DailyAnarchist.com | I have a fundamental objection to the prison system that I rarely hear raised. Why does a man who steals a loaf of bread lose his freedom of speech? Why does a woman who vandalizes a car lose the freedom to associate with her children? These questions are a challenge to those who view rights as social constructs as well as those who believe they are inalienable. Stated in more general terms, how is it that aggressors lose virtually all freedom because of what might be a minor transgression?... - [More]

Posted: December 12, 2011 in Articles

InformationLiberation.com | Those who believe in the beneficence of force have never yet agreed upon the crimes that should be forbidden, the method and extent of punishment, the purpose of punishment, or even its result. They simply agree that without force and violence social life cannot be maintained. All conceivable human actions have fallen under the disfavor of the law and found their place in penal codes: blasphemy, witchcraft, heresy, insanity, idiocy, methods of eating and drinking, the manner of worshiping the supreme being, the observance of fast days and holy days, the giving of medicine and the withholding of medicine, the relation of the sexes, the right to labor and not to labor, the method of acquiring and dispensing property, its purchase and sale, the forms of dress and manner of deportment — in fact, almost every conceivable act of man.... - [More]

Posted: September 7, 2011 in Books

Mises.org | All societies, no matter how despotic their rulers, must possess a basic degree of respect for property rights, even if such respect is given due to custom rather than intellectual appreciation. All people know that it is a crime to rape or murder; even rapists and murderers know this. Of course, the major hurdle of anarchism is to convince people that murder is wrong even when duly elected “representatives” order it.... - [More]

Posted: June 11, 2011 in Books

GeorgeDonnelly.com | An arrangement for the resolution of disputes that focuses on restitution is more effective than one that makes as its goal the punishment of offenders. Restitution compensates victims for their losses at the expense of their aggressors. This constitutes a powerful incentive against criminal action, since offenders will have to repay every bit of value they destroyed in order to continue in civilized society. Punishment, on the other hand, is simply vengeance. Not only does it not help victims, it actively puts them and others at greater risk by placing convicts in an overly harsh crime school that breeds resentment and further delinquency.... - [More]

Posted: August 29, 2010 in Articles