Do you consider the United States to be the pinnacle of human freedom, so far?
Do you accept the narrative that the founders were driven by an inherently ancap impulse, and did their level best to restrain the leviathan?
Obviously, the system isn't perfect, people have been undermining restraints on government since before the ink was dry on the bill of rights.
If the US Constitution is the best attempt so far at curbing tyranny, should we undermine that system before we have an operational, viable alternative that provides more liberty?
If the US government were to collapse right now (more plausible than I thought it would be in my lifetime), do you believe that your neighbors are ready to institute something more moral, or are their authoritarian impulses running hot?
I don't believe Donald Trump can coherently articulate a principled line between moral and immoral use of force (or government). However, he was willing to stand up and call out the unbelievable manipulation and dishonesty of the political and media classes, and in so doing, revealed that our traditional safeguards on what liberty we have are crumbling.
Should an ancap work to shore up what we have here until we have a viable plan to create something better?
I'm familiar with the "let it burn" impulse, but I have children. We are currently living in the greatest period of peace and prosperity in human history. Must of us cannot even fathom what life would be like if we collapse the institutions that allow that. There will be blood. And it won't all come leaking out of people you don't like.
Discuss.
Not the pinnacle, but as close as modern society has ever gotten to true freedom.
The founders were driven by the will to create retaliatory tariffs, but knew that such governments could easily become tyrannical, so put in a constitution to try and protect against that.
Well, the constitution has had a good run, but it's pretty obvious that it is failing now.
Neighbors probably won't be a problem. Part of the issue is that Washington DC is so isolated from the real world and real people.
Trump can't fix it, the problem wasn't leadership, it is structural.
I don't think we have a choice either way. The system is failing rapidly, with or without our help.