Tuesday, June 29, 2004

This'll get me in good with Ayn Clouter

The Angry Economist has a post on Law Without Government here. Here's the introductory 'graph for you:

If I had my choice of perfect worlds, there would be no government in it. People purchase protection from a private company of their choice. This company, in turn, subscribes to a system of laws which is privately written. Independent judges interpret the law fairly, or they don't get the business next time. Some legal systems will come into conflict, which will be resolved by a payment in one direction or another. The price one pays for a legal system determines the amount of conflict one bears. Poor people obviously get a cheap one which doesn't allow for much conflict. But it does cover them against the essentials -- no murder, no theft. In the end they get more justice by buying it in an efficient market than what they're currently getting through government -- arguably less than zero.


I like it. I've never read anything by Nelson that I disagree with. (Hence the link.) I don't know why I find him easy to read and David Friedman hard to read. (I will say that I don't like the way Friedman's website is organized. I suppose that's an opening for people to criticize mine.)

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