ThomasDoubts

I have no idea what you mean by this. In what way is what I described an illusion. Of course, individuals act, not groups. The precise method must surely be reason and evidence, would you agree? I can't distinguish with certainty, but I can make educated guesses. If someone gets downvoted for saying something abusive, or advocating abuse, I can guess why they were downvoted. I don't know unless the downvoter justifies the downvote to my satisfaction, but I'm not clueless either. Of course these same things could be said about upvoting (disagreement->agreement); is it your position that we shouldn't have a reputation system at all?

No you aren't. It would indeed be an assault. Presumably, the guy could press charges. I think the people who intervened knew him well enough that they were willing to risk that possibility. I'm sure the "coma patient" at worst, thought the ordeal was funny. At best, he may have learned his lesson, and committed to a change in behavior. If I were a member of the jury, I'd have a hard time voting his friend guilty of assault, though. If need be, I'd probably hang the jury.

Do people in "the real world" not establish a poor reputation? I don't see why it would be a problem for that to happen here. For anyone that's been downvoted, what is the problem? If you believe you were downvoted without good reason, you must be concerned that the collective will not upvote to negate/surpass your downvote. If you believe the collective is downvoting without good reason, you must be concerned that the board, generally speaking, does not evaluate arguments on the basis of reason and evidence. If you accept that board members, generally speaking, embrace reason and evidence, then downvotes indicate you have not embraced reason and evidence, or have applied the principals incorrectly/insufficiently. Votes are simply a measure of what the community thinks. Why would you be concerned with the community at large downvoting you, on the basis of reason and evidence? They must have a collective blindspot of sorts, I presume, which wouldn't be unprecidented in human history... On the other hand, you could be just making bad arguments. I think, often times, we hesitate to fully consider the latter. If there is some sort of viral, emotional or abusive downvoting going on, I haven't noticed it.

In a free society, there is no reason why you wouldn't be able to advertise your drunkeness. If you want to drive drunk, you could do what I think is the responsible thing, and in some way let others on the road be aware of your drunkeness. A simple flashing light mounted on the roof for example, could come to be a commonly accepted sign that your reactions could be impaired. By driving severly impaired, you are subjecting others to a higher degree of risk, and that's fine I think, so long as you let them know, such that they can avoid you if they want. It's a shame the State has a monopoly on flashing lights and sirens. I don't know whether it's justifiable or not, but let me test this. I should say, this is a very personal issue for me. As I child, I was in the backseat of the car 3 times when my father was pulled over and arrested for DUI, several times the legal limit, such that he couldn't maintain his lane in stop & go traffic. This is a problem, in my view. I never consented to, nor assumed that risk. An individual can do so, but he/she can't (shouldn't?) make that determination for a child passenger. I'm not sure how a free society would deal with this, but I do think it's a problem. I was failed by every adult in my life in this regard. I was failed by every other motorist with whom I was sharing the road. I was also failed by the state in every way, except that they protected my interest for a day. By what mechanism might the interests of innocent children be protected? Like child abuse (or as a form of?), is this just something that needs to be hammered into the public consciousness? As an aside, I regret that these experiences normalized the behavior for me. It took a long time before I realized this.

For sure, it's good news. I was just commenting on the tax advantaged status of Bitcoin. I look at Bitcoin as a way anarchic criminals might "bleed the beast dry," as they would say; not a way to pay taxes with lower transaction fees. You should always pay your full tax liability, but in the event that you forget to pay taxes on anonymously held bitcoin, it would be hard for anyone to know.

My naivety has decreased in proportion to my adoption of skepticism.

Fidelity rescinded the IRA option a few days after it was announced, but I've yet to find an explanation. What bothers me about the IRA stuff; why do I want financial instutions keeping a record of my Bitcoin balance? So I can pay capital gains taxes? Haaaa, yeah right.

I put tuna fish in my mac & cheese.

Is determinism falsifiable? Is there a test that could be done to prove determinism isn't true?

As far as I know, the Superbowl is the most watched television event in the U.S. The audience isn't football fans; it's anybody at a superbowl party, or who checks out the most talked about commercials after the fact. How many moms/wives are begrudgingly watching the superbowl every year? How many children are watching the superbowl every year? If nothing else, it could generate controversy. I think to be most effective, it would have to make one strong and provocative point. Better yet, ask one provocative question. The trick, as I see it, would be doing something provocative, while still being clever/funny. I think you could find a way to make it work with circumcision, for example, not that mutilation isn't a serious issue, obviously. What you'd really be looking for would be to get massive and simultaneous exposure. FDR at the water cooler, so to speak. Suppose FDR crowdfunded 3 million dollars. How might that be best spent? I don't have the answer to that but a superbowl ad would be viewed live by 100+ million people. If 1% checked out FDR, that's a million people, and a percentage of them donating at some point. Of course this doesn't include all the people who would see the commercial after the fact. Think youtube compilations of the best Superbowl Commercials. It's about as close as you could get to doing a V for Vendetta on everyone's TV. I think it's interesting to think about what I would do with a 30/60 second ad. We should have a contest; who can pitch the best idea for 30/60 second commercial. That could be fun.

I know what you mean. I think most people here have dealt with varying degrees of isolation. I'm dealing with it myself right now. This community has been an immense help, but finding people in "real life" who want to talk about real issues has been more challenging, at least for me. There's no shortage of content here, for sure. I found FDR roughly a year ago, and I've got plenty to catch up on. I don't even know where I'd recommend you start, or if my recommendations are any good. The Introduction to Philosophy playlist is essential. Likewise with the Bomb in the Brain playlist. The Story of Your Enslavement video. The Handbook for Human Ownership video. Stefan's live events/speeches and debates are great. I would say it's hard to go wrong with just about anything Stefan has put out, I can't think of one video/podcast that was without value to me. People have come from a lot a different places to find FDR. For me, it was the natural progression of my understanding of economics and individual liberty, so I would suggest anything on Austrian Economics if you think that might interest you. Mises.org is a good resource for that, along with some of Stefan's stuff. The call-in shows are great to listen to, I'm going to do one myself if I can ever boil down what I'd like to ask/talk about. All his books are free to download as PDF's or audiobooks. I could go on forever. Just dig in, that's what I did, and haven't stopped yet. And don't hesitate to ask questions, everyone is super helpful.

Hey Chaz. Nice to have you here brother. I went through a similar transition with christianity to atheism. For me it was slow at first, and then all at once. It was like, if I poke a little hole here, and a little hole here, suddenly it all comes crashing down. It can definately be disorienting at first. This is very true in my experience. I would say finding the truth IS simple, when you have a consistent standard by which you judge truth/falsehood. Looking for it, or accepting it, and it's implications can be more difficult. I know for me, I was caught up in a whirlwind of reevaluating everything I knew, or thought to be true. It will pass, if it hasn't already. I've also been a listener of Joe Rogan's for a couple years, he does some great stuff. Just last night I was watching his interview with a Canadian astronaunt (don't recall his name off the top of my head) but it was really fascinating stuff. I don't agree with him about abolutely everything, but that's ok; I've got a ton of respect for him as a person and a thinker. Anyhow, welcome to the boards man. I'm 25 and stones throw away in Maryland. If you're anywhere near Northern Virginia/DC I've probably been bashing my head on my steering wheel in the same traffic as you at least once.

Hey Sasha, how are you? I'm can't wait to hear the rest of your story! I think you should finish it before you read what I write, if you can fight the temptation I don't want to influence you too much before you tell the whole story. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thoughts? [Edit] This got me thinking about the debate with Walter Block. The guy's friend would be a criminal by libertarian law, perhaps, but it seems like the man would maybe be thankful. He certainly doesn't seem to be angry, or the type to prosecute. Had the man caught his daughter drinking and driving at 16, would he have been justified taking away her car, assuming she paid for it, along with her insurance? Perhaps he confiscates her car, returning it under the condition that she has a breathalizer installed, for example. Certainly, the man's friend would have no right to confiscate his car for an extended period of time, but maybe the parent would have that right with regard to a 16 child. I don't know, I'm worried extending this principal would permit spanking. To any parents out there: how would you respond if you caught your teenage child drinking and driving, assuming their car was rightfully their property and they are responsible for their own insurance?

This doesn't really have anything to do with what you're asking, I just find it interesting. The guy in question is one of (if not) the best players in college football. He walked away from a virtually guarranteed $20+ million dollars after his junior year to return for another season. That blows my mind. What is to be gained by staying in college for someone in that position? As far as when do/would I jump into a conversation like that-- if I have a different opinion and I think it's defensible, and I've got nothing more pressing on my mind. As long as the other person doesn't come across as a hostile, or an unstable violent person, why not? I enjoy the banter most of the time. As long as I can make a point in a friendly manner, I like to think it gets people thinking a bit at least. For me, humor is great for those kinds of situations. If I can make a point, and make it funny, people tend to accept it much more readily. I'm a big believer in humor as a means to disarm people. If I can try to relate to them in some way, all the better too. Sometimes I'll be almost scolded for it though, "C'mon man, it's not a joke." When that happens, it's easy to drop and transition to a more serious argument.

I'm not sure that answers my question.

How so?

I didn't even pick up on this in my own post. Doh! Good point though, and an interesting question you raise. I wish I had a good answer but... yep, nothing. Just to make sure I understand; you and your brother would drive around getting high, while listening to music about how getting high/drunk is basically something you ought not be doing? I might be off base here but that seems like a buzzkill. The reason I say so, is I can really relate, but with alcohol. At that age, I wasn't really sure how to deal with break-ups/depression so I did what my dad did- get drunk. I'd be particularly depressed about a break-up and be drinking my sorrows away, so to speak, while listening to some depressing country music about alcohol ruining relationships, or something along those lines. It seems pretty silly when I think about it. Would you agree? It's like doing something self destructive, while listening to music telling you it's self destructive, because you presumably want to destroy yourself with full awareness that you're doing it. Does this make sense? Do you think the music propelled you into change? Like for me, the alcohol experience I described did propel me into change, I think. It was like I did it a couple times and had a realization: "Well this only works for a couple hours and I'm right back where I started. I gotta freaking try something different." That's not to say I never got drunk again, far from it. But I never really did it with the express intention of just avoiding feeling. It took me another non-music related realization to cure myself from drinking altogether, with the exception of a couple drinks here and there. I don't get drunk anymore; and least not intentionally. The lower tolerance sneaks up on me sometimes lol. I know in the aftermath of a bad break-up I would find most break up songs, particularly the popular break-up songs at the time, to be pretty depressing. If I allowed myself to listen to things I found depressing I felt like they would consume me. I'd have to find something more positive to listen to, and that would help break my funk, I think.

I can help you with one thing. You are definately not alone. I feel you on several levels. My parents are divorced, but have been since I was 10 or 12 maybe. I'm 25 now. I split time pretty arbitrarily between staying at my mother's and father's house. My mom is just beginning her 2nd divorce, and my dad's 2nd marriage has been getting progressively more on the rocks, so to speak. I've been thinking about a DeFoo from my dad for a while because I don't particularly enjoy being around him. He's a "recovered" alcoholic. I feel guilty about doing it, in part because my younger brother has been estranged from him for several years and my dad has no idea how to deal/cope with that. My brother's perspective is that he was done irreconcilable harm, and he'll never forgive his parents (or anyone for that matter) for anything, despite genuine attempts to reconcile differences/make restitution/family therapy/etc.(just my mom on the therapy, my dad is almost violently opposed to therapy. Repression is the key to his survival). It's been years and I can tell anytime my brother's name comes up he feels absolutely heartbroken. I won't say my brother was unjustified, but my dad never had any ill will, he's just an insecure idiot child in a mans body. It makes me feel anxiety because I don't want to hurt him if I were to DeFoo, like it's some vengeful, hateful, disowning thing. It's more like I just want some more space; let's visit on the holidays or something, but he'd prefer to be in my life much more often than I would. I guess that's not really a DeFoo, but minimizing my Foo . On the other hand, he gives me a place to stay when I want it, and doesn't charge me rent. I'm only employed part time, and the cost of living in my area is outrageous. I've gotta move out of parent's place, like yesterday, but I need to make more money for that to even be possible. I've got $40k+ thousand in federal student loan debt that I haven't been paying on regularly ($400+ a month). I definately lack a concrete career path/goal. My education was Econ/Finance but I find so much of that industry to be corrupt and perverted. I respect Peter Schiff for example, but he admits if he had to start his business today, he wouldn't stand a prayer. FINRA is so disgusting. I even applied there a few years ago on a whim thinking I'll just try to do absolutely nothing and see how long I last lol. They must have sniffed me out as an outsider. Ahhh, that could have been my contribution to the world. I've really been working on some innovative ideas lately, but they aren't really fully fleshed out yet. I feel like I'm just in this working in isolation/stall pattern waiting or hoping to make a breakthrough. I used to have a "self" that I could easily define. I was Mr. sports guy from about 8 years old to about 23. Super outgoing, voted class clown in school, charming, witty, life of the party, cocky extrovert, flirt with women like it was second nature. Now, I find defining myself as much more difficult. I know what I believe, but I've completely lost interest in many of the things that used to make life enjoyable for me, and a lot of things really lost meaning for me. What I used to think of as funny turned out to be what 17 year old public school kids thought was funny. I realized, I was just an ass. I stopped being an ass, but it turns out most people I encountered liked assholes as long as it's directed at someone else. Shouldn't I be rewarded for not being an ass? I used to be brimming with self confidence, and now I really find self confidence to be a struggle. I've empowered myself with all of this knowledge and I'm seriously lacking confidence compared to my past ignorant and assholish self. What's that all about, ya know? I'm much more introverted, in total opposition to the extroversion that made up the first 20 or so years of my life. Occassionally, I'll have this shyness that feels so foreign to me. Trying to flirt with women has become this daunting, uncomfortable, anxiety provoking task. I don't want to give it a bad rap, but this self knowledge thing has been tough. Ignorance was a lot more fun, and socially rewarding, and stress free. Anyhow, what is my self today? Hard to say. I feel like a goldfish in a tiny fish bowl. I need space to grow, and whatever I grow into, that will be my self. When I think about where I want to be in 10 years, I don't pull up anything specific. I just know I want to be doing something meaningful. I want a woman to share my life with, and I think I'd like to have a kid(s). The way I look at it though, is I gotta get myself figured out and on a path somewhere before I start looking for people to share that with. Or at least find likeminded people to help me along the way. What would really be great, is to find me a "Suger Momma," ala Big Daddy. Ideally, she'll have virtue and a few million dollars of inherited wealth, and we won't "have" to work. We can just be in love, be loving parents, and do things we enjoy, spread truth vs. the hourly 9-5 robot work. I just have to figure out where to find this woman I hope this helps some, I really identified with a lot of what you said, and I'm trying to work through some similar things. I suspect getting away from the family would do more than anything else, but I don't really know. As you said, it may be something deeper. Someone more knowledgable than I will have to weigh in on that.

I haven't seen your first two videos but I've seen the past two. I have to say, I think they're brilliant, and I'll be checking out the other two, and any future videos. I'm incredibly sorry you had to go through that experience with you mother... Just awful. You appear to me to be really in touch with things, and yourself. Grounded, you know? Of course, it would have been much better had you not been subjected to these kinds of things in the first place. Again, for that, I'm very sorry. Sucks. I'm curious, how long have you been really working on issues in your past/personal growth between therapy and what you've done on your own. I see you've been a member here since 2008. Geezz, where the hell was I back then. I would have killed to discover this stuff sooner. One of the things that stuck out for me was when you mentioned something about what kind of abuse your mother must have suffered as a child. I forgot your exact words but I believe you said something to the effect of, "It's not for me to worry about." This is a real sticky point for me. I sometimes feel, "how can I hold my parents absolutely responsible? Why am I not holding my grandparents responsible, and why not my great grandparents, and why not my great-great grandparents, etc?" I've been wrestling under the surface with the idea of DeFooing, at least from my father, but for a variety of reasons I seem unable to do it, despite a belief that it would be in my best interest. Both of my parents had severly dysfunctional, and vile, and traumatic childhoods. I feel strong genuine empathy when I think about it, moreso than I do for myself and any adverse childhood experiences I had. I don't know if that qualifies as stockholm or not, but I didn't have it nearly as bad as they did either. At least that's how I make sense of it. I'm not trying to compare, or imply that this has any bearing on your situation but I'm curious what your thoughts would be on that. I see these manifestations of abuse in my parents as irrational, and ultimately abusive, but also perfectly logical defense mechanisms that hardened over time. Part of me thinks that at my parents' age, some things are just virtually irreversible and I should just make my feelings/beliefs known, and agree to disagree. Make due, so to speak. I wonder if you have any thoughts on this. You've definately inspired me to attempt the same thing or something similar. I think your dialogue is great, I have no problems at all differentiating between characters. To see your work in action makes it much more real to me. You set a great example and let me know I won't be crazy to have conversations with my other selves. Normally I just talk to my one self. I hope I didn't make this too much about myself, I really just wanted to praise, compliment and thank you more than anything. And if I could just add in a totally masculine and heterosexual way, you've got some great hair man. Feeling pretty jealous over here But, good stuff Stephen. Keep it coming. And good luck with the green V-neck. It's certainly not too much to ask for.

http://www.veteranstoday.com/2013/07/14/whatabout7/ An interesting read. I noticed there is no mention of the sampling bias of the study. I found this interesting at first because I thought it was the kind of thing that ought to be explicitly mentioned. But then I got thinking; what's more interesting is the implication of the selected sample. If you accept that the internet represents the ultimate access to information, should it be suprising that "internet folk" don't accept mainstream views? My grandparents may have heard of Youtube or wikipedia. My parents may have used them once or twice. I've spent weeks/months of real time learning anything I could from the internet. I'm sure it's not just me. For anyone that actively seeks answers, or is willing to challenge convential wisdom, it's easy to shoot down propaganda. Take it from my name; it's easy to falsify something, and maybe that's the best way to learn i.e: figure out everything that isn't true, and juggle what's left over till you stumble onto something. Where conspiracy theorists lose me is when they leave the realm of "that's not true/possible" and venture into the realm of lizard people and whatnot. I feel sorry those people. All the misdirected energy... It never ceases to amaze me however, the degree to which people will disassociate themselves from the past. No number of conspiracy theories turned conspiracy facts will convince them that conspiracies can occur. The media only reports facts. Sigh... It is so incredibly frustrating when people consciously reject facts, as if they're subjective or don't matter. That goes on in both camps, and it just leaves me feeling like I wouldn't go as far as the author does, but suffice it to say, I have a healthy distrust of certain narratives.

I'm not sure which sub-category this belongs in, but I suppose Self Knowledge will do. Ok, so I've had 4-5 of these experiences in my life and they leave me feeling absolutely mystified. I had one again tonight. I was reconfiguring my Mom's wireless network from my Stepdad's office, using my laptop, because Windows drives me nuts. This is, to my recollection, the first time I've ever really sat down and used his office for anything, mostly because I never had a reason/need to. Before tonight, the last Déjà vu experience I had was about a year ago at a bar I would visit from time to time. I can't recall any others but I'm certain I've had them because each new one reminds me of the last. I don't think I can describe it any better than Wikipedia, except to say I have the feeling in my bones. Nothing can compare to it. It's like I'm simply going about my life, and a cartoon charactor comes up and smacks me upside the head with a frying pan. For a moment or two, everything ceases to exist as I'm entirely consumed with answering the question, "how the F*** is this possible?!" Does anyone else have any experience with this? Is anyone aware of any possible theories explaining this phenemenon? I'd rather not have to throw out everything I think I know about space and time

It's funny you post this. I was just pondering the gist of your thought earlier tonight as I was browsing through Wesley's Epic Liberty Music thread. I can already tell I'm going to ramble a bit, so you've been forewarned. I'll just give a run down of my music listening history and how it relates to your question. My mother has been a 5th grade teacher for centuries. When I was in elementary school, despite it being public school, I had the advantage of my mom working at the school I attended. I loved it, because it meant I didn't have to ride the school bus; I rode with her to and from school. She had two or three cassette tapes that rotated in and out and I was in charge of changing them if either of us were in the mood for a particular song. If I heard any of the 20-30 songs today, I would instantly recongize them, but I couldn't name them now, with a few exceptions. I very much remember a song I liked called, "Hang down you head Tom Dooley." (you'll have to listen to it to understand further http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BtSzcKZGzDs) The reason I remember it has to do with a confusion I always had. I have a not too distant relationship with a man named Bill Bailey, who happens to be the last man hanged in the US. Actually, only through marriage, it was his wife/victim who I am related too, so no worries . Anyhow, for some reason, I always thought the song was about him because the details are pretty similar, or at least they seemed so as a kid. So listening to the song as a child always made me feel sad. I really liked the song, but I remember feeling bad for "Tom Dooley." I remember thinking as the song ended, he shouldn't have killed her, because now he's going to be killed himself. I can say with fair certainty that the song affected my mood, but it's more difficult to say whether my mood (as someone with a troubled childhood) led me to like a song about murder and what would be called justice. I think I mostly liked it because it wasn't Aretha Franklin's, "R-E-S-P-E-C-T" After all, I'm not a woman lacking respect; that was my mother. I remember my first girlfriend gave me a 98 degrees CD for my birthday a couple weeks after we started "dating." I was 12-13 at the time. I remember listening to the song, "I do (cherish you)," and it really affecting me. DON'T LAUGH! haha. I remember listening to the song and thinking, "yeah, that's exactly how I feel. I really love this girl!" Again, I know the song affected my mood when I listened to it, but it's hard to say whether my mood influenced my listening to it or not. More likely, I listened to it because someone gave it to me, and found things I liked about it. In highschool, I was big into football and wrestling. I lived in the school weightroom for 4 years, interrupted with a few classes here and there. Being from a pretty rural town, the music in the weightroom was almost exclusively country. I never listened to country music much growing up, but I embraced it when I listened to it all the time. I started acting more country than I really was, and becoming what the songs I liked wanted me to be. That is to say, not unlike other teenagers, I started drinking beer, doing things that made women leave me, and then being sad they left. Also, being in the weight room, it would get me juiced up into a macho man kinda state, which was great. Other people get hyped on Metal, Rap, or whatever. I don't think it mattered, in that regard. The music got my juices flowing, and set my mood, not vice versa, I don't think. I went through a brief rap phase in college, mostly because my dorm neighbor, turned best friend, was half black and all into rap. (sorry for the stereotype of black people liking rap) In truth, it probably made me feel a bit like a gangster lol, but I don't recall ever acting gangsterish except in parody. Nowadays, I listen mostly to classic rock. The Beatles, Tom Petty, Aerosmith, Pink Floyd, Queen, Steve Miller Band, Lynard Skynard, Janis Joplin, etc. Again, I don't think I choose to listen to that stuff because of my mood. The music does influence my mood, but I choose to listen to stuff, and take from it, things that validate what I believe to be true. I don't listen to John Lennon's, "Imagine" because of my mood; rather I listen to it because it's a great song speaking truth. I guess what I'm saying is, my mood has been influenced in particular ways, at least a bit by everything I've listened to regularly. I just try to listen to things that influence my mood positively and maybe speak some truth. My phases of music listening have come mostly from happenstance, rather than because I sought out a particular genre/artist. That being said, music that touches you is music you identify with, so it would be unsurprising that a depressed person would listen to depressing music, happy person & happy music, religious person & religious music, etc. I think we look for validation in music, but I don't really know. Confirmation bias run amok maybe... Definately an interesting question though!

As a general rule, I detest asking for help. It's like, by doing so, I am revealing my own inadequacy. Others have noticed this about me. They will assure me that they want to help, that I'm not being a burden. They will assure me that they enjoy being in a position to help others. They will ask me, "Please, let me know if there is anything I can do to help." Nonetheless, it doesn't sit well with me. I'd be interested in any theories explaining this. Steve Jobs mentioned fear of failure. This does resonate with me. I am having a hard time, right now, thinking of anything I have failed at in my life. When I was a child, I wanted to ride a bike. I fell a few times, but then achieved my goal. In the same way, I can't think of a concrete goal I've set for myself that I haven't achieved. Others would say I set my goals too high, but I don't think I've set them high enough. At least, some of my goals are ones that I haven't pursued with all my heart and energy through action. It's like I'm constantly preparing myself for something, and never taking the first fateful step, recognizing I'll never be fully prepared. My father once told me, "There is no greater burden than that of high expectations." He was implying: lower your standards, lower your goals, lower your expectations, and just be happy. I resoundly reject that. There are things I'd really like to do, but by not taking the first step I've simultaneously assured myself niether failure, nor success. Jobs said something about people who dream about doing something vs. those who accomplish something. I've been in both camps at different points in my life, but at the moment, I'm in the former. Maybe I'm just deluded but I feel capable of doing almost anything I set my mind to. As I'm writing this, it occurs to me that asking for help could really help me overcome my inertia, but I'm instantly trying to fight off the demons warning of a thousand pitfalls of failure. The thought of personally failing someone who invests in me, absent unforeseeable forces beyond my control, is like acid in my veins.

Crackheads depend on crack dealers. What would they do without the dealers? People would go through withdrawal. Change will benefit some, and harm others in the short term, and that's fine. You gotta stop being a crackhead before you can worry about anything else. The elderly had a lifetime to get private health insurance before they got sick. They chose not to. Compassion, generousity and charity would help ease the transition, but State promises would be broken, and people would die. Promises are broken today, and people die today. Of course advocates of a free society would have a vested interest in not allowing the formation of a disenfrachised underclass. I would do anything in my power to address the problems that others use as a justification for the State. If the State were dissolved tomorrow, I'd do anything to prevent it's reinstitution. Additionally, I don't want to see people suffer, so I would try to help in the best way I could. A key point was made by Marcus. Government has not provided a just and moral solution. Who cares what solutions may be tried, so long as they are free of force. The best solutions will emerge as the product of trial and error. The status quo prevents the experimentation that provides information, and information is useful and unbiased.