Arkonbey's Comments
Libertarianism is truly scary. I live in Vermont and This American Life did a bit aboiut how libertarians wanted to work their way up the political ladder in VT eventually turning VT into a libertarian utopia.
When asked about the public City Hall park, the interviewee said that there would be no public lands. All lands would be sold to private people and they could do anything they wanted on those lands with no zoning restrictions. Think about that. No public parks. No State forests.
They also suggested that services like snow removal and paving would be privatized. Could you even begin to imagine the price gouging that would occur?
gfnord: it is freedom + money. However, it means the freedom to do whatever you want and whatever you think you need to do to make more money. If you think corporations run amok now, think about corporations with no governmental control at all: Burn tires without pollution controls? Sure! Pollution controls cost money! Clearcut rather than manage woodlots? Sure! Managing takes time, and time is money! Raise prices when people need services the most? Sure!
When asked about the public City Hall park, the interviewee said that there would be no public lands. All lands would be sold to private people and they could do anything they wanted on those lands with no zoning restrictions. Think about that. No public parks. No State forests.
They also suggested that services like snow removal and paving would be privatized. Could you even begin to imagine the price gouging that would occur?
gfnord: it is freedom + money. However, it means the freedom to do whatever you want and whatever you think you need to do to make more money. If you think corporations run amok now, think about corporations with no governmental control at all: Burn tires without pollution controls? Sure! Pollution controls cost money! Clearcut rather than manage woodlots? Sure! Managing takes time, and time is money! Raise prices when people need services the most? Sure!
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You said "Remember that what you can do with your land cannot harm your neighbors land. This is a self-check on abuse, rather than the untold number of current laws and loopholes we have currently."
Really? If there is no government (federal, state or local), whom do I call if I have an issue? With no zoning laws or noise ordinances, my neighbor could turn his residence into a night club if he wants and who will stop him?
You also said" My friend, gouging occurs when you have an arbitrary monopoly (ie, govt agency) that prevents competition. If snow removal were privatized, you would have options of doing it yourself, hiring the lowest bidder, forming a collective to pool resources, etc."
I'm not talking about driveways, I'm talking about roads. If all of us neighbors want our road cleared, we have to form a collective? Isn't that just a form communism? What if one guy doesn't or can't help pay, what then? For that matter, who hires people to plow non-residential areas of roads? The interstate?