<http://www.theanarchistalternative.info/plan/> A Plan for Liberty We yearn to experience a zero-government society (ZGS.) But how can we cause it to happen? Opinions differ quite widely, and that suggests nobody really knows. Given that it would be unique in human experience, that's unsurprising. Proposals tend to group into four: 1. Enjoy life and do nothing, confident that eventually the State will implode of its own accord, by the inexorable laws of economics 2. Work to reduce the State gradually, by any of a variety of means such as political activism, tax and other resistance 3. Found a free society beyond a frontier, where no existing State is operating 4. Educate opinion leaders, so that they will help us change our existing society. I'm not convinced about #1, because the laws of economics have operated for thousands of years but as far as we know have never yet caused a State to implode. They did, it's true, pull the props from under the Soviet one, but only because its leaders were so dumb as to flout them deliberately, for the first time ever; other governments have been smart enough to allow cows to live, in order to milk them. Thus, this option could involve a very long wait. Option #2 is praiseworthy, but to my mind takes too little account of the awesome power of government to close down any resistance as soon as it shows promise of success. We're familiar with the political freeze-out, for example; very skilfully, Libertarians are prevented from getting elected. Those who lead tax revolts are silenced. Option #3 would be great, except that no frontiers exist any more, or not on this Planet except for regions so barren and cold that normal life would hardly be feasible. Additionally even if a ZGS were to prosper in Antarctica, for example, what is to stop those States most shamed by its success and appeal from nuking it out of existence? Fears of melted ice? Option #4 holds more promise, but so far has made very modest headway and suffers from one flaw: no plan exists (to my knowledge) to bring about an intellectual conversion of everyone in society - only of the leaders. The usually-unspoken assumption is that once the elite sees the way to go, they will take everyone else along; by force (eg by a majority-vote plebiscite) if necessary. I have in the past made just such a proposal. Somehow, though, that seems to sit ill with our self-ownership, no-force axiom. So this paper proposes a new and ambitious variation on Option 4: universal re-education which will result in a fully anarchist America by the year 2027. It rests upon the following assumptions: 1. All humans are rational, thus open to reasoned persuasion 2. The free market (market anarchism) is the only rational system 3. A thorough yet simple course can be designed, to teach such a system on line 4. Once he understands it, every new anarchist will want to help teach it to others Those assumptions should be checked. All are critical, but here are remarks about the first two. The Nature of a ZGS A free society would consist only of people who wish to belong to it - who transact with other people only by means of contracts they wish to make. Therefore, everyone - not just some - must be shown its virtues, and desire them. Given that the first ZGS must occupy some geographic area currently in control of a government, only two alternatives exist: (i) 100% of that population be re-educated so everyone volunteers, or (ii) Some volunteer and the rest are made to move out! - a step hardly consistent with our nonagression axiom. I wondered about that possibility that a very small residue of ineducable statists remained, intransigent. Must they be forced out? - I think not. Nobody in the free society would (being well-educated) elect to trade with them except under the terms of proper contracts, and so they would either sign those contracts (to use somebody's road, for example, or to buy someone's potatoes) or leave of their own accord. It would be possible to live as a hermit with a veggie garden and no human interaction, but statists are not made of such hardy stuff so I predict it would never happen. So it seems to me our aim should be for 100%, and that is a new proposition, a higher aim than anarchists have previously proposed. Society is Not an Onion It's often observed that a cultural or intellectual change needs to be made by approaching society as if it were an onion; convert the outer (most open-minded, leader-thinker) layer first, then peel off the next, and so on until no further persuasion is possible. Certainly, we may suppose that somewhere in there is to be found a hard, resistant core of government junkies who would starve rather than work for their own living; and certainly, everyday experience tells us that some listen better than others. However, a satisfactory plan for moving to a ZGS must involve everyone; anything less will just not do. Therefore, it must not be limited to converting just the outer "layers." The population concerned might occupy one existing State, such as Montana or New Hampshire, or it might encompass the United States in total, or some region of intermediate size; but given the FedGov's history of liquidating States which secede, it seems to me we should aim for the lot. Then, there'd be no nearby residual government strong enough to do any liquidating. There, then, is the aim: to re-educate some 300 million Americans in a time period short enough for most of us now living to enjoy the fruits of success. How might it be done, given that pro-government interests control almost all the means of communication? Universal Re-Education It's a tall order, indeed. 300 million students with a median IQ of 100, to be helped to understand thoroughly that they are their own exclusive self-owners, with inalienable rights. That they have absolute freedom to make voluntary agreements with others but none at all to submit others to their own will. That there are certain immutable principles of real-world (Austrian) economics, that will operate to bring a vast range of undreamed-of benefits. That there is no rational alternative to a free market; that government and all its works are absolutely mythical, absolutely irrational. And this inversion of 8 generations of government brain-washing is to be accomplished in 2 or 3 decades. Isn't the "order" a tad too tall? I dont think so (or I'd not be writing this) - primarily because I believe that there really is no rational alternative to a free market; thus, since humans are rational in the sense that we have the ability to reason logically, once both the correct fundamental premises and the way free-market concepts derive from them are patiently and properly spelled out to him everyone will accept them. If the reader doubts that, let him produce a rational alternative to the free market! and if my premise is wrong that humans are rational at root, then abandon all hope and go drink and make merry, for tomorrow we die. So consider: supposing an interactive course were put together, thoroughly to cover the ground above, but simple enough for a 100-IQ person to master. How long would the learning take, given strong motivation and well-focussed attention? Experienced on-line educationalists are welcome to show otherwise, but I suggest the answer is something between 100 and 1,000 hours of concentrated study. An average of 500, perhaps; and if the motivation is strong enough that means 100 days without 5 hours viewing government licenced television. A third of a year, or two thirds for those with the fewest learning skills. Notice the two key prerequisites: a well-designed, interactive course and a way systematically to motivate the students. I'm going to focus on the second of those, for I think there are quite a number of articulate anarcho-capitalists who could design a course of that caliber. I might even take a crack at it myself. Bear in mind: it's not an Econ-PhD course we need here, but something Everyman can master. Interactive, so that we can use the priceless advantage of the Internet (and of CDs, lest government, in panic, close down our web site) - but with some provision for the Unwired among us; a dwindling problem over a couple of decades, but one that cannot be ignored. So, therefore... The Motivation Enormous numbers of students can be motivated to take and graduate from this On Line Liberty School as follows: one at a time, by personal recommendation and monitoring. The principle is far from new, though its vast implications may not have been well counted: each person wishing to activate this Plan will set him- or herself a personal target to... find ONE person per year who will agree to take the course and then do the same; that is, to find one person per year who will agree to take the course and then do the same. Such a personal objective is not at all burdensome. Some friendly monitoring would be needed (to make sure the promise is kept, and to field questions as they may arise) but the great bulk of the tuition would be done by the automated on-line system with self-study. Notice: this process is one of education and replication. That's the whole Plan. The intitial "selling" job may be the toughest part. One would have to find a friend whose mind has not been riveted tight shut by government, and present to him the enormous benefits that would come to him and his family in a ZGS. He won't have to spend any money (or very little) but he will have to invest a bunch of time, and so he'll need to be well sold on the idea. And later, as a graduate, he will have to do such selling himself. It may be necessary to approach several, and select the most willing for the first year - and move on the the others in later years (I say "year"; some will find it feasible to work much faster, but I want to stay conservative here.) Notice, nothing in the Plan would commit the student to do anything, except to learn and then sell and monitor, and of course to salivate for the day when the theoretical society he is learning about will become a reality. That's pretty close to what each of us is doing now. There would be nothing like a "protest action" for him to take, or not until the end stage (see below) when it would be very easy; no risk, no conflict. Now let's see how the numbers would work; and I'll assume that by mid-2005 one hundred of us agree to launch this venture and commence the first cycle of education. By mid-2006, the 100 would have become 200 busy advocates for a ZGS. Then 400 by 2007. Then 800 by 2008 and 3,200 by 2010. Here's some of the rest of the progression: 12,800 by 2012 204,800 by 2016 1.6 million by 2019 26.2 million by 2023 211 million by 2026 Some time during 2027, all 300 million will be converted, well-trained believers in a ZGS and then (or more probably, progressively after 2025) the "end stage" will take place. Hence: in just over two decades, well within the life span of most of us now living, America will consist of 300 million anarchist "sleepers", ready to take peaceful action during... The End Stage Here's the fun bit: how does one predict a singularity? It's never happened before in human history that a whole society wants it to have a very different form, yet is living in the actual world of make-believe, ie rule by government instead of voluntary contracts. Note, we are rightly visualizing the whole of society with that desire; that's what the education will have accomplished. Best I can tell, the entire apparatus of government will simply evaporate. On a single day or during 2 or 3 years, who can say, it will simply cease to exist. Why? Because there will no longer be anyone willing to work for it. There will be a massive, unprecedented walk-out. There will be 80 million John Galts, each saying Take your government job and shove it. Take your government school and turn it into a museum, for I'm going out to learn something. Take your government Tax Mafia, I'm going to earn an honest living - and a far better one. No violence, no bloodshed, no rioting or looting, not even an election. Just history's most massive revolution, done with a whisper, with the ancien rigime expiring like a punctured balloon. No doubt there will be a heap of mopping-up. How will all that real-estate be re-titled? Who will acquire those millions of acres of "government" land? How will the newly-free market evolve, fast enough to feed its members through the first few weeks, as well as (easily) for the rest of their lives? I don't have those answers. But if the end-stage is spread over a year or two starting prior to 2027, as I think it may be, we'll probably find out in time. Summary The assumptions for this Plan to succeed are: 1. All humans are rational, thus open to reasoned persuasion 2. The free market (anarcho-capitalism) is the only rational system 3. A thorough yet simple course can be designed, to teach such a system on line 4. Once he understands it, every new anarchist will want to help to teach it to 1 per year The content of the on line course everyone will study has yet to be fixed but it will include an introduction such as is now at The Anarchist Alternative with a particular stress on benefits, to help confirm the student's decision to start. Graduates will have an adequate practical understanding of philosophy, rights, ethics, and the nature of both government and of life in a ZGS. It will be protected from government sabotage and bypass completely its tight control over conventional communication by being on the Internet for as long as feasible and then upon CDs, distributed one-to-one via the government postal monopoly; hence it will be entirely decentralized, with no one facility for a SWAT Team to knock out. A version not requiring a PC will be developed and offered for sale to the Unwired, though the on-line version would be free. The spread of the knowledge will rely on 1-to-1 recommendation as explained above and so nobody will have to introduce more than 23 others, at the rate of one per year - nor to take any other action except to live a normal life patiently until 2027. The result of executing this plan will be a zero-government America before 2028. I'm looking for volunteers. There's much to do in the next half-year; to set up the course, iron out the wrinkles, anticipate and deal with the objections. Will you join me? Jim Davies November, 2004 Feedback Form To turn this Plan into reality, I need your advice. Please use this handy Form to tell me what you think about it; what needs improvement, etc. Your Name: Your Email Address: Do you share the objective of the Plan, ie to achieve a ZGS in America by 2027? Yes No Are the four assumptions above correct? Yes No If not, which are wrong and why? Is there any flaw in the logic I've built upon them, and if so what? What do you expect to be the main obstacles to overcome? Do you have any skills that might contribute to the creation of the on-line School, and if so what? Would you be willing to donate them, during the next half-year? Yes No If all is in place as planned by mid-2005, will you undertake to find and monitor one friend per year through the School? Yes No Please make any other comments that might help: -- ----------------- R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah@ibuc.com> The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/> 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'