link to original reddit post by /u/Dr_DavyJones
I had a good conversation today. I was talking with my girlfriend and her best friend. Her friend is fairly far left leaning and rather collectivist in many of her views. Our conversation started into politics and we began talking about the government encouraging the prescription of opiods for pain relief in order to help big pharma. She told me that was capitalism. So i told her that it isnt quite capitalism since the government was picking winners and losers. We argued back and forth for a bit when the cost of insulin was brought up and I told her how the government enforces a monopoly via patents and that allows one company to charge whatever they want. I explained that if it was truely a free market, I would be able to start my own company and undercut them, and then someone else starts another company to undercut me me and so on, until the price was as low as possible.
I think she could see where I was coming from but not totally convinced. Eventually, tho, we began talking about law enforcement. I told her how we could privatize the police, still funded via taxes, but put out a bid to private security companies to provide security for the town/city. I explained how it was beneficial due to the fact that, if there were high rates of, say, racial discrimination, the town could very easily just not renew the contract and hire a different firm with a better reputation. She really liked the idea and thought it was a good way to help mitigate abusive police.
But the best part of the conversation was when she asked what my ideal world looked like. I said I have my ideal, and I have what I think would be more likely. What I think is more likley, is that governments will still exist, but on a local level. I told her that a core tenat of my belief, the belief of anarcho-capitalism, is that of free association. The beauty of it is that under that system, if you want to live in a commune with shared property among your neighbors, you are totally free to do so. I might not think its a good idea, but it doesnt matter what I think, if you want to live like that you are free to do so. And that being the case, people will still likely keep their town councils or what-have-you.
Then I told her that even at a bare minimum, I would love it if the federal government shrunk down to just providing military protection for our country, not bases all around the globe, and mediation of disputes between states. If that was all the feds did, and everything else was left to the states, that would be ok with me. I dont give a fuck what California does. If they want universal healthcare and banned guns and open boreders, then let them. I dont live there, I dont care. If people in Alabama wanna marry their cousins, let them! I dont live there, it doesnt impact me, have at it!
This totally resonated with her and she agreed completly. It felt really really good to have that conversation. I dont mind collectivists if they want to fuck off with other collectivists. If they dont care what I do or who I associate with, why would I care what they do? I cannot express how good and calm this conversation made me, especially with all the terrible statist bullshit coming out.