We're Not Allowed to Do These Things…but Our Masters Are.

How much longer will we behave as a slave species?

You’re not allowed to demand that people give you money in exchange for ‘protection,’ and then hurt them if they refuse to pay.

That’s called a protection racket.

You’re not allowed to tell your neighbor that if he doesn’t pay for your cousin’s surgery, you’re going to lock him in your basement.

That’s called extortion.

You’re not allowed force people to fight for you.

That’s called press-ganging or shanghaiing.

You’re not allowed to use your fighting force to attack whoever you want.

That’s called warlordism.

You’re not allowed to take money from people by force.

That’s called theft.

You’re not allowed to force people to work for you or your allies.

That’s called slavery.

You’re not allowed to create a set of rules and make your neighbors live by them.

You’re not allowed to create a business and then force other people to pay your employees.

You’re not allowed to rack up debts and make your neighbors’ grandchildren pay them.

You’re not allowed to create your own school and then force people to pay tuition whether their kids go to your school or not.

You’re not allowed to create your own money out of thin air and force everyone to use it.

You’re not allowed to coerce people into letting you inject them with experimental medicines.

You’re not allowed to lock people in their homes and refuse to let them leave.

You’re not allowed to tell people you are in charge, and that they agreed that you are in charge even though they obviously didn’t agree to anything.

All of these things, and far more, are considered immoral if done by any individual. It is generally understood by most sentient humans that you simply do not have a right to act in any of these ways. And doing them will get you thrown in jail.

But all governments do these things. And those are just the ‘good’ governments. The bad ones do far worse.

The idea behind the “social contract” was that in order to avoid the insecurity of the state of nature, we choose to surrender certain rights to government: We relinquish a portion of our property to protect the rest. We delegate our natural right of self defense to the “authorities.”

It was a nice try. It may have even been a necessary step in our journey. But social-contract theory made several fundamental errors.

The first, which we have discussed in these pages at length, is that we didn’t actually “choose” anything. The whole thing is forced on us whether we want it or not. That is not choice.

But also…how is it that we can delegate to a government the “right” to do things that we are ourselves have no right to do?

Here, take this magical jewel I have in my hand.
There’s nothing in your hand.
Correct. And it’s yours now.

You cannot give something that you do not have. We do not have the right to do these things. So how did government get that right?

Governments are not buildings or staplers or office chairs. Governments are made up of people. So if people do not have these rights, then how is it that the specific people in government somehow have them?

They don’t.

But they act as if they do, and we let them.

Oh no, we’re not allowed to do that. But our masters are.

By allowing this to continue, that is what we are saying. We are the slaves, who do not have the rights. They are the masters, who do.

How much longer will we speak the language of the slave? How much longer will we think and act like slaves?

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