“(IN the bitcoin thing with digital currency, you can arbitrarily increase the granularity by adding more digits; in such a digital numeraire (which I confess I sort of think is the ideal money, in some sense, though not in a practical sense given some political and other problems), you never need to increase the supply at all (once it reaches its asymptotic maximum), because any supply truly is enough: you never face the granularity problem you guys allude to.”
The “political” problems I was thinking of was my fear that the state would kill it, if it became a real threat. For once I was too pessimistic (too confident in the competence of the state to realize the danger bitcoin poses) and thus I lost a bet to @real_vijay… but that led me to buy some bitcoin to repay my debt to him, so I don’t regret losing that bet! [continue reading…]
I had been meaning to talk to my old friend SheldonRichman, of the Libertarian Institute and TGIF column, about his own IP Odyssey, as he’s always been great on this issue, 1 and many others. At the same time I had been talking to André Simoni of Brazil about some questions he had about applying my/Rothbard’s title-transfer contract theory to some questions he had about interest payments on student loans and other contracts, usury, and so on. I had thought of talking to André and Sheldon separately but decided to combine them, partly because I confused André’s topic with a discussion I had also been having at the same time with Galambosian Brian Gladish about IP and Galambos. 2
Sheldon and I talked first about IP and other topics, and then to André about contract theory, which Sheldon jumped in on anyway. (I may talk to Gladish later about Galambos and IP.) 3
We touched on a number of topics; see the summary of our discussion points by Grok:
[00:00:02 – 00:20:44] Stephan Kinsella hosts Sheldon Richman, executive editor of the Libertarian Institute, to discuss Richman’s libertarian journey and his opposition to intellectual property (IP). Richman traces his ideological roots to the 1964 Goldwater campaign, Ayn Rand, and Murray Rothbard, emphasizing his rejection of IP as incompatible with liberty due to its monopolistic nature. He critiques the notion that creation alone justifies ownership, advocating for property rights based on prior ownership of tangible inputs. The conversation highlights Richman’s classical liberal stance, his defense of corporations as efficient market entities, and his nuanced view on libertarian labels, favoring a broad, non-tribal approach to radical liberalism.
[00:20:45 – 01:33:05] The discussion shifts to Andre from Brazil, who joins to explore the title-transfer theory of contract, focusing on its application to student loans, interest payments, usury, and bankruptcy. Kinsella explains that contracts involve title transfers, not enforceable promises, and addresses Andre’s concerns about vague contract terms and usury laws, arguing they often protect entrenched interests. On bankruptcy, Kinsella notes his evolving view, influenced by inalienability concepts, suggesting that extreme debt obligations resembling slavery might justify limited bankruptcy protections in a free society, as discussed in his recent blog post. Richman contributes insights on contracts, reinforcing the need for clear title transfers, while the trio debates the moral and legal implications of debt and societal expectations in libertarian frameworks.
A friend on an email discussion list had a long post starting with:
It strikes me that humanity is by and large trapped in a false dilemma where we have to choose between an all-powerful egotistical dictator and an all-powerful soulless bureaucracy. In the mean it boils down to the Soviet Union versus Hitler.
Person A: Hitler was really bad because he killed millions of innocent people.
Person B: The Soviet Union was worse because it killed even more innocent people.
The case involves the La. governor issuing various executive orders during Covid, “limiting gatherings and encouraging people to stay home” and also limiting liability of health care providers to cases of gross negligence or willful misconduct, under the Louisiana Health Emergency Powers Act (LHEPA), La. R.S. 29:760, et seq., which provides: “During a state of public health emergency, no health care provider shall be civilly liable for causing the death of, or injury to, any person or damage to any property except in the event of gross negligence or willful misconduct.”
As the case notes, “On March 11, 2020, Governor John Bel Edwards declared a public health emergency in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic.” (The federal limitation on liability of pharmaceutical companies has also been criticized by libertarians.) 1
It’s almost impossible to meet this standard of liability, as it’s much higher than the normal standard of negligence found in La. Civ. Code Art. 2315: [continue reading…]
https://libertarianism.uk/2025/03/30/the-illiberal-nature-of-limited-liability-stephan-kinsella-replies/The question I have been set is why, if it is as wonderful as I claim, capitalism produces immense inequalities and waste? Why is it so harmful to the environment? Since the purpose of the question appears to be a requirement for me to explain in more detail certain points I have argued in class, I hope I shall be forgiven for putting aside its exact wording in favour of what I think a more productive question. Before doing this, even so, I will make some effort to deal with question as set—even if my effort here will be brief.
The argument from inequality is easily answered. If one looks at the Lorenz curves for those countries that have economies based even slightly on free market principles, they show more equality than those countries that do not allow free markets. The correlation between economic freedom and prosperity is undeniable. Consider, for example, Switzerland and South Korea—two countries where markets are moderately free. Both have high GDP per capita and a large middle class. Compare them to command economies such as North Korea or Venezuela, where wealth is concentrated in the hands of the political elite, and the general population is impoverished. To be precise, capitalist countries, by any honest measurement, both richer and more equal than non-capitalist countries.
This is my appearance on Adam Haman’s podcast and Youtube channel, Haman Nature (Haman Nature substack), episode HN 109, “Stephan Kinsella Expounds on Philosophy And The Life Well Lived” (recorded Feb. 6, 2025—just before the Tom Woods cruise). We discussed philosophy and rights; my legal and libertarian careers (see Adopting Liberty: The Stephan Kinsella Story), and so on.
Adam’s Shownotes:
Adam interviews patent attorney, philosopher, legal theorist and libertarian anarchist Stephan Kinsella about his life, his works, and what’s next for the great man! 00:00 – Intro. 01:21 — Does Stephan believe there is a level of technology required for “Ancapistan” to “work”. 07:42 — Adam has issues with the “is/ought” gap and asks Stephan for help on the matter. 25:42 — The life and times of Stephan Kinsella. Great stuff! 50:55 — Have questions about legal careers? Reach out to Stephan with questions! 52:02 — Outro. Thank you for watching Haman Nature!
A little biography of mine was just completed: Alan D. Bergman, Adopting Liberty: The Stephan Kinsella Story (2025) (pdf; epub). I’m not going to offer paper copies for purchase but the PDF and epub files are online for those interested. Jeff Tucker just tweeted it to his large following so I suppose I might as well blog it here. This was prepared for family and close friends; I was on the fence about posting this, for fear of appearing self-indulgent or narcissistic, but I really don’t care what people think and I figured some people might find it of interest. I know at least one guy is 🙂
Where are the best pracitical suggestions along those lines – if any of you know and are willing to share?
My personal view is that in the long run the only that that can work is economic literacy. Thus we need to educate people; and one way to do it is to support the Mises Institute, and to keep spreading a consistent, principled message of liberty. We can keep learning, both to improve ourselves and to improve our ability to persuade. And by improving ourselves we help present “one improved unit” to society, thus helping to win over people to our other views by the power of attraction.
I would recommend not deluding oneself that we can “win” once and for all; or that winning is all that matters. That way lies the perils of self-delusion, compromise, despair, disengagement, and activism (see my The Trouble with Libertarian Activism). [continue reading…]
Regarding various new or increased or changed tariffs being proposed by Trump: of course free trade is good and the US should unilaterally abolish tariffs. 1 (I seem to recall other arguments for unilateral free trade—perhaps by Mises, Rothbard, Hazlitt, Friedman—but cannot find them; if anyone recalls any of these please notify me.)
The uncertainty faced by businesses and actors in the US as a result of these changes is simply one consequence of the state having the very power to legislate. [continue reading…]
As noted in this Grok conversation, the US Supreme Court assumed the power to review legislation for constitutionality in Marbury vs. Madison—the power of judicial review. In this case, the Court was asked to issue a writ to place Marbury on a Court. The Court admitted he should be placed here but that the Judiciary Act of 1789, which seemed to give the Supreme Court original jurisdiction to issue such writs, was unconstitutional since it unconstitutionally expanded the Court’s original jurisdiction beyond what the Constitution specified. In other words, the Court appeared to decline a power but was only able to decline this power by assuming the power to review federal laws for constitutionality and declare them unconstitutional if found wanting. [continue reading…]
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