Re: Off-topic: cultures and mysticism (was: Promotin g Lojban)

[Rob Zook <rzook@xxxxxxxx.xxxx]

"Engdahl, Rod" wrote:
> 
> From: "Engdahl, Rod" <engdahl@visa.com>
> 
> Actually, the libertarian believes that the purpose of government is 
> served in four areas:
> 
> 1.  internal security (to protect individual rights) served by local and
> regional police forces.
> 2.  external security (to defend from outside attack) served by regional 
> and federal armed forces
> 3.  arbitration (to ensure that civil and governmental disputes are 
> fairly resolved) served by local, regional and federal courts
> 4.  exchange standards (to ensure equitable exchange rates for the value 
> of the workforce) served by some fixed or governed monetary standard.
> 
> This is quite different from an anarchist, a simple believer in free 
> will, or a worshiper of governmental largess.

Actually, I've come to think of "anarchist/anarchism" as a 
over-define/under-defined term. In other words, no single generally
accepted definition. The only common thread I found in the various 
anarchistic literature I've read is a strong distrust of any institutionalized
form of government, along with a rather, IMHO, pie in 
the sky ideal of humans cooperating in groups for a common good.

That's of course leaving out the common media definition of anarchist
which seems to be "a nasty person who blows things up". 

Personally I like the definition of the anarchist in Robert A. Heinlein's
_The Moon is a Harsh Mistress_. Of course even that did not pretend to
define anarchism in any absolute way, just as an anarchist living in a
non-anarchistic society.


Rob Z.