For a new liberty
by Murray N. Rothbard · first published 1973
68% recommend32% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Libertarian manifesto deriving its positions from the non-aggression principle and applying them to current institutions, including how police, law and courts could work without taxation; for anarcho-capitalism readers.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
First published in 1973, this book was authored by "the leading libertarian theoretician and spokesman" of the time, Murray N. Rothbard. Libertarianism was then a new movement in American politics which rejected both traditional liberalism and conservatism, but sought to replace "coercive government action with voluntary private and free-market action."
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…government is immoral. Government is therefore a criminal organization, like a scaled up version of the mafia. If these ideas appeal to you, I recommend reading the works of Murray Rothbard, in particular "For a New Liberty", but his books on economics will also set you on the right path.
on “How to turn in your tax-cheating neighbor” ↗…Mises - 'Theory of Credit and Money': https://mises.org/library/theory-money-and-credit Adam Smith - 'Wealth of Nations': http://www.ibiblio.org/ml/libri/s/SmithA_WealthNations_p.pdf Murray Rothbard - 'For a New Liberty': https://mises.org/library/new-liberty-libertarian-manifesto And for those who want to really go deep (some might say, far into the weeds!), I'll add Ludwig von Mises - Human Action: https://fee.org/resources/human-action-by-ludwig-von-mises/…
on “Ask HN: What are the must-read books about economics/finance?” ↗…more partisan as well, in the same way that a research paper is both more scientific and more focused on one model of the world than is a generic textbook. I recommend starting with Murray Rothbard's For a New Liberty, which takes a very bottom-up approach to economic principles: http://mises.org/rothbard/newlibertywhole.asp There are plenty of other excellent books and materials available freely from the Mises Institute…
on “What went wrong with economics” ↗…get decomposed into few more, so the number of states even grows). Why do you assume there is no reason to prevent a number of PDO turning into violent one? There are great books: Murray Rothbard's "For a new liberty: libertarian manifesto": http://mises.org/document/1010/ David Friedman's "The machinery of freedom": http://daviddfriedman.com/The_Machinery_of_Freedom_.pdf
on “The state of democratic control over surveillance in France” ↗- Anatomy of the State by Murray Rothbard - What has government done to our money? by Murray Rothbard - For a New Liberty by Murray Rothbard - The Law by Frederick Bastiat The world is a rotten place thanks to politicians, and at the same time the world is a beautiful place in spite of politicians.
on “Ask HN: What books fundamentally changed the way you think about the world?” ↗"For a New Liberty" by Murray Rothbard, not only solidified my understanding of power, politics and the state already explained in "Anatomy of the State" by the same Rothbard, but also opened my mind about the eternal…
on “Ask HN: What was the one book that you read and it actually changed your life?” ↗…from a 'first-principles' analysis, I would recommend Murray Rothbard's _The Ethics of Liberty_, which you can freely read or download here: http://mises.org/rothbard/Ethics/Ethics.asp In Rothbard's _For a New Liberty_, he addresses specifically the origins of the FCC and how the market approach was thwarted and replaced with bureaucracy: http://blog.mises.org/archives/002532.asp http://www.mises.org/rothbard/newliberty.asp…
on “What the F***? - Why We Curse” ↗1) If you like Atlas Shrugged, then maybe you will like "For a new liberty" by Murray Rothbard (the founder of anarcho-capitalism movement): http://mises.org/rothbard/newlibertywhole.asp That's a deduction of libertarian principles from non-aggression axiom and application…
on “Ask HN: Good books?” ↗If you agree with John Carmack (at least somewhat), then you should read "For a new liberty" by Murray Rothbard: http://mises.org/rothbard/newlibertywhole.asp Where he explains how society can live without taxes extracted by the threat of force.
on “John Carmack on government” ↗"For a New Liberty" by Murray Rothbard and "The Machinery Of Freedom" by David D. Friedman.
on “Life as a Service” ↗Sounds interesting, but I have doubts about utilitarian arguments too. Why not check out Rothbard's "For a New Liberty"? It's in audio form for free here: https://mises.org/media.aspx?action=category&ID=87 Chapter 12. The Public Sector, III: Police, Law, and the Courts is particularly impressive. EDIT: Here is Rothbard's…
on “Let's Give Up On The Constitution” ↗…serious. If you don't like government, find that sort of anarchy which fits your beliefs. For me, there is libertarian anarcho-capitalism. If you are interested, I recommend you to start with the book "For A New Liberty: The Libertarian Manifesto" : http://mises.org/rothbard/newlibertywhole.asp (it is available for fownload for free)
on “Erdogan says social media 'danger to society'” ↗…government system). True, such ideas may seem radical to you(No government, won't there be violence and chaos?!). If you want to know how such system will work, take a look at Murray Rothbard's awesome book "For a new liberty: libertarian manifesto" mises.org/rothbard/foranewlb.pdf . There is a chapter "The Public Sector, III: Police, Law, and the Courts", which you'll enjoy.
If you're already at Mises.org you should read Ethics of liberty http://anarcho-capitalist.org/wp-content/pdfs/Rothbard%20%28... For a new liberty https://mises.org/sites/default/files/For%20a%20New%20Libert... If those are to your liking they contain some great reading lists. A lot of the books in those lists are also available for free at mises.org
on “Ask HN: What are your recommended reads that are available for free?” ↗For a New Liberty: The Libertarian Manifesto by Murray Rothbard It presents a clear vision of a society without government
on “Ask HN: What books fundamentally changed the way you think about the world?” ↗