Damek.

Much like people finally noticing that “free markets” don’t really exist, it looks like some thinkers are starting to address the age old question of whether humanity ever actually left its original “state of nature.” Heady stuff. The basic insight is that the system we have now is the same system we’ve always had, with just minor tweaks and modifications throughout history. Capitalism is a broken system without the insights and considerations of socialist thought, and socialism is nothing but a dream without the framework of capitalism underneath. Or something like that.

In any case, this also gives me a chance to link to the altogether hilarious Libertarianism in One Lesson.

On a side note, I think it’s worth a reminder that the historical basis of socialist thought was as a democratic response to the existing domination of society by an aristocracy. Whether its proponents see it or not, libertarianism would create a market-based aristocracy that conflicts with democracy. This is why libertarians usually side with the conservatives in any society: at worst, conservatism is about returning to said aristocratic domination. “Conservatism is incompatible with democracy, prosperity, and civilization in general. It is a destructive system of inequality and prejudice that is founded on deception and has no place in the modern world.”