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From: 87064023@sdcc3.UUCP ({|lit)
Newsgroups: net.philosophy,net.politics
Subject: Re: The Libertarian Thought Process
Message-ID: <2586@sdcc3.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 21-Dec-84 03:34:28 EST
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Posted: Fri Dec 21 03:34:28 1984
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> []
> When a line of reasoning that starts from opposition to all forms of   
> coercion leads to a social landscape with rent-a-thug private
> armies roaming around, enforcing 'contracts', then a person with 
> normal critical faculties (as opposed to an ideological zealot) would
> stop and retrace his steps to find out where the argument went wrong.
>
Good point.  The initial mis-step was to assume that libertarians do
not believe that police departments are legitimate functions of
government.

In fact, police departments ARE legitimate functions of government,
according to official libertarian party literature. (Sorry, I cannot
speak for all libertarans, I can only refer to its literature.)

Government is characterized by a monopoly of legitimate force in an
area (all other "services" are, in fact, duplicated by other
institutions in this country.  For instance, labor unions tax,
albiet non-coercively.)  Libertarians believe that this force should
be used to protect the citezenry's life, liberty, and property.  To
do this, a police force exists.  This is one of the three legitimate
functions of government conceded by libertarians.

The other two:

National defense, to protect people's lives, liberty and property
from foreign aggression.

Judicial system: as part of the policing system necessary to protect
lives, liberty and property.  Also, to solve disputes between free
individuals.

Interesting note: all of these governmental functions utilize the
force inherent in government only in RESPONSIVE ways (in a
Libertarian society, that is).  We do not condone the initial use of
force to solve problems.

						John Wallner