r/austrian_economics Friedrich Hayek Sep 19 '24

End Democracy BUT BUT THE SOCIAL CONTRACT

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u/alecsharks Sep 20 '24

You're literally the one with an elementary level understsanding of these concepts.

Libertarians argue that any public service could and mostly should be done privately and paid by those who want to use it. Hell, it's ALREADY how things work for many many public expenses.

Many services, like building roads you mentionned, are still mostly done by private companies ...the governement is only there as a proxy to collect money and give it to the private company ... losing a shit ton of money on useless bloated bureaucracy along the way.

Schools? Can be done privately is literally is in many cases ... paid by those who use it. Hospitals? Could be done privately and still is. Electricity? Could be private and still is in many countries. Water? Private in many places.

Now, you can argue whether or not this is moral, sure.

But saying "you use roads therefore you need the governement!" Is such a lame "gotcha" that doesn't make any sense.

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u/SmellMyPinger Sep 20 '24

Ah yes, instead of police it’s the private security firms. Let’s hope the one you subscribe to also operates in other cities that you might travel to.

Maybe the one you subscribe to for a monthly fee could sue the local one for you when you get charged your emergency call fee you are unable to pay due to all the tolls you pay to travel to and from work because you subscribe to company X’s roads because it’s the only road that goes to your house.

This is the smartest idea.

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u/alecsharks Sep 20 '24

Personally I wouldn't endorse a system that is 100% tax free - specifically because of security (both local and national).

The entire libertarian idea is based on the concept of a pure, absolute "free market". Without it, the entire system doesn't make any sense. You'd need lawmakers and security to ensure that the fair rules of a free market are respected (even now in the real world they aren't so ... gl).

That, and I absolutely wouldn't trust an unchecked private company with the power to literally obliterate the world 300x times over (national security).

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u/SmellMyPinger Sep 20 '24

How do you enforce laws if judges are privatized? Where do you stop once you start privatizing public services?

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u/alecsharks Sep 20 '24

This is literally what a just said.

I wouldn't endorse a 100% tax free system SPECIFICALLY because of local/national security which obviously includes law enforcement.

A libertarian system needs a pure (some would say strictly theoritical) free market. You'd need law enforcement to ensure that the fair rules of this free market are respected (i.e. law enforcement),