by Grant M. Deltz
My anarchist friends won’t like me for this, but it’s the truth. The fact is simple: if true anarchy arose in the United States it would not last. In fact, it would put freedom at a risk. Those who fight to protect the freedoms and liberties we deserve must understand that to preserve these liberties there must be a government. As contradictory to my libertarian beliefs as that may sound, let me explain.
I will first address why government is necessary. We need government for the sole purpose of protecting our life, liberty, and property from threats foreign and domestic. We don’t need to be extorted into paying taxes. We don’t need to have our privacy invaded, either. We simply need our rights to be protected.
Now, why anarchy would fail. The absence of government here in America would lead to the rise of a new government, rather it be foreign or formed domestically. The most likely of the two options would be a foreign government taking control. Russia, China, or even Mexico if they wanted, could claim the land I write this on today. There are existing treaties to protect the United States from being attacked or invaded, however that would not apply in an anarchist land since the United States would no longer exist. The land, resources, and people would be up for grabs.
I believe that people are inherently good, and that power is naturally evil. A vacuum of this magnitude would quickly be filled. The people will demand for it, and foreign and domestic power seekers will fill this vacuum, likely in the name of socialism. Totalitarianism would be a high risk factor as well.
The reality remains that anarchy would not last, and that it would be replaced with a government absent of the Constitution. We must fight to ensure maximum freedom in the United States while reducing the role of the federal government to simply protecting life, liberty, and property.
I am not defending the government of today’s America – I cannot. The IRS practices theft, the actions of American foreign policy kills innocents, and the police state is getting out of control. I am advocating for a libertarian government, a constitutional government, and a government that protects your right to live your life the way you see fit as long as you don’t harm anybody else.
I don’t disagree with most anarchist principles, I just don’t see how no government could work. It would put our freedoms at risk.
I’d have more faith in a libertarian minarchist government than a pure anarchist society.
