I'm Allowed to Rob You!

[Rattlesnake]

An excellent introduction for those that do not already grasp the absurdity of the Constitution, and a great reminder for those that do.


<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngpsJKQR_ZE" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngpsJKQR_ZE</a>

[JustSayNoToStatism]

He talks at a level even a mindless drone can understand. I think we need to reformulate all of our arguments to this level if we want to convert more people.

[Rattlesnake]

You could construct the most logical argument imaginable, and present it in a simple and engaging way as he's done here, and you would still have some (most?) statists call you a dirty tax evader. That said, a video like this is probably the closest you could come to getting through to those same people. Any ideas on how other ancap arguments could be formulated in this way?

[JustSayNoToStatism]

I've gotten diehard statists to take me seriously with the shortened version of the self-ownership concept and its extensions. I just say, do you think you own yourself? They say yes. Then I tell them that they don't. If you own yourself, you own your body. Your body exists in space, and in time. Your life can be measured in time. The time that you exist is yours to spend as you'd like. If someone else uses a threat to keep you from doing what you want, then that person has claimed that he or she owns you. Property is something you can create using your time. You choose to spend time, or, more clearly, your life, creating something out of the world. If anyone for any reason uses violence or threats of violence to take what you made away from you, then that person has claimed a right to what you did with your time. They have taken that time away from you. Since that time is all you have for your body to exist, that person has claimed to own you. So do you own yourself?

I went through and got rid of all 3 syllable words except property and violence. Other than that, I've reduced the argument to 2 syllables max.

Anyone else want to have a try at it? Reduce some anarchist concept into the easiest terms you can.

Maybe that's not simple enough. I'll think some more about it and come back later.

[randallstevens]

While this video is an excellent example of just how easily an argument can be made, I don't think we will ever change someone's mind with one conversation. I still remember my first exposure to libertarian ideas was through a few pamphlets put out by the Libertarian Party which explained quite simply why income taxes were unnecessary. While the argument was sound and should have been persuasive to anyone with a functioning brain stem, I couldn't help but to think that those guys were completely nuts. After a while I began to cave in to their ideas on the drug war and the need for less government welfare spending. Within the span of a year I had become a full fledged party member. It took almost another decade for me to come to the realization that the state was completely unnecessary and evil. My point is that many, if not most people are just as set in their beliefs as we are, but eventually they can come around. While we can and will do our part in educating people whenever the possibility presents itself, the government will do a much better job when it eventually drives itself out of existence through excessive spending.

[Rattlesnake]

Yup, it's all about planting seeds. This video alone might not convert anyone, but at least it might rattle a few cages.

[Seth King]

I remember when I was selling Ron Paul books door-to-door I wouldn't allow myself to get discouraged when people didn't know who is was, or wasn't interested. I thought to myself that it wasn't a waste of time because even though I didn't sell a book or convert the person, what I did do was instill a positive(hopefully) image of Ron Paul by my actions. Then, maybe down the line sometime I know eventually a colleague is going to say THEY like Ron Paul. Maybe that won't be enough to get them interested. Then after that, a nephew of theirs might like Ron Paul, but even that might not get them interested. But eventually a friend or somebody else is going to say they like Ron Paul and only then, after X number of people have vouched for him will they finally think to themselves that it is time to learn who this Ron Paul guy is. The same can be said about anarcho-capitalism.