Anarcho-Capitalism

Anarcho-capitalism or free-market anarchism (a form of individualist anarchism) is an anti-state political philosophy that attempts to reconcile anarchism with capitalism. It advocates the elimination of the state, the provision of law enforcement, courts, national defense, and all other security services by voluntarily-funded competitors in a...more

Anarcho-capitalism or free-market anarchism (a form of individualist anarchism) is an anti-state political philosophy that attempts to reconcile anarchism with capitalism. It advocates the elimination of the state, the provision of law enforcement, courts, national defense, and all other security services by voluntarily-funded competitors in a free market rather than through compulsory taxation. It supports the complete deregulation of nonintrusive personal and economic activities and a self-regulated market. Anarcho-capitalists argue for a society based in voluntary trade of private property (including money, consumer goods, land, and capital goods) and services in order to maximize individual liberty and prosperity, but also recognize charity and communal arrangements as part of the same voluntary ethic.Though anarcho-capitalists are known for asserting a right to private (individualized/non-public) property, non-state common property can also exist in an anarcho-capitalist society. For them, what is important is that it is acquired and transferred without help or hindrance from the compulsory state. Anarcho-capitalist libertarians believe that the only just way to acquire property is through voluntary trade, gift, or labor-based original appropriation, rather than through aggression or fraud. Murray Rothbard coined the term anarcho-capitalism to distinguish it from anarchism that opposes private property.

Anarcho-capitalists see free-market capitalism as the basis for a free society. Rothbard defined free-market capitalism as "peaceful voluntary exchange", in contrast to "state capitalism" which he defined as a collusive partnership between business and government that uses coercion to subvert the free market. "Capitalism," as anarcho-capitalists employ the term, is not to be confused with state monopoly capitalism, crony capitalism, corporatism, or contemporary mixed economies, wherein natural market incentives and disincentives are skewed by state intervention. So they reject the state, based on the belief that states are aggressive entities which steal property (through taxation and expropriation), initiate aggression, are a compulsory monopoly on the use of defensive and/or punitive force, use their coercive powers to benefit some businesses and individuals at the expense of others, create monopolies, restrict trade, and restrict personal freedoms via drug laws, compulsory education, conscription, laws on food and morality, and the like. The embrace of unfettered capitalism leads to considerable tension between anarcho-capitalists and many social anarchists who tend to distrust the market, and believe that free-market capitalism is inherently authoritarian – hence incompatible with Anarchist ideals.