Economics and Government Theft

Paper Summary:

This paper examines how both a mugger and the government are manifestations of similar impulses and should be resisted for the protection of individual rights and the essence of the social contract. The paper cites various ideas of Locke, Rousseau and others on this issue and considers some of the ways the government has transferred wealth, with unintended consequences.

From the Paper:

"In the two stories told, the real victim in each case is the person whose money is being taken, whether by as mugger directly or by the government indirectly. Admittedly, the situation in the second instance is somewhat exaggerated, for it implies that the mugger and the politician are working together to achieve a transfer of funds. This is what often does happen in effect, without the direct collusion between the two and the real issue is that an injustice is being done in each case. In the first case, the individual walking down the street is harmed by being attacked and by losing his money, if only for a short time. In the second instance, that same person not only is robbed of his money but his freedom, as he is then imprisoned, essentially for objecting and for refusing to be robbed further."

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