Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site calgary.UUCP Path: utzoo!utcsri!ubc-vision!alberta!calgary!radford From: radford@calgary.UUCP (Radford Neal) Newsgroups: net.politics.theory Subject: Re: Day to day life in Libertaria Message-ID: <453@calgary.UUCP> Date: Tue, 15-Oct-85 22:24:47 EDT Article-I.D.: calgary.453 Posted: Tue Oct 15 22:24:47 1985 Date-Received: Wed, 16-Oct-85 16:02:04 EDT References: <139@mck-csc.UUCP> <437@calgary.UUCP> <788@psivax.UUCP> Distribution: net Organization: University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta Lines: 50 > >Lets assume that at one time all the land in the neighborhood was owned > >(completely, all rights) by a developer, who subdivided it into lots which > >were individually sold. Presumably the developer could decide which rights > >get sold (or establish a mechanism which buyers agree to abide by for deciding > >which rights residents have). There are obvious possible motives for not > >selling all the rights, given that he guarantees a consistent scheme to all > >buyers. > > > This sounds an awful lot like feudalism, in which recieved > rights in some productive resource are sublet to contrators in return > for value(services) recieved/rendered. > > >Assuming that problems like this really are significant, one can imagine a > >structure resembling a municipal government, complete with zoning laws, > >emerging. The difference from present governments would be that "laws" are > >the result of voluntary contracts, not political power. > > or maybe there's a better way which > >the market would discover. But the market could solve the problem this way > >it there is nothing better. > > > Well, not exactly a voluntary contract, the original developer > has essentially a buyers market and can dictate terms of the contract. > (i.e buy under my terms or not at all). In fact the developer would > become the defacto government of the area by setting up the rules, and > by providing mechanisms for thier enforcement. Again very much like > feudalism, or like the private local communities that already exist > here in the US.(I saw an advertisement for one on TV the other day). > -- > > Sarima (Stanley Friesen) One could indeed imagine a feudal setup emerging from this. That this is possible is a point in favour of my scheme. Any framework for organizing society should be able to accomodate diversity - if people like the sort of security and predictability that comes fromm a feudal community, they should be able to join one. One could also imagine a democratic setup, in which everyone agrees to abide by the majority choice among some set of options. The contracts WOULD be voluntary as long as no one had a monopoly of natural resources (in this case land). The question of ownership of uncreated (by man at least) objects is a complex one on which libertarians disagree. I don't propose to get into it here. Once again, I don't necessarily think the above solution is desirable - it's just a way in which the market *might* lead to a situation much like the present if no better setup is discovered. Radford Neal