt. I don't think any anarchist would disagree that this is the purpose of government (or at least this is the case in the U.S. to some degree). However if my stated purpose is to protect everything in your house and I do so by filling your house with protective foam, against your wishes no less, there is a very real sense in which you're not protecting everything in my house. In fact, you're damaging the items in my house in a very real way.
If government's role is restricted to the protection of individual rights, and it must do so by explicitly violating them, then there is a sense in which government, by definition, does not protect rights - but rather it only protects some rights in exchange for the violation of other rights. I don't think it's out of the question to entertain frameworks under which ALL rights are both protected and respected by those providing services nominally designed to do so.
A proper government functions according to objective, philosophically validated procedures, as embodied in its entire legal framework, from its constitution down to its narrowest rules and ordinances.
In theory, this is certainly how government is at least supposed to function. However, it clearly is not functioning that way. For whatever good the Constitution has been conceptually, it has abysmally lacked force in practice. And even then, the use of such a contract, also, demands consent as a matter of individual liberty. As Lysander Spooner so clearly decried:
Inasmuch as the Constitution was never signed, nor agreed to, by anybody, as a contract, and therefore never bound anybody, and is now binding upon nobody; and is, moreover, such an one as no people can ever hereafter be expected to consent to, except as they may be forced to do so at the point of the bayonet, it is perhaps of no importance what its true legal meaning, as a contract, is. Nevertheless, the writer thinks it proper to say that, in his opinion, the Constitution is no such instrument as it has generally been assumed to be; but that by false interpretations, and naked usurpations, the government has been made in practice a very widely, and almost wholly, different thing from what the Constitution itself purports to authorize. He has heretofore written much, and could write much more, to prove that such is the truth. But whether the Constitution really be one thing, or another, this much is certain — that it has either authorized such a government as we have had, or has been powerless to prevent it. In either case, it is unfit to exist.
What's worse is that, by the establishment of a monopoly on said force, parties not adjoined to the majority have no refuge from its inherently oppressive misuse and/or dismissal of such a contract. I'm reminded of David Friedman who popularly points out what poor shape we'd be in if we picked cars in the way we pick government officials - that every so many years the majority chooses a car which we now all must drive. We certainly wouldn't expect the best cars to be made under such a system, but somehow the Randians miss this point entirely.
Once such a government, or anything approaching it, has been established, there is no such thing as a "right" to "compete" with the government—i.e., to act as judge, jury, and executioner.
This may constitute one of the most disturbing sentiments of the whole piece. If we're talking about rights, even in the purely Lockean sense, they don't simply vanish under special circumstances - ever. In fact, even if it's conceded that rights may be violated with good cause, I believe it's fairly clear that such rights still exist. This contention causes me to wonder precisely what rights Objectivists think exist, and what their origins are.
Interestingly enough, even by his own definition, the writer leaves himself vulnerable to pleas for anarchy. Apparently such rights (self-ownership?) don't apply under a specific circumstance; when such a functioning Utopian government is in place - ie: when autonomy is no longer needed regarding deliberative justice. But even according to Rand and her followers, clearly such a system is not in place, or at least not functionally. And so, even if motivated by her guiding sentiment, it would seem we have a very real right to not only compete with but to contest the current government under such conditions.
Nor does one gain such a "right" by joining with others to go into the "business" of wielding force.
And yet clearly this is precisely what constitutes the system we have now - is it not? If the "Objective" right to govern is not constituted through some democratic wielding of force, then how can one EVER support the current regime - regardless of whether it's properly functioning to provide justice or not? Even if such a group were to achieve the ideal system of justice, it isn't clear what principle would tautologically demand that they could claim some kind of monopoly on such services. We know all the perfectly good reasons why the first person to make the "perfect" boot shouldn't be allowed to shoot and cage other boot-makers for making boots - but suddenly we expect such actions to reap beneficial consequences when applied to the political realm?
To carry out its function of protecting individual rights, the government must forcibly bar others from using force in ways that threaten the citizens' rights.
Why? This seems like a non-sequitur...a blind assertion. We're not given any reasoning why this should be so. The boot-maker could just as easily make the same claim if we're not going to ask for specific justifications.
Private force is force not authorized by the government, not validated by its procedural safeguards, and not subject to its supervision.
And neither are the products or services of rival boot-makers.
The government has to regard such private force as a threat—i.e., as a potential violation of individual rights. In barring such private force, the government is retaliating against that threat.
Of course - and rival private law bodies may see a single body's monopoly status as a threat - and not only a potential threat but an actual violation of individual rights (as a constitutive matter of their very functioning - through taxation, regulation, etc.). If anything, this should be the very reason against allowing ANY organization to have a forcible monopoly on anything. By definition it leaves little recourse to escape such violations of rights, and in the case of social democracies it leaves precisely no recourse for violated minorities.
Note that a proper government does not prohibit a man from using force to defend himself in an emergency, when recourse to the government is not available; but it does, properly, require him to prove objectively, at a trial, that he was acting in emergency self-defense. Similarly, the government does not ban private guards; but it does, properly, bring private guards under its supervision by licensing them, and does not grant them any special rights or immunities: they remain subject to the government's authority and legal procedures.
And what then, exactly, keeps this "proper" government in check that could not or would not keep rival "governments" also in check? As the famous saying goes, "Who's watching the watchmen?" In order to support the night-watchman state we have to presuppose some way to keep the night-watchman in his proper role, and it's not clear why giving him exclusive monopolistic powers would be preferable (in that context) to allowing for competition. Generally speaking, we don't believe that giving G.E., CitiBank, or Goldman Sachs a straight-up-monopoly is a good way of keeping them in line. It would be instructive for Objectivists/Randians to explain how such a phenomenon shares no inimical attributes in the realm of politics.
Picture a band of strangers marching down Main Street, submachine guns at the ready. When confronted by the police, the leader of the band announces: "Me and the boys are only here to see that justice is done, so you have no right to interfere with us."
Wouldn't this not, even by Objectivist standards, apply only if such police are enforcing some true sense of justice? Replace the word "police" with "mafia" and you'll have a less-than-subtle reveal of the anarchist viewpoint. Yes, it would be bad to have a group violate true defenders of justice - but that's begging the question. You have to assume who is who. What if that particular group of people are defending the rights of individuals that are being violated by the supposed "defenders" of justice? What recourse would the myopically monopolistic system of justice truly offer us? And why couldn't multiple layers of arbitration and enforcement insulate organic systems from an escalation of violence? Does anyone understand how car insurance companies interact? Could we not imagine that even better systems could arise if given the opportunity?
According to the "libertarian" anarchists, in such a confrontation the police are morally bound to withdraw, on pain of betraying the rights of self-defense and free trade.
I'm pretty sure, although I can't speak for other anarchists, that the only groups we would say were morally bound to withdraw are those that are violating individual liberties. In this scenario, tellingly, it's not indicated who is violating the liberties of others and who is not. Ironically perhaps, our gripe with Randians is that they're apparently not looking at the rights themselves - they're merely defending some mystically divine sanction of the state to be the arbiters of justice; of right and wrong.
In fact, of course, there is no conflict between individual rights and outlawing private force: there is no right to the arbitrary use of force
Libertarians (anarchist or not) do not support a right to arbitrary use of force. In fact, that's precisely what makes us libertarian. The primary difference is in what separates "rightful" from "arbitrary" use. The ONLY rightful use of force for the libertarian is in defense of liberty - in restoring and protecting rights. Governments of all stripes have in the past, and still continue to, use force which is not precluded by such "rightful" motivations. As such, government is largely one of the prime users and defenders of force which we would define as "arbitrary." This is precisely why giving them a monopoly on that force is foolish.
No political or moral principle could require the police to stand by helplessly while others use force arbitrarily—i.e., according to whatever private notions of justice they happen to hold.
And, likewise, no political or moral principle would require individuals to stand by helplessly while others (including the police or, more generally, the government) use force arbitrarily - according to whatever public (aggregated private) notions of justice they hold.
The basic questions that the anti-philosophical "libertarians" ignore or evade are: what is the nature and source of individual rights, and how are these rights to be implemented? Only by answering these questions can one proceed to consider what is or is not proper self-defense in concrete cases
If there's anything hardcore libertarians are not (whether right or wrong) it is "anti-philosophical." In forming deontologically a priori ethical norms, their mindset is largely dominated and justified by purely philosophical arguments. To disregard that seems either ignorant or disingenuous. I would never accuse Randians of such sophistry - but perhaps that's because I've read a good deal of Rand's work(s). But for any Randian who has not actually engaged the anarcho-libertarian framework (and is not simply happy to leave it at ad hominem) I'd suggest the two following short works by Rothbard:
And if you'd like the consequentialist arguments, packed closely with practical applications of anarchy, try this by David Friedman:
The "libertarians" take a short-cut: they plagiarize Ayn Rand's principle that no man may initiate the use of physical force, and treat it as a mystically revealed, out-of-context absolute.
As confident and egotistical as Rand herself was, I don't think she'd approve of her followers claiming that she invented the non-aggression principle. Locke has her most popularly beat out on the idea by a few centuries if you want to cut off history at the Enlightenment. If you're not satisfied with that, we can take it back to Greek philosophers. In any case, the anarcho-libertarian foundation is probably the least "mystically" revealed justification of the NAP out of all of them - including Rand's drawn-out justification(s). The Rothbardian norms for non-aggression are born very simply out of property rights - which he fleshes out through simple deductive reasoning. For anyone who is interested, read the Rothbard pieces above for a good primer. I'd also recommended (even more concisely) the following lecture by Roderick Long:
This one principle, deprived of its philosophical base, is expected to replace jurisprudence, constitutions, legislatures, and courts. Then they imagine that the rest of us are obligated to accept, on faith, any gang's promise that their use of force will be "retaliatory."
Actually, we are not expecting to "replace" any of those things any more than we'd be asking for burger joints to be replaced by asking that McDonald's allow a Burger King to be built across the street. We simply don't want a single group keeping other providers of such services from providing said services. It's really as simple as that. Ironically, it is the Randians who imagine that the rest of us are obligated to accept, on faith, THEIR gang's promise that their use of force will be retaliatory. Anarcho-libertarians want to give you an actual choice in the matter.
Bear in mind that, in fact, those who would be granted the right to enforce their own notions of just retaliation include leftists who consider government intervention in the economy to be retaliation against business activities that the leftists view as "economic force."
Of course, the flaw with this line of justification is that it applies equally, if not more-so, to the monopolistic system the author is attempting to defend. The only difference is that, under the author's system, once these frightening leftists assume democratic control there is literally no political refuge for detractors. Our only real (legal) option is ultimately submission and possibly, should it hold up, our right to convince those in control to spare us.
The issue, then is: how are political and legal disputes to be settled: by might or by right—by street fighting or by the application of objective, philosophically validated procedures?
The ironies are starting to pile up at this point. We're being asked to consider the ill-fated nature of might-makes-right when we (anarcho-libertarians) are the ones trying to undo the monopoly on force the state has granted to itself. They already operate solely on might, regardless of whether they or right or not. So again we are presented with a clear case of question-begging; wherein the author already assumes, as a matter of fact, the "right"-ness of the state when clearly that's precisely what is often in question.
The most twisted evasion of the "libertarian" anarchists in this context is their view that disputes concerning rights could be settled by "competition" among private force-wielders on the "free market." This claim represents a staggering stolen concept: there is no free market until after force has been excluded.
I think it would be difficult for anyone to conclude that, for both market and law, that either one chronologically preceded the other. While it is true that law (although not necessarily positive law) is needed for a market to function, so too is an established market generally required for law to function - unless the enforcers of justice (public or private) are eating their hair and fingernails to stay alive. It seems fairly clear to me that both arise organically together. I don't imagine that there was a point in time where we all sat around doing precisely nothing until we all agreed upon some uniform system of law or regulation. To put forth otherwise exposes an oddly naive picture of historical evolution.
"Competition" is an economic, not a political, concept; it refers to the voluntary exchange of values, not to the exchange of gunfire.
Yes, if you ignore the nature of classically social-democratic forms of government altogether, "competition" is not a political concept. Obviously this piece was written in between relevant election cycles and far, far away from the lobbied halls of Congress. Anyone who seriously proclaims that politics is divorced from competition must, by necessity, be mistaken in thinking that we all partake from a single stream of normative thought. There may be only one "right" way, if there is a right way at all - but we all quite vehemently disagree about what that way is. The subsequent jockeying of ideas into positions of political power is, in fact, quite the competition.
Behind the puerile fantasies of "market solutions" to political and legal disputes lies the collectivist notion that the ideas of the individual are determined by social institutions, so that once the "proper" social institutions have been established, "the people" will automatically agree on political and legal issues, and government will no longer be necessary.
Once again, I don't know any libertarians who believe this. If anything, many libertarians (particularly minarchists) believe that it might actually be better to stick with what we have now until those "stateless" ideas have been fully cultivated, socially. But, in a broader sense, the notion (contention) being put forth makes little sense in our current democratic society - where much our our legal and political direction is already formed by the majority through the election process. In other words, if the Randians are worried about the collective political thought of individuals (straying from Objectivist norms) then that would just be another among many reasons why they shouldn't support the monopolistic state we have today.
But it does not occur to the anarchists that when one of their private "defense agencies" uses force, it is acting as a "monopolist" over whomever it coerces.
This simply illustrates a lack of curiosity, motivation, and, in some ways, honesty on behalf of those who question anarchism, quite frankly. Let's say that you have your arbitration/protection agency and I have mine. We have a dispute. What is the most likely thing to happen? Well, we could have something similar to arbitration between insurance companies today, where most organizations have voluntary rules of arbitration between the two bodies that are already set up should there be a conflict. But even if that's not the case, why couldn't the arbiters find a third party to arbitrate between the arbiters themselves? That doesn't seem unrealistic.
But even if you don't find that non-"monopolistic" (as his definition of monopoly seems to be ultimate use of force at all), it is still far less monopolistic than the system he so clearly advocates and defends. True enough, should I get a burger at McDonald's or Burger King, I'm still getting a burger at the end of the day. But, at the very least, it seems much less egregious in almost every capacity to have a choice then to be told I must each eat at McDonald's - no matter how terrible their food is.
The real target of the anarchist's attack is objectivity. Objectivity requires one to prove that one is acting within one's rights; they do not want to be held accountable to anyone for anything—not even regarding their use of physical force.
Again, I couldn't imagine anything further from the truth. If the Objectivist requires that individuals (whether endogenous or exogenous to legal bodies) are "acting within one's rights", then they are snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. Anarcho-libertarians want to hold everyone to this supposed standard of individual rights - a standard which Objectivists seem to be happy to exclude government itself from. Ironically they are being merely partially "Objective" by their own measure; applying standardized scrutiny to all individuals except those who set the standard itself. In their hap-hazard and inconsistent application of basic principle(s) they end up pushing a non-universalizable, and therefore "non-objective," political philosophy. They unwittingly bear testament to the conceptual vestiges of the "divine right of kings."
In the philosophical battle for a free society, the one crucial connection to be upheld is that between capitalism and reason. The religious conservatives are seeking to tie capitalism to mysticism; the "libertarians" are tying capitalism to the whim-worshipping subjectivism and chaos of anarchy.To cooperate with either group is to betray capitalism, reason, and one's own future.
If "libertarians" believed in ultimately subjective ends in all contexts we would have no attachment to or preference for non-aggression at all; and yet we support those ideals far more consistently and radically than the Objectivists. So, once again, we have a remark that is either ignorant or disingenuous. In this case, I'm inclined to believe the latter. The weight of such claims, from my experience, almost seems to be born out of an almost guilt-like sentiment; a failed acknowledgment of intellectual inconsistency and lack of adherence to fundamental principles. On the road of basic property concepts, Objectivists seemingly walked off the beaten path and ended up being caught in an ideological briar-patch. But that is perhaps a psychological observation that is best left for another discussion altogether.
What Objectivists ultimately have to contend with, at the end of the day, is the inconsistency of their principles. If the non-aggression principle is an inalienable principle, then they must oppose the state, as it is literally today and generally in concept, a chief violator of that principle. In order to establish a philosophically consistent vision of justice, they must either arrive at the conclusion that we do not have equal rights (that some have greater authority than others) or they must concede that equality in authority stems from the right of self-ownership; and that given such equal rights, we cannot rightfully call for the revocation of those equal rights through some unique claim on the administration of justice - nor can we betray such equal authority by violating (through taxation, forced monopoly, etc.) the very rights that constitute its foundation.
